Hi folks,
So is it ok and not harmful to use the paddle shifters to decelerate/brake? This would be within reasonable rpms. Just wondering if it's a nice way to save on brake wear.
Thanks!

 

I do not believe it is harmful but the 4cyl engine simply does not have enough engine braking capability to make a measurable difference in brake pad wear reduction.

When I first bought my C300 I did downshift on downhill grades and when coming to a stop but quickly found there is almost no engine braking available with this engine.

 

Just remember when in doubt, brakes are for stopping and engine is for going. Even if engine braking causes insignificant wear on the engine, it costs $10000+ for engine replacement compared to $500 brake job that will last few years.

Seriously, how much more wear on the brakes do you think will happen compared to when downshifting?

 

Of course it does help in deceleration. It is wrong to fully rely on ur breaks to decelerate. It is part of driving skills. Now remember high rpm causes harm to the engine. So you have to be reasonable. 3000 to 4000 max rpm

 

Seems cool, but engines/transmissions cost ten times as much as brakes do ,so probably not cost effective .

 

Thought I'd chime in and try to dispel some of these myths. Engine braking is perfectly fine and won't cause any harm to the engine. It's just air compression in the cylinders. If that would cause damage, then every ignition would as well. It's not a matter of cost. Brakes can overheat and fade if overused. I grew up when cars still had drum brakes, and for coming down a mountain road it was essential to use engine braking or the brakes would overheat and lose stopping power. I also learned driving with a manual transmission and slowing down by downshifting is a common practice. BTW, high engine revs also doesn't cause harm to the engine. The only harm to the engine that can occur during downshifting with a manual transmission is the so-called money shift, where you shift into too low of a gear causing the engine to overrev past the redline. An automatic transmission with paddles won't allow you to do that. If the downshift would cause a money shift, the transmission blocks it. In fact any shift that the developers deemed harmful will be blocked by the transmission.

Having said all that, as one person mentioned above, turbo charged engines have less engine braking due to the lower compression ratios, especially small turbo charged engines, so you might not slow down very much by just using engine braking, or you have to downshift into a really low gear before you get decent engine braking.

 

Well said Superswiss. Just to add to that, its high LOAD, not high RPM that can cause damage and wear. Decelerating with 5k rpm using gearing and not brakes isnt much strain on things, however trying to climb up a hill in a high gear with low rpm and high throttle position can be a lot of load on the tq converter, ignition system, turbo(s), etc.
All said, brakes are a designed wear and tear item just like tires. Use them, replace them.

 

You could also simply release the gas upon approach