How to use my overdrive gears to save on gas?
http://www.fueleconomy.gov/feg/driveHabits.shtml
On the government website it says to use over drive gears to help save on fuel economy. I have a 94 cutlass supreme. On the shifter it has P R N D 3 2 1,
I’m am assuming the “3 2 1″ is my overdrive. How do I use this and when would it be appropriate to select one of these while driving. Under what circumstances should I use 3, 2, 1?
Any help would be great. I don’t get the best MPG in this car, but buying a new car is out of the question. So even if I just improve fuel economy a little bit, I can start to save up for a newer car.
This particular Cutlass Supreme has the 3.4l DOHC. I currently get around an average of 20mpg.
Thanks for any help.
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Filed under Gas Conservation FAQ by on Nov 23rd, 2011. Comment. 
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Comments on How to use my overdrive gears to save on gas?
The D is your overdrive. Just put it in D and drive the car. The best advice for fuel economy is make sure the tires are fully inflated and get in the habit of shutting your car off when you are sitting still. Drive thru will drop your tank by a couple of miles per gallon if you are there very often
D is your overdrive gear 1 2 & 3 are your lower gears and you would use them to pull a heaver load, for instant’s start of in 1 when the engine rev’s up put it in 2 do the same thing for 3, just like shifting a standard without the clutch.
Dano, never slam an automatic thru 12&3 when in a race? but yea I do know what you mean. I did have a car that had PRNOD123, so if O is not there then D is the highest gear.
ya got it backwards there sport. The closest you have to overdrive is fourth gear, accessible by putting your car in “D”.
3,2,and 1 are the inverse of overdrive. They keep your car from going into second gear, third gear, etc. A good example would be driving in the mountains. Say you’re going down the mountain around 40mph and don’t feel like riding the brake the whole time. You’ll put it in “3″ to keep it from shifting automatically into 4 (overdrive). This will save wear and tear on your car… at the expense of… GAS!
Heh- oh yeah, roadawg is right as well. If you want to keep your car in each gear longer for a little more push in the power curve you can run through 1,2, and 3 as well… again, also at the expense of gas, brain cells, $$$ at the track, speeding tickets…
Last time I switched insurance I went to http://www.auto2insurance.tk. I cut my renewal by almost 200 bucks. I loved how quickly it compared the cost difference from all the insurers.