Chapter 2: How to Drive a Car with Automatic Transmission
Both experienced and novice drivers like driving cars with an automatic transmission. Automatic cars are generally easier to operate than manual cars, and it’s comfortable to drive them over a long distance.
Here are simple steps to follow as you learn how to drive an automatic car. But, before you operate any vehicle, ensure you’ve got a valid driver’s license and have a good understanding of the traffic laws in your state. Good, for you, at Pierre Paul Driving School, we offer top-notch lessons to prepare you for a road test and driver’s license.
To drive a car with an automatic transmission, follow these steps:
Get into the car
Use a key or clicker to unlock the vehicle and get into the driver’s seat.
Adjust the motor vehicle to your needs
Alter the seat in a suitable direction so you can access any controls and see clearly outside the windows. Adjust the mirrors to be able to see the vehicle’s sides and back well. Adjust the blind spots of the car before you begin driving so you can check them well before you make lane changes or any turns.
Identify the Car’s Controls
It’s important that you locate the brake pedals, steering wheel, accelerator, light controls, windshield wipers, gear selector lever, and defroster before you start.
You may be wondering why an automatic vehicle has the first and second gear for you to select. Well, at times, you may need to override the automatic system and choose a low gear, for example, when riding down a hill. During such a scenario, the automatic transmission may try switch into a higher gear, but to enhance safety, it’s recommended that you drive down the hill in a lower gear, which is why you need a manual override.
There’s a growing popularity in semi-automatic transmissions, with a manual gearshift that gives you control over the gears you can select. But this option doesn’t apply for the clutch pedal, which is automatically operated each time there’s selection of a new gear.
Fasten the Seatbelt
Ensure that you and any other person in the vehicle is wearing a seat belt every time.
2. Operating the Automatic Car in “Drive”
Now that you know how get ready for a drive, it’s time to actually drive. So, how do you go about it? It’s much easier than you probably think. Let’s look at the steps.
Start the car
Put the right foot on the vehicle’s brake pedal and then push it downwards. After that, insert the key, then turn it in the clockwise direction to start off the car.
Select the gear
While keeping your foot on the brake pedal, move the gear level so it displays “Drive.” The gear has a “D” label on the display panel. It’ll be highlighted once you correctly select it.
Disengage the Parking Brake
This can be the lever between the car’s two front seats or a pedal found on far left of the foot section. The lower parking brake may have a release lever above it. On the other hand, the topside model has a push button that you need to press to disengage the parking brake.
Check the Surroundings
Look around the vehicle , including the blind spots, to see whether you can see any moving people or objects. Be sure to keep looking at the direction you’d like to go.
Get the Car Moving
Gradually, release the pressure from the brake pedal and the vehicle will start moving slowly. Remove your foot from the brake and shift it to the gas pedal then press it gently. The car will start moving faster. In regular road driving, you don’t need to change gears with regard to speed.
Use the Steering Wheel to Turn the Vehicle
While in “Drive” gear, turn the wheel right to move the car to the right and turn it left to move the car to the left.
Use the Brakes to Slow or Stop the Vehicle
When driving, you may want to stop somewhere for any reason. Brakes are there to help exactly with that. To use them, remove your foot from the accelerator pedal and place it on the brake. Apply gradual pressure so you don’t come to an abrupt halt.
To start moving again, take your foot to the accelerator again.
Park the Vehicle
Once you reach the destination, completely bring the car to a stop by gradually applying pressure to the brake pedal. You should also adjust the shift lever back to the “P” state.
To turn off the car engine, turn the key counter-clockwise. Remember to turn off the headlights and put the parking brake in place before moving out of the vehicle.
3. Operating Alternative Gears
As mentioned earlier, an automatic car has several gears other than the “P” and “Drive” gears. Let’s look at how you should operate the rest of the gears.
Reverse Gear (R)
If you’d like to drive backwards, ensure you:
When driving in reverse, the vehicle will turn in a direction similar to that of the wheel. You’re moving backwards, and so the car’s end will swing towards that direction instead of the front.
Lower Gears (1, 2, & 3)
The gears labelled “1,” “2,” and “3” are referred to as the lower gears. They can act as your in-engine braking system when you’d like to save the actual brakes. A good time to use this approach is when moving down a steep hill. However, you should only use the first gear when making a very slow movement. You don’t need to stop when adjusting between “Drive” and these gears.
Neutral Gear (N)
You can only use the neutral gear when there’s no need to control your vehicle’s speed, but not when doing a regular drive. Examples of situations that require a neutral drive is when being towed, pushed or when stopped in traffic.
Let’s look at each of these situations in details:
When to Use the Neutral Gear in an Automatic Car
For many years, most automobile owners have failed to know when to use the “N” or Neutral gear. At times, the owner’s manual may not tell you when to use the gear and at times, your driving instructor or parents didn’t elaborate the neutral gear’s use clearly.
It’s uncommon to find many drivers who have never used the neutral gear or have no clue of what to do with it. Lots of explanations exist for either positions and most people will tell you that turning to the neutral gear may damage the car’s transmission.
For the record, here are the scenarios under which you should switch to the neutral gear:
1. When Stopped in Traffic
If stopped amidst traffic or at a red alert, that’s the time to switch to a neutral gear until the green light shows. Most people tend to argue that using the neutral gear all the time could damage the transmission.
While this may be true to some extent, it’s less damaging compared to the alternative. When you remain in “D” or “Drive” after stopping, you’re actually using the transmission fluid and gradually wearing down the vehicle’s transmission clutches.
You’re also wearing down and heating up the brake pads by preventing the vehicle from moving forward when it should.
In older vehicles, the automatic transmission doesn’t usually cut fuel to the engine when stopped in the drive mode. That means switching to neutral may save your fuel as well.
Besides, if you lift your foot by mistake, it could lead to an accident. Thus, switching to a neutral gear after being stopped is a good way to (temporarily) rest your tired feet.
Just ensure you don’t stop at an incline that could make your vehicle to roll into another person’s, and be swift to turn back to drive once the light turns green.
Pro tip: When stopped in traffic, don’t enable the “P” or Park gear, as it can cause critical transmission damage and ultimately, failure.
2. When Towing the Vehicle
Before you tow a car, always check the owner’s manual regarding the right towing guidelines. Towing a vehicle in neutral isn’t the suggested technique, but at times, you don’t have a choice.
Sometimes the towing company has no tow dolly and you need to flat-tow. When this happens, keep your car on and adjust it to neutral to reduce transmission damage.
3. When Pushing the Vehicle
If you’ve ever been stuck in the middle of the highway or road, you’ll keep wondering how far away you’ll have to push. But, with a hand or two, it gets a whole lot easier.
This is where the “N” gear comes in handy. Just adjust the gear to neutral and start the push. Ensure there’s someone in control of the steering wheel so you can get somewhere safe pretty quickly. Additionally, if you’re stuck in snow or mud, you can use the “N” to get your vehicle out of this slippery state.
When Not to Use the Neutral Gear
When coasting downhill, don’t switch to neutral as it’s not recommended. It doesn’t really save you fuel except for edge cases. It wears down the transmission similar to when in the ‘Drive’ gear. Also, when coasting in neutral, you’ll have less control on the car, thus it becomes more of a safety issue than a maintenance one.
8 Things You Should Avoid When Driving an Automatic Car
While driving a transmission car is safe, you need to avoid some things at all costs when behind the wheel. Here are top seven mistakes that could damage your vehicle and cost you a lot in repairs.
1. Sliding the automobile downhill in a neutral mode
Switching to the neutral mode cuts on the supply of oil, so the transmission doesn’t receive the required lubrication to operate smoothly. The outcome is a lot of damage and wear.
Thus, it’s recommended that you don’t drive the car downhill because the repair costs aren’t worth the small fuel savings.
When the vehicle is in gear, the existing friction between the gearbox and engine (since they’re connected) will lower the car’s speed (a process known as engine braking).
But, in the neutral mode, the gearbox and engine are not connected and thus, there’s no friction between them. That means, the vehicle will require more braking power to bring it to a halt, and that can be risky when driving down a hill because the speed will rise.
2. Revving the car’s engine before adjusting to a suitable gear
You may have done this as a teenager and your parents took care of the bills, right? When you rev the engine before you switch to a gear, it adds a huge shock to the transmission, which causes more friction between the internal components. The result is damaged engine parts.
3. Switching gears when the vehicle is rolling
It quickly alters the direction of the transmission components and this wears out the gear box significantly. Instead, you should apply the brakes to stop the car. Some drivers shift to the Park gear before they push the brakes; this can damage the gearbox as well.
4. Turning to neutral when the lights turn red
Most drivers usually do this for the sake of saving fuel and protecting the driveline from wear. However, by pushing the brakes and using the Drive mode, you’ll minimize the loss. A lot of damage occurs when you engage and disengage the neutral mode.
5. Enabling the Parking gear before you completely stop the car
Switching to the Park mode inserts a locking pin into the gear connected to the gearbox’s shaft. Remember the wheels are attached to the shaft too. Thus, locking it while letting the vehicle roll, can break the locking pin.
6. Driving before you warm the engine
This is a mistake, particularly in winter. In cold weather, oil thickens and moves gradually. That’s why you should allow the fuel a minute to move around the transmission and other parts. Shifting into the “D” gear and speeding off from the start can severely damage the car’s internal storage.
7. Keeping the tank low on fuel
An automatic car mainly relies on fluid pressure to operate smoothly. Besides, fuel enables the engine and other elements of a car to stay lubricated and cool. Thus, these may wear out rapidly if you constantly don’t fill the fuel tank to the required volume.
8. Using two feet at the same time
For an automated car, you don’t have to use both feet; one on the accelerator and the other one on the brake. This is because you aren’t supposed to hit the accelerator and brake simultaneously.
In the event of a sudden stop or accident, you may not have the time to figure out the right foot to use. Thus, just use one foot and switch between the brake and accelerator pedals. And rest the second foot on the rest provided.
Important Tips for Driving an Automatic Car
Warnings
Driving in Heavy Traffic: 8 Easy Tips to Help You Reach Your Destination Faster
Rush hour is one of the nightmares to all drivers. With an increase in the number of vehicles and their users, heavy traffic is inevitable whether it’s normal hour or rush hour.
So, to help you reach the destination promptly, here are smart tips you can use every time there’s traffic:
1. Plan the Driving Times
To have a successful trip, you’ll need to plan for it beforehand, and the same applies to driving. Expert drivers plan their time carefully even before they get behind the wheel.
Often, you can avoid a heavy jam with twenty minutes after or before the rush hour. While it depends on the city you are in, the rush hour is typically from 7am to 9am and from 5pm to 7pm. So, you want to ensure you are on the road before or after these times.
2. Remove all Distractions
When there’s heavy traffic, the road is usually flooded with vehicles and some drivers will start to get impatient, which may cause them to try and merge where they shouldn’t.
Since you are caught up in the same traffic, you need to pay attention to all these things. And to achieve this, you need to avoid all distractions by:
3. Drive Defensively
Defensive driving entails a wide array of skills that you need to use to avert dangerous situations out there before they arise.
You need to plan on how you can react to emergencies, such as if another driver tries to merge into you. Additionally, you should:
You can read more about defensive driving techniques, especially for teen drivers here.
4. Pay attention to traffic from a distance
When approaching a section with heavy traffic, you should remove your foot from the accelerator and start coasting forward, letting friction to slow the vehicle. This will not only save your fuel, but also moderate your speed.
Depending on how far you are from the heavy traffic, you may brake so you slow down to a specific speed as you approach the traffic.
When you slow the speed, chances are the heavy traffic might break up way before you reach there. By driving at a constant, slow speed, you’ll save fuel and prevent the likelihood of accidents.
5. Engage Engine Efficiency with Lower Gears
Even for automatic cars where you don’t usually need to shift out of the “Drive” except when you want to reverse or park, there are at times lower gear settings.
To identify them, you’ll see the gearstick marked by “D” along with numbers, such as D2 or D3.
6. Drive at 5 mph (or 8 k/hr) below the Speed Limit, Including on the Highway
You need to feel safe while driving in traffic and that may mean driving a bit slower than the traffic flow. But if you drive too slowly, you might make the other drivers impatient, causing dangerous driving circumstances.
The stop-and-go traffic speed will significantly reduce, which means that if you or another vehicle collides, the resulting damage won’t be physically serious. It’ll be minimal too.
7. Get Prepared for Emergency Maneuvers
While in heavy traffic, impatient drivers can make poor decisions, which may require you to take other measures to ensure an accident doesn’t occur. Sometimes, you may be required to merge out of the lane you are in and onto the shoulder.
Use your eyes to scan the traffic, the road’s shoulder, and possible areas you may direct the vehicle in case you are forced to make an emergency maneuver.
8. Avoid the Freeway if You Feel Uncomfortable
How you feel emotionally can affect your ability to drive, and being anxious can have a negative effect on the way you handle heavy traffic. If the driving situation ever makes you feel too overwhelmed, you need to: