HOW TO COAST

Wanganui Chronicle, Volume LXXXII, Issue 19437, 24 October 1925, Page 18 (Supplement)

HOW TO COAST

ECONOMY OF RUNNING IN NEUTRAL. WARNING TO NOVICES. Many motorists have experienced the pleasures of coasting with the gear level in the neutfal position, the engine being either stationary or idling in the meantime. Not only is there a saving in fuel, oil, wear and tear, by this means, provided hills of sufficient length are encountered, but there is also a welcome silence which accompanies coasting, as the engine, if it is running, is merely ticking over, and the car speed is quite high. For the benefit of novices, however, a few remarks on the subject may well bo made. Before dealing with details of tho practice-of coasting, it will bo as well to sound a note of warning. Coasting by means of depressing the clutch pedal only, and leaving the gear level in any position other than neutral is not advisable, because loads, which it is not intended to withstand, are then placed upon the thrust bearing of the clutch, and will cause rapid wear.

An Everyday Opportunity. Wear and tear of tho brakes, and the chassis in general, may be reduced by coasting—on proper occasions, of course —when bringing the car to rest. It is simple and pleasant to slip into neutral, and Jot the car run up to a desired stoppv,'; point by means of its own momentum", finally bringing it to a standstill by gentle application of the brakes.

On long and not too steep down grades, coasting in neutral is economical and enjoyable, but if a hill is so steep that the foot or hand brake must be used to keep the speed of the enr within controllable limits, coasting causes needless wear of brake linings’, and should be avoided. A little practice will soon indicate tho gradients down which a car will travel at an adequate speed without tho assistance of the engine, and tho length of any particular hill will also help in . deciding whether it is worth while coasting in the circumstances. The Secret of Success. When a driver has made up his mind that a coast is practicable, the clutch pedal is depressed and the gear level moved into the neutral position, the clutch being then released. If an electric engine starter is fitted, and the length of the hill justifies it, the engine may also be switched off. As a rule, however, hills are not long enough to justify switching off the engine. The whole knack of successful coasting lies in the re-engagement of the gears when the foot of the hill has been reached. If tho engine is stopped, tho driver should see that the switch is placed in the “on n position, and the starter button or pedal operated. So soon as the engine is running, experience and judgment are of the utmost . value, as, of cotirse, tho driven portion of the gear box main shaft is being revolved at high speed by the road wheels of the car, but th* driving portion, which is connected to tho engine by tho clutch, is merely turning over slowly.

To counteract this state of affairs, the driver must accelerate the 'engine with the clutch engaged until its note is that whjgh is usually audible when running on tho level at the speed indicated by the speedometter. So soon as the engine is “revving” at the desired speed the clutch should be depressed and the car lever moved rapidly into tho top-gear position. A little practice will enable this to be done quite quickly and without noise. Briefly, tho sequence of operations when re-engaging gear after coasting are:— (1) Start engine by means of starter. (2) Accelerate to tho required degree. (3) Declutch. (4) Engage gear. If the engine has been kept running, (1) can bo ignored. If the speed of the car is allowed to fall to, say, 12 m.p.h. at tho end of tho coast and the engine cannot easily ac-

celerate its load in top gear, tho lever should be moved into the second-speed position. Whichever gear is chosen as the one suitable in the circumstances, tho engine must bo speeded up until it is turning over at such a speed that the gear wheels to be mated are running at equal speeds immediately prior to engagement. Securing this” object should be no more difficult than changing down by tho double declutching method. How to Learn. A revolution counter is a useful fitting when coasting, as it allows a driver to regulate tho engine, speed exactly before engaging tho gears after ...running freely down hill, but tho use of a revolution counter is by no means essential. When beginning to practice coasting

a novice should leave the engine running all tho time. This simplifies matters. and re-engagement should be easy if the car is allowed to slow down to, say, 18 m.p.h. before engaging top gear. Only slight acceleration of the engine would then be required, and small miscalculations of gear shaft speeds would result in comparatively silent meshing, which would not be tii’o case if higher speeds were attempted. In the course of an average Jay’s cross-country run quite an appreciable distance can bo covered without using tho engine, and in undulating areas a reasonable average speed can be maintained without difficulty. It should not be forgotten that when coasting it will take a second or two to engage the gears, with the result that the engine cannot be relied upou as re-en-gagement to be made.