Anyone try it, is it bad for the car? (I think it is).

 

Eeeek In a Auto... sounds bad... do you really need that? wouldnt it spin the tires like mad already when just floor the car at a standstill?

 

I would not do it, I'm just wondering is it bad for the car.

 

Very bad for the car, that's one of the reasons why so many cars can't rev past 3000 rpm in neutral anymore (badly damaged cars coming in from rental car fleets also attributed to this).

 

Bad. BAD. VERY BAD!

 

I doubt the car will even do it considering the transmission and engine are interconnected so tightly...

 

One would guess since the ECU is smart enough to know that your foot is on the brake and reduce power, the damaging effect is minimized. However, if you drive like I do with both feet on the pedals (hey, I drove go-karts for 15 years!), the occasional overagressive left foot up, right foot down while shifting into Drive produces some amazingly loud noises from the drivetrain!

 

- no comment -

 

since you guys are talking about cars taking off from start, how about slowing the car down with the help of "down-shifting" approx. 40-50% of the time, everyday. Good habit? or Bad habit?

unlike stick-shift, which is a bad habit, because of the clutch's ware, so i take it it's O.K. since we drive automatic? or not?

 

i believe it is not bad in a manual as long as you match the revs.....and i think it's the same with an automatic t.....if the computer matches the revs before completed downshift, there is practically no clutch wear. in mine, it doesn't completely match revs when downshifted, so their might be some wear.......

 

Automatics have clutches that wear too! Automatic transmission repairs are more costly than a manual clutch replacement or brake pads and rotors.

 

The E55 automatically does this. I've noticed that as I'm slowing, the car will drop into lower gears as my speed descends. No need to do it manually unless you want to.

 

I think all W211's do that, at least mine does that too.

 

thanks for all the info guys.
damn been doing that "bad habit" for years now!
if i only knew this whole time.
i just hope i did not cause that much wear to my clutch yet!

 

Back when I was a wee lad (actually I was in college, but it seems like ages ago), I used to do neutral drops with my automatic Mustang GT 5.0. It was always great fun in that it would light up the tires with tons of screeching, tire smoke, and awesome black patches on the pavement.

The fun, however, ended when I tried this one day and the car lurched forward about 10 feet and then refused to move. The engine would rev, but the car refused to move. It turns out that the harsh neutral drops had destroyed the gearset inside the differential. The entire differential needed to be replaced to the tune of about $2,000 - and that was a bargain using a used differential from a junkyard!

I don't know if automotive technology has advanced to the point where neutral drops can be handled by today's cars, but I'm willing to bet that 516 lb. ft. of torque could do some serious damage to a differential and transmission on a neutral drop.

I'm also willing to bet that a differential in an E55 is decidedly more expensive to replace in 2003 than my $2000 job in the mid-80s.