October 31, 2010
Does putting an automatic car in neutral when going down hill really save gas?
it doesn’t just have to be when going down hill…like when coming to a stop or a light or just coasting..does putting a car in neutral save gas.
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Filed under Gas Conservation FAQ by on Oct 31st, 2010. Comment. 
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Comments on Does putting an automatic car in neutral when going down hill really save gas?
I don’t know. It seems like it would be more likely to save your brakes.
No it doesn’t, as a matter of fact you may end up using more gas because the engine revs higher in neutral
it sure would not help the brakes as when the car is in gear the engine helps to hold it back
It’s entirely dependent on what the car revs at and how fast you’re going. If you’re on an interstate of sorts with constant-moving traffic, going about 60 mph, then neutraling would save gas (my Subaru revs at about 2500 RPM, whilst in neutral it revs at about 1500 RPM). Further, by releasing the axels and wheels from the engine, engine braking doesn’t occur; your car’s acceleration down a hill would thus increase (more acceleration with less gas=even less gas). If you’re going about 20 and coming to a red light, neutraling would probably waste gas, as cars rev at lower RPM’s in lower speeds. However, for some reason not apparent to me, for the first minute or so, my Subaru will rev at about 500 RPM whilst in neutral. So under any circumstance with that, neutraling would save gas.
It really depends on the circumstances.