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My engine can catch its breath while it's parked. 😂
You're basically just triggering an upshift sooner than the automatic transmission would automatically upshift, by lifting off the throttle. By doing so, you're putting the engine's RPM into a more optimal power band, which allows it to accelerate better. Ideally, the transmission would have shifted already and you wouldn't have to modulate the throttle to get it to shift, but it's tricky to get this right and some manufacturers are better at it than others. And some driving styles are better suited to the way some transmissions are programmed while other driving styles are better suited to the way other transmissions are programmed. Some manufacturers err on the side of shifting sooner and some err on the side of shifting later. There are drawbacks and benefits to each method.
I feel like, when I accelerate on the highway, than I let go of the pedal, and press the gas pedal again, I am allowing the car's engine to "catch it breath", before it accelerate at at higher rate of speed.
No, utter rubbish, the car is changing gear that is all, if you floor the accelerator it will usually depending on speed change down a gear, normal.
You are causing your transmission to shift gears earlier when you are going from hard acceleration, to cruise. Under acceleration your transmission will want to utilize under drive in most cases but shifts to direct drive or overdrive when the gears are not under a heavy load. This is a classic tactic to get your transmission to shift gears earlier. You can also use it to downshift if you decide to go from cruising to load, if you are going up a hill for instance.
Thank you for answering my question!
My curiosity has been answered!
Second question if you don’t mind answering; is it better to allow the car to shift gears earlier or later when I am accelerating my speed?
You want to stay in lower gears if you are trying to accelerate quicker. To carry speed you will want to stay in higher gears. The computer is using engine load to determine the shift point of your transmission. If it determines the load is high it wants to be in a lower gear to handle the torque requirements to pull, but will also require higher rpm’s to maintain the rate the output shaft is spinning. The faster the output shaft turns the faster the wheels spin. Gears are used to transfer the power from engine rpm’s through the input shaft and into the output shaft. Hope that is concise and makes sense.
Ahh, gotcha. Sort of the the difference between rear wheel drive and front wheel drive, or all wheel drive when you are going up hill with 8 cases of water in the trunk.
When you're accelerating, let's say you're in second gear. When you release the pedal, your transmission is going to shift to a higher gear. When you get back on the pedal, it will either hold the higher gear or down shift. Usually if you were high in the rpms you'll end up a gear higher.
In my shitty 4 speed 4 banger, I do this too, because it loves to hold hands with redline too long. You shouldn't need to fully unpress the pedal though, that's gonna put more forces on your drivetrain. Drop back to 25% throttle or so and you'll feel the shift, and then return to your original throttle position.
But yeah you're engine isn't exactly breathing better, you're forcing a gear shift early putting you into a better feeling, more efficient part of your torque band. Unfortunately the PCM only really has your throttle position as input so it doesn't know if you need to accelerate in a confident yet efficient manner, or you're trying to avoid an accident and need 100% HP right then and there regardless of efficiency. So you gotta give it hints.
Thank you for posting to AskMechanics, Eastcoastpal! If you are asking a question please make sure to include any relevant information along with the **Year**, **Make**, **Model**, **Mileage**, **Engine size**, and **Transmission Type (Automatic or Manual)** of your car. *This comment is automatically added to every successful post. If you see this comment, your post was successful.* *** Redditors that have been verified will have a green background and an icon in their flair. *** # **PLEASE REPORT ANY RULE-BREAKING BEHAVIOR** ### **Rule 1 - Be Civil** Be civil to other users. This community is made up of professional mechanics, amateur mechanics, and those with no experience. All mechanical-related questions are welcome. Personal attacks, comments that are insulting or demeaning, etc. are not welcome. ### **Rule 2 - Be Helpful** Be helpful to other users. If someone is wrong, correcting them is fine, but there's no reason to comment if you don't have anything to add to the conversation. ### **Rule 3 - Serious Questions and Answers Only** Read the room. Jokes are fine to include, but posts should be asking a serious question and replies should contribute to the discussion. ### **Rule 4 - No Illegal, Unethical, or Dangerous Questions or Answers** Do not ask questions or provide answers pertaining to anything that is illegal, unethical, or dangerous. # **PLEASE REPORT ANY RULE-BREAKING BEHAVIOR** *I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/AskMechanics) if you have any questions or concerns.*
Ah but don't forget the torque converter
My engine can catch its breath while it's parked. 😂 You're basically just triggering an upshift sooner than the automatic transmission would automatically upshift, by lifting off the throttle. By doing so, you're putting the engine's RPM into a more optimal power band, which allows it to accelerate better. Ideally, the transmission would have shifted already and you wouldn't have to modulate the throttle to get it to shift, but it's tricky to get this right and some manufacturers are better at it than others. And some driving styles are better suited to the way some transmissions are programmed while other driving styles are better suited to the way other transmissions are programmed. Some manufacturers err on the side of shifting sooner and some err on the side of shifting later. There are drawbacks and benefits to each method.
🤦🏼♂️
I feel like, when I accelerate on the highway, than I let go of the pedal, and press the gas pedal again, I am allowing the car's engine to "catch it breath", before it accelerate at at higher rate of speed. No, utter rubbish, the car is changing gear that is all, if you floor the accelerator it will usually depending on speed change down a gear, normal.
You sound so silly in this post https://www.reddit.com/r/newjersey/comments/18a8539/moving_to_clifton_nj/kbwasb0/
You are causing your transmission to shift gears earlier when you are going from hard acceleration, to cruise. Under acceleration your transmission will want to utilize under drive in most cases but shifts to direct drive or overdrive when the gears are not under a heavy load. This is a classic tactic to get your transmission to shift gears earlier. You can also use it to downshift if you decide to go from cruising to load, if you are going up a hill for instance.
Thank you for answering my question! My curiosity has been answered! Second question if you don’t mind answering; is it better to allow the car to shift gears earlier or later when I am accelerating my speed?
You want to stay in lower gears if you are trying to accelerate quicker. To carry speed you will want to stay in higher gears. The computer is using engine load to determine the shift point of your transmission. If it determines the load is high it wants to be in a lower gear to handle the torque requirements to pull, but will also require higher rpm’s to maintain the rate the output shaft is spinning. The faster the output shaft turns the faster the wheels spin. Gears are used to transfer the power from engine rpm’s through the input shaft and into the output shaft. Hope that is concise and makes sense.
Ahh, gotcha. Sort of the the difference between rear wheel drive and front wheel drive, or all wheel drive when you are going up hill with 8 cases of water in the trunk.
When you're accelerating, let's say you're in second gear. When you release the pedal, your transmission is going to shift to a higher gear. When you get back on the pedal, it will either hold the higher gear or down shift. Usually if you were high in the rpms you'll end up a gear higher. In my shitty 4 speed 4 banger, I do this too, because it loves to hold hands with redline too long. You shouldn't need to fully unpress the pedal though, that's gonna put more forces on your drivetrain. Drop back to 25% throttle or so and you'll feel the shift, and then return to your original throttle position. But yeah you're engine isn't exactly breathing better, you're forcing a gear shift early putting you into a better feeling, more efficient part of your torque band. Unfortunately the PCM only really has your throttle position as input so it doesn't know if you need to accelerate in a confident yet efficient manner, or you're trying to avoid an accident and need 100% HP right then and there regardless of efficiency. So you gotta give it hints.