driving downhill

M

meteorgray

Member
When driving down steep hills can you leave it in 2nd gear without doing any damage? Riding the brakes will most likely overheat them. I'm new to the A . This forum is great!
 
I prefer to wear out brake linings rather than gearboxes, but on some hills brakes just aren't enough so resort to both!!....
 
As long as your downhill speed is reasonable for the engine rpm, second gear or any gear is fine as a brake.

I was always taught that riding the clutch for engine braking was much worse than using the brakes as clutch replacement is worse than brake replacement.

If you keep it in gear without your foot applying some clutch action, it's a nice way to save your brakes on a hill.

When I lived in Colorado, I would ride up and down "left hand canyon". Start around 5000 feet and drive up to 10,000 feet (Ward, CO). On the way up, second gear and sometimes third. On the way down, second gear with not much brakes needed.

By the way, wasn't "free wheel driving" made illegal because of the lack of engine braking and bad brakes at the time (1932-1933) ?

Marc
 
Do whatever it takes so that you don't have to ride the brakes. Occasional brakings with cooling off times in between is ok. As long as the gears are totally engaged, I don't believe that you're wearing out the trans all that much. As long as the clutch is fully engaged, as it should be unless you are shifting gears, you are neither riding it nor wearing it out. If some issue arises on your way down, or at the bottom, wherein you need your brakes and they're not there, you've got a lot bigger problem than one less monolayer of iron atoms on a few gears.

Maybe most important, make your decision to downshift before your speed builds up; unless you are REALLY skilled at double clutching--and then controlling skids--you could be in for a really scary ride if you try downshifting once you're rolling down the hill!

If you hear your car backfiring, or pop-pop-popping, when backing down a long hill in 2nd gear, try opening the GAV a full turn, or even more, until you get to the bottom. The problem is that with your foot off the gas pedal the only fuel supply is from the idle jet, which isn't enough for the high rpms. If you've got the newer Zenith carb (19322) that doesn't have that adjustment, you're out of luck.

Steve
 
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If you're new to A's and especially downshifting, I'd use the gears to slow down rather than have the brakes fade and end up in neutral and can't get it in 2nd.
Just dont overspeed the engine.
Pete
 
Thanks to all of you, your experience saves me a lot of headaches. Funny my next question was at what speed can you downshift to 2nd? Maybe 5mph or something. I will be sure to keep it in 2nd.
 
meteorgray said:
Thanks to all of you, your experience saves me a lot of headaches. Funny my next question was at what speed can you downshift to 2nd? Maybe 5mph or something. I will be sure to keep it in 2nd.
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If the car is pointed down hill, you can start out in 2nd gear. You don't want to be going over about 25 mph in 2nd gear. If you're rolling down the hill at a higher speed than that, it's too late to downshift; if you do manage to downshift, you have a good chance of going into a skid. My advice would be to attempt to either (a) use the brakes to pull over to a full stop as quickly as possible, let the brakes cool down, start over in 2nd gear and stay there until you get to the bottom, or, (b) IF YOU ARE SKILLED AT DOUBLE-CLUTCHING, quickly brake to under 25 mph and then downshift.

If you are not good at double clutching, there is a good chance you could wind up stuck in free-wheeling, neutral--the worst of all possible worlds. When double clutching to downshift, it is important to goose the motor up to high rpms after letting up on clutch pedal in neutral, and then QUICKLY step on clutch immediately following with shift into 2nd. Be ready to make steering skid controls; don't even think of doing this if the road is wet!

Steve
 
I have always used the thought that what ever gear it took to climb the hill is the one I use going down. Gar Williams
 
The load on the drivetrain is the same accelerating as deccelerating. Going up a hill at 25 in 2nd is the exact same load on the engine/trans/differential as coming down that hill at 25 in 2nd. Use engine braking as you wish. Riding the clutch (i.e. slipping it) is something different......
 
meteorgray,
Welcome to the "Funny Farm" of FORD STUFF!:p
It's fun & rewarding to learn how to master shifting the Model A.:D The only trick on upshifting is to push the clutch and WAIT for the RPM's to come down to the right point and it will just SLIDE into the next gear easily. (Double clutching is NO help on upshifts!)
Now comes the double clutching! On down shifting, shove it into neutral, let clutch out, Rev the engine, push in the clutch, and shift into the next lower gear. Takes lots of practice to get your RPM's just right. I can downshift into second at even 25 to 30 MPH!:D
Learn to "master" downshifting BEFORE doing the mountains, 'cause we here don't want to read about you in the paper!:eek: Bill W.
 
meteorgray said:
When driving down steep hills can you leave it in 2nd gear without doing any damage? Riding the brakes will most likely overheat them. I'm new to the A . This forum is great!
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'leave in 2nd without doing any damage' ?
If the transmission is in good condition, I'm curious how the transmission can/would be damaged going downhill:confused:
 
Yes, but not all transmissions are in good condition... indeed many aren't and like all old ladies they should be treated with care and consideration ... no howling downward gear changes ... no sudden reverse thrust on the final drive or on spiral/angled drive components. Treat these cars gently and they go for ever and a day; thrash 'em and they **** up on you in no time.
 
My concern is using 2nd gear for a prolonged time at top rpms or even overreving could do some damage. On a downgrade I see no problem, but coming down a steep mountain road may be something else.
 
meteorgray said:
My concern is using 2nd gear for a prolonged time at top rpms or even overreving could do some damage. On a downgrade I see no problem, but coming down a steep mountain road may be something else.
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These cars are not FLIMSY, driven with reasonable common sense, they will give you many trouble free miles of sheer enjoyment.:D On mountain roads I don't hesitate to run up to 40 MPH in second, sometimes bursts up to 45 MPH when gettin' ready to grab high gear!:eek: On looong straight downgrades, I've found that the wind resistance of my "CUBE" shaped car keeps the speed under control without brakeing.:D The aerodynamics are much like a barn door!:eek: Bill W.
 
meteorgray said:
When driving down steep hills can you leave it in 2nd gear without doing any damage? Riding the brakes will most likely overheat them. I'm new to the A . This forum is great!
Click to expand...

Kind of depends on the size of the hill and how brave you are in going down it.
 
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