My son believes that it is better to coast to a stop and I say use the engines compression to slow the car down to a full stop. He drives an '07 Honda civic six speed. I maintain that it is safer and you not only have better control of the car, but you save the breaks.
I use my “breaks” to stop my car. I never pay someone to replace brake pads/ rotors. Replacing a clutch is another matter.
If you are talking about downshifting through the gears to slow down, then no, I don’t do it. You can leave it in gear (whichever you happen to be in), no added wear with that, then push in the clutch later on.
Thank you.
Please search for all of the other times this has been asked here, as the answer is the same for you.
We’ve had this post a number of times before. Needlessly wearing out your clutch and gear box to make the brakes last a little while longer is FALSE ECONOMY.
The only time I downshift is when going down a steep slope or mountain road. In that case, the brakes could overheat and fade, a dangerous situation.
Brake jobs are nearly always cheaper than transmission and clutch jobs. So, I would coast under normal cricumstances.
- Brakes cost: $$
- Transmissions cost: $$$$$ ??? ??? ???
Take your choice.
I don’t think you can damage your transmission or your clutch if you are coasting… I’ve read numerous articles where they said it loud and clear: It’s not dangerous and you save fuel compared to neutral coasting where you lose a bit of control (on turns for example). So why wouldn’t people go for it ? Maybe they aren’t good/confident enough that they’ll pull it off ? Or people don’t want to risk it on their own car ? Try a car rental service then but I can assure you there’s nothing wrong with this thing.