parking in gear

[h34d]

wasn't sure which section this should go in .. sorta off topic i guess?

anyhow, heard someone on car talk talking about leaving their car in 1st gear when they parked on a steep hill, and have heard this before. i've never done this(tho i don't have many steep hills nearby to park on). i've heard you do it so if your e-brake gives out the car won't roll. is there any reason to not leave your car in gear every time you park? what's the deal with parking leaving your car in 1st or not.

just curious..

[Munky]

I always leave mine in neutral, just because that's the habit I got into. The few times I do leave it in gear, I end up killing it because I'm used to pushing the clutch, starting, then letting go.

I've always thought leaving it in gear on a steep incline would put wear on the transmission.

[BobMs_wht2k2]

I've never left it in neutral when I parked it. I always leave it in gear. I've had too many cars with weak parking brakes that would not hold on steep hills.

Funny thing, when I get into the truck to start it, I almost ALWAYS stomp onto the imaginary pedal!

[seanski]

no matter where i park i usually leave it in some gear, usually 3rd because its the quickest to just throw the shifter in. i guess its just a habit, but if you leave it in first on a steep hill, and god forbid your parking brake were to fail, it could reduce the chance of your car rolling unstopped down said hill into impending doom/ hurt anyone in traffic.


Funny thing, when I get into the truck to start it, I almost ALWAYS stomp onto the imaginary pedal!

defenitely done this before... except i have been driving along and i came to a stop and stomped on the brake pedal with my left foot and came to a sudden and unexpected stop, usually followed by some profanity and then accellerating to the stop sign... :tongue:

[Munky]

My parking brake grabs tight at the very first click, so I don't think it'll go soft on me anytime soon.

[Whiplash]

I leave it in neutral.

[Ugzz]

i leave mine neutral unless im on a steep hill, then i kick the wheel to one side and toss it in first. it does suck though because i almost always park on flat, so of course i have forgotten about that before and released the clutch.. whoops

i never did in my dads old s10, but after reading about how a Number of people with elantras had the e-brake either loosen up or go altogether, i started being more concerned heh

[Silentwolf]

Rule of thumb on hills Park as close to curb as possible,
if pointed uphill: turn the wheels to the left/away from the curb
if pointed downhill: turn the wheels towards the curb.

I don't really have to worry about that down here, but i always use parking brake and leave in neutral.

[Pete03GLS]

i almost always put my old excel in 1st or 2nd if i parked on any sort of hill, because the ebrake on that car almost never worked properly... i remember when we had to get it towed home for having expired tags or something, when the tow truck driver got it up on teh flat bed, he put the ebrake on n it started rolling backwards... i laughed. :D

[Ugzz]

Rule of thumb on hills Park as close to curb as possible,
if pointed uphill: turn the wheels to the left/away from the curb
if pointed downhill: turn the wheels towards the curb.

That is actually on the drivers test for PA, those are some of the possible questions that pop up. so i assumed it was common knowledge

[h34d]

so there's no negative side to leaving your car parked in gear, transmission wise? that's was what i was wondering about, seems like it's pretty 50/50 as to people who do or don't. i'm always learnin somethin here! :D

[BobMs_wht2k2]

No, mechanically speaking there is no harm in either case.

[Mobius1]

I park my car either in 1st or reverse depending on if i'm backing into a parking spot/ my drive way or pulling through into a parking spot. If not the Hyundai then in one of my past cars, it was mentioned when parking the car on a hill to leave it in reverse.

[Deviant]

It's strange but I used to always park my Swift in gear, but once I bought my XD2 I have always parked in neutral. Maybe it is because of the ergonomics with a lack of center arm rest in the Swift, idunno.

[EReeves116]

i always park mine in reverse. maybe it's because i love the satisfying "click" you hear when you do it.

[NY2002ElantraGT]

In the summer i leave it in neutral with the ebrake on.... in the winter i leave it in 1st or Reverse depending on which way the car would roll, with no ebrake... im tired of having my ebrake freeze, i've learned my lesson.

[2002 GLS]

Well, i for from D to N, pull up the E-brake 3 or so clicks, then put the shifter in P. (dont want to put any weight on the transmission Lol) (Yep, i have stated again!>

[bdiggy]

Almost always leave it in 1st though i've slipped and kept in neutral a few times. Got that habit from my 88 Dodge Omni. That piece of garbage never had an ebrake.

[Tommy]

THE RULES

1st gear if you are facing up a hill
Reverse if you are facing down hill

Reasoning? The car will not roll forward if its in the opposite gear as the direction you are facing, ie car wont roll forward when transmission is in reverse, wont roll backward when its in first.

Never leave it in neutral
Never leave it in 3/4/5. The car rolls with less resistance the higher gear youre in. Dont believe me? put your car in 1st and try to push it, then put it in 5th. come back and say which one you were able to move...

and Always use your parking brake.


Ask me how I know....
http://b0.ac-images.myspacecdn.com/01133/03/19/1133969130_l.jpg

these rules obviously only apply to manual transmission, and based on the replies so far, maybe this should be stickied, apparently not as common knowledge as i thought.

[Pete03GLS]

wat kinda car was that? and DAMN... did it roll down an entire street before hitting w/e it hit? lol

[only1db]

i always leave mine in 1st gear...espeically since my ebrake is snapped...i have been too lazy ot replace it.

[bdiggy]

^^Ha! I love it. Guess it works this way in any profession. Don't want to bring work home with you, right? I'm a chef and i'll be damned if i'm going to come home and cook myself dinner after work!

[Tommy]

it was a 91 Nissan Maxima. parking brake was busted, and I didnt put it in the right gear, or turn my wheels the right direction. I was just running inside for a second and wasnt thinking about it. Rolled down a hill and crashed into a tree.

The situation - parked at the top of a hill with the hood facing down, no curb.
What I should have done, put the car in reverse, turn the wheels to the grass.

what i do now? always pay the f*** attention to what im doing when I park

[NY2002ElantraGT]

its not good for tires to park with the wheel turned. but anyway that sucks.

[Tommy]

^what? that doesnt make any sense.

[KeWLKaT]

I agree... Explain yourself NYElantra, please.

[slyderdai]

I always Park in "P" because if I don't the keys won't come out of the switch.:thumbsup: