On an auto what are the differences in driving with the overdrive on or off? With it on does it prolong the gear change ?

 

it just stops shifting at 3rd gear. use the od off in the city. OD on (on the interstate)

 

it locks out fourth gear "OD". also you will notice car revs higher before up shifting in lower gears (1st-2nd and 2nd-3rd).
like Max_Vader_2K said, dont use it in the city cause you will have a lot of up and down shifts that will wear out the tranny over time. but use it on the highway when you are cruising. RPMs will be lower and you will save gas.

 

i find the downshifts to be alot quicker with it off since its already in 3rd...one less gear to downshift to...these babies pull HARD in 3rd gear on the highway...120-130mph is no sweat with room to keep pulling.

 

OD is 4th gear....with gas prices these days leave it on

 

i disagree with ALWAYS leaving it on.
here is why..
if you are in rush hour traffic and you are always slowing down and then speeding up your tranny will keep shifting back and fourth between 3rd and 4th/OD. that will use more gas AND wears on the tranny.
like i said above "dont use it in the city cause you will have a lot of up and down shifts that will wear out the tranny over time. but use it on the highway when you are cruising. RPMs will be lower and you will save gas."

 

Just get a 5spd!

 

You must have fast moving rush hour traffic where you are. If you are in stop and go traffic, the tranny will not shift into OD at those low speeds. You would most likely get to 2nd or 3rd at the most. I leave my car in D all of the time in the city and it does not shift back and forth as you describe.

 

OD shifts at like 35mph, 3rd gear hits at about 20mph.

Sometimes i would ether keep it in 2nd gear, or 3rd. Depending. I try to save a few shifts on the old girl

 

Just get a 5spd!


oh dont think it hasnt crossed my mind, about 10k left to pay and 02 6spd on the way!

 

i always have the OD on. talk about lower gas mileage, if it's off in the city

 

I use mine almost like a "sport" mode. If am driving spiritedly I will turn it off so I dont get the constant shifting between 3 and 4 when going through turns. Other than that I leave mine on for better mileage.

I just wish I could get the light in the gauges to say sport instead of O/D off

 

yea o/d off looks dumb, its like an idiot light goin hello you accidentlly hit the button

 

i only use OD when i'm going 50mph or higher or if i'm revving at 3000 or higher (and not climbing a hill).

 

Ok.. Since you are the 2nd person in this thread who has posted the dumbass remark of 'get a manual' (which seems a rather constant trend in any thread ever to bring up anything about the automatic transmission) ever thought that some people might not want a manual because of many reasons?

 

huh? why would anyone not want a manual?!?!

 

Are you joking or are you serious?

 

He just likes holding a stick

 

Automatic is the way to go especially in Houston traffic. I couldn't imagine owning a manual.

 

O/D is good for sprints and city driving, like most said cause it's easier on the tranny.
Personally I wouldn't want a stick on my daily driver, more importantly on a car that makes less than 250whp. If I get a G35 coupe then, and only then would I get a stick.

 

i guess you like brute forcing your car or playing footsie with the pedals when you're stuck in nyc type traffic. my idea of fun isn't shifting from N-1-N-1-N-1-N-1-N-1-N-1... etc.

 

yea, daily driver, commuter = automatic

 

Tell my about it, in my old auto, with OD off, the mileage went down the ****ter. I dont even understand how it was so bad

*****ing about traffic.... bah, you get used to it. You should try it in a mustang with a king cobra clutch........

 

Now that we are kind of changing the subject to SAVING GAS>>> well let all getr a Toyota Prius, or whatever the name is? Don't hate me please..... it is a joke !!!!

 

you can be the first one... and you can watch all the i30s and maximas pass you by...

 

if you think it doesnt go to OD at low speed then try the following: go 25-30 mph and downshift from OD to 3 or 2nd. see how it jerks...

 

All OD does is change the shift points. When off, it shifts at a higher RPM than when on. This will result in better pedal response, but will also eat more gas. I drove with it off in the city for a bunch of tanks. Now that I drive with it on, I'm getting an additional 50-75 miles before fillup.

If you plan on doing some spirited driving, you should probably have it off, but otherwise, I would keep it on. If you plan on passing someone and need the power, you can push the button to get the car to downshift, then floor it. Same as downshifting in a manual.

 

My car does not shift into OD until it reaches 45 mph under normal accelleration. When it does downshift, it does it smoothly and not jerky.
maybe your transmission shifts much differently than mine does.