Is it bad to shift an automatic tranny to neutral at the stop light?

i would go with both to be on the safe side. good question, best of the thread so far.

 

I do it all the time.........im a hypermiller

 

From what I know, it doesn't hurt the car. You can shift it into neutral. Some people say that is better for the brakes because it limits the brake fuel that is running over the tires and if you are on flat ground can completely take your foot of the brake. There is no damage in shifting (think about it, you shift between park, reverse, and drive, all of which pass through neutral, every time you drive your car).

Similar situations are putting the car in neutral when coasting down a hill. It is not going to break your car.

Another thing to think about: when you are in drive and you are stopped going up a hill, take your foot off the brake. Sometimes the car won't roll back at all. In this case the car is held in place by the gears, there is no point in applying the brakes because the brakes aren't keeping the car still.

While I am not a mechanic, my uncle taught me how to drive and he was a mechanical engineer and built engines. He says this ^^^. I am sure there are probably differing opinions from car mechanics and in that case the OP will just have to decide what to do for himself. I hope this helps.

 

Why not put it in Park ?

 

Not the right words, I see that didn't come out right. I mean that the brake fluid that runs to the tires through the brake lines isn't being compressed which cuts down on pressure and friction. That is what I meant by the brake fluid over the tires.

 

I will do that too especially if I just came to a stoplight after a downhill run to let brakes cool faster.

 

Park should not be used to hold a grade. Better to put it in neutral and engage the parking brake.

One of the Aamco tips when parking is to put it in Neutral, engage the parking brake, let go of the footbrake, then put it in Park. This way, all of the truck's weight is held by the parking brake and not by the transmission.

 

bottom line:
Brake fluid is designed to stop a vehicle ,holding it in gear at a light is irrelevant in comparison.
Driving in neutral isnt legal , and especially not recomended in an auto trans.
There will be more wear on the linkage, seen it in every fleet vehicle we have at work for the last 15 years.....but the added wear n tear , might not be as bad , or accumilate as fast as ours. OP's choice.