Some hypermiling techniques illegal in my state!

[onegammyleg]

Originally Posted by Spule 4

Coasting is very dangerous

Old truckers dont call N ?angel's gear? for nothing.

[basjoos]

Why is coasting "very dangerous" and why would coasting a modern car make someone lose control? That accident is more likely the result of someone not paying attention to their driving. There is very little difference in the driving characteristics between coasting with the clutch depressed and "coasting" in an overdrive 5th gear with its limited amount of engine braking, other than when coasting, you have a 1/4" sec delay in releasing the clutch to get power to the wheels from the engine. With an automatic, coasting is a little more dangerous since you have a 1 to 2 sec delay before getting power back when going from "N" to "D". But most of these anti-coasting laws pre-date the appearance of the automatic transmission. They date back to the early years of automotive history when friction wheel braking on most cars was very poor and you mainly used engine braking to control speed on the downhills. They were implemented after a number of accidents were people crashed after coasting their cars downhill out of gear and got up to a speed that was beyond the ability of their primitive friction brakes to slow and engine braking was taking too long to get the car slowed down before they wrecked.

[Ted Hart]

Originally Posted by TomO

Yeah, the laws here in MN are a bit goofy. A buddy and me have made his auto-cross car "illegal" because there is no means of de-fogging the windshield if it should fog up.

My Korean "Jeep" (Suckzuki) has a busted defroster motor; ie, no air blown onto the windshield. So... I keep a piece of rag on the dash...to wipe off condensation (fogging) ! I call this my "Dee-froster"! So far, it has passed!

[Ted Hart]

Originally Posted by basjoos

Why is coasting "very dangerous" and why would coasting a modern car make someone lose control?
But most of these anti-coasting laws pre-date the appearance of the automatic transmission. They date back to the early years of automotive history when friction wheel braking on most cars was very poor and you mainly used engine braking to control speed on the downhills. They were implemented after a number of accidents were people crashed after coasting their cars downhill out of gear and got up to a speed ....

And who sez any DMV is modern? Or , logical? Besides, I have never figured out just how a cop is going to know you are coasting in neutral? Has he got X-ray vision? ESP?

[diamondlarry]

Why is coasting "very dangerous" and why would coasting a modern car make someone lose control? That accident is more likely the result of someone not paying attention to their driving.

I think I have to agree with basjoos. I would say that the accident most likely would have happened whether they were in or out of gear.

[Peakster]

I've passed police cruisers with my engine off. Then again, the police in my city are pretty reasonable. (however, one time I was stopped my police by passing their cruiser in the right-hand lane. I didn't get a ticket. It was late at night and they probably just wanted to pull over a Fiero for a change.) There's wacky laws virtually everywhere. In Saskatchewan, it's illegal to sell water in a bar.

[Compaq888]

Originally Posted by cfg83

Hello -

My friend got a ticket for coasting in LA in neutral in his Jeep. I'll have to get his story.

CarloSW2

how the hell do the cops know that you are coasting in neutral???

[Ted Hart]

Originally Posted by onegammyleg

I had a huge argument one day with the cops at the vehicle inspection centre....

Unfortunately Mr Plod didnt agree and demanded his 20cm book rule.



I replied that that is what the factory fitted and the Oz government approved , they said ?NOT TRUE?

I was quite agitated by then.



Still they demanded the 20cm rule , THEN ,,, they said , and ?Oh yeah ,,your rear mud flap should extend down to below the rear axle line.?

I just about went ballistic ...?On a road trail with 12 inches of suspension travel ..That would mean my rear mud flap is 75cm long !!?



Apart from this one time , i have had good experiences with the law.

My, my! Someone was just "pulling your chain"! The madder you got, the deeper you got sucked! They were playing with you!

There is a way to play back... Fix everything to where it complies...get it inspected...change it back when you've got that sticker! Whoooo whoooo!

[Ted Hart]

Originally Posted by onegammyleg

Old truckers dont call N ?angel's gear? for nothing.

If you've ever driven in the Smokey Mts. and seen the runaway truck sand traps on most of the downhill stretches...you'd appreciate engine braking. Get caught in "N" with thousands of pounds behind you! ... and hot (faded) brakes...and you'll pray for the next sand trap...to be empty!

[basjoos]

Another odd automotive law is one that says it is forbidden to change gears while crossing railroad tracks. This one obviously went on the books before the introduction of automatic transmissions and was aimed at the sometimes balky manual transmissions in the early automobiles.