Alpo Posted February 17 Share Posted February 17 I've never tried this - mostly because we don't have a whole lot of hills in Florida. In the book ---- they are coasting down a hill. They are coasting because they don't want to start the engine and have the bad guys that they're escaping from hear them. And as they're coasting down the hill they're getting on the brakes and off the brakes and on and off, so they don't build up a lot of heat and have the brakes fail. This makes sense to me. Now if the engine was running, they could have it in first gear and let the compression of the engine keep it rolling slowly. I have even heard of having it in reverse when you're going down a really really steep hill. But they don't want the noise. So would it be possible to have it in a low gear, with the ignition turned off so the engine is not running? Somehow I think that it would make noise anyhow, as it tried to start even though the ignition was turned off. But since I have no experience at rolling down hills, I don't know. Anyone ever tried this? If they could roll slowly without noise this would beat the hell out of stepping on the brakes. But I wonder if it would work? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Texas Joker Posted February 17 Share Posted February 17 With a clutch, key on, that's how you pop start a motor. Get the car rolling with clutch in and car in gear and when rolling fast enough engage clutch. Motor turns over and ignition occurs. In your scenario the key would have to be engaged to allow steering wheel to turn so trying to engine break would start the car. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alpo Posted February 17 Author Share Posted February 17 Using the key to unlock the steering wheel is a fairly modern thing. The earliest I ever recall seeing that was a 1970 Buick. This was a 66 international Scout. I don't think the steering wheel locked. Good thought though. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Still hand Bill Posted February 17 Share Posted February 17 With ignition off, the engine won’t start. It would turn over if the clutch was out, freewheel if the clutch was pushed in. This case is often used on off-road motorcycles on extreme hills where you would be walking the bike down. Dead engine, in gear and use the clutch as a brake. Easier as the clutch is on the handlebar while the brake is foot activated. a rolling vehicle with the engine off is pretty quiet, but not silent. Tires make noise. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pat Riot Posted February 17 Share Posted February 17 What are they driving, a 70’s muscle car with loud pipes? Are the enemies vampires with super hearing? This really doesn’t make a whole lot of sense. When was this story written? Many modern cars brake lights will illuminate by pressing the brake pedal even if the car is shut off. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marshal Mo Hare, SASS #45984 Posted February 17 Share Posted February 17 No power steering or power brakes Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sassnetguy50 Posted February 17 Share Posted February 17 3 hours ago, Marshal Mo Hare, SASS #45984 said: No power steering or power brakes Now that we have the key information of year, make, model, omitted from the original post, we know that neither of those were on the vehicle. We also know that the front heavy Scout could've easily locked the rear wheels in a low gear down a hill. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Blackwater 53393 Posted February 17 Share Posted February 17 (edited) Coasting downhill with the engine engaged, ignition off, will likely fill the engine’s cylinders with raw fuel which will then flood whatever exhaust system. Several possibilities are present. 1: The engine will become “flooded” and refuse to start when called upon. 2: The engine will start and ignite the fuel in the exhaust system, at best causing a very loud explosive report, at worst, damaging the exhaust system. 3: The engine will form a “hydraulic lock” from the excess liquid fuel in one or more cylinders. It won’t turn over and CAN cause physical damage to the engine. 4: The engine may fire and then seize due to lubricants being washed off of critical surfaces or because the lubricants are severely diluted. 5: The engine will start and run. It may or may not be damaged by contaminated lubricants in the long run, but should be serviced as soon as possible. (Who cares, so long as you make good your escape!) Trying to use the engine as a brake by putting it in reverse is most likely to do serious damage to the engine. With the transmission in reverse with the vehicle going forward, the engine is forced to turn backward and this causes the oil pump to run backward , resulting in the engine being starved of lubrication. In some cases this can also cause mechanical interference issues, (stuff gets broken) due to internal timing. There other less common and less critical possibilities. Thanks for the diversion! Sitting here in the hospital with Schoolmarm, in one of the most uncomfortable chairs I have ever encountered, with nothing for me to do but sit and watch and worry is very trying. A little mental exercise is a welcome relief. BUT ALPO IS STILL WEIRD! NOTE: Until the early ‘60s most automatics could be started by pushing them to about 20mph. After that, most manufacturers removed the little rear pump from their automatic transmissions. Edited February 17 by Blackwater 53393 2 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sedalia Dave Posted February 18 Share Posted February 18 15 hours ago, Blackwater 53393 said: NOTE: Until the early ‘60s most automatics could be started by pushing them to about 20mph. After that, most manufacturers removed the little rear pump from their automatic transmissions. We had a 62 Impala when I was a kid. Had a Power Glide automatic transmission in it that you could push start. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Blackwater 53393 Posted February 18 Share Posted February 18 1 hour ago, Sedalia Dave said: We had a 62 Impala when I was a kid. Had a Power Glide automatic transmission in it that you could push start. Yeah! The PowerGlide was an exception to the rule! They kept the rear pump in the PowerGlide until 1967 or so! I’m not certain, but I think that it was the last of the breed. One of my ‘66 Novas was a 327 with a Glide. Great drag car!! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cypress Sun Posted February 18 Share Posted February 18 1 hour ago, Sedalia Dave said: We had a 62 Impala when I was a kid. Had a Power Glide automatic transmission in it that you could push start. 7 minutes ago, Blackwater 53393 said: Yeah! The PowerGlide was an exception to the rule! They kept the rear pump in the PowerGlide until 1967 or so! I’m not certain, but I think that it was the last of the breed. One of my ‘66 Novas was a 327 with a Glide. Great drag car!! When I first got out of high school, a friend of mine had a 1969 Chevelle Malibu with a 400 Chevy small block and a slip n slide PowerGlide. Had a lot of fun in that car...a lot of fun! Motor got blown up in January 1978 on (old) Courtney Campbell Causeway just before the hump back bridge. The oil drain bolt got left loose. He put an LT350 in it, rule was...if you don't like the start, don't come out of first. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Big Sage, SASS #49891 Life Posted February 18 Share Posted February 18 (edited) Blackwater is right about the fuel situation with the engine ignition off and the engine turning. In the older cars and trucks had manual fuel pumps usually actuated by the cam. With engine turning over but not running, the fuel would still be pumped. Both of my vehicles (a 2018 Ford Explorer and a 2015 Ford F350 4x4 diesel) are automatic tranny and have shift paddles or manual shifting on the gear shift lever. I can manually down shift and lock the tranny in the selected gear until I want to shift again. Going downhill is a breeze and almost doesn't require touching the brakes to hold the speed I want. I can also use the speed control to do it too. It will automatically down shift when it need to so I can maintain my selected speed. Edited February 18 by Big Sage, SASS #49891 Life 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
watab kid Posted February 19 Share Posted February 19 used to coast a bit them pop the clutch to get started when the battery failed , not as much in the car as with my motorcycle - sometimes just to save kicking effort if there was enough slope , 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Blackwater 53393 Posted February 19 Share Posted February 19 My old Harley has a “two into one” open header with no baffles. When I have someone tailgating me, I’ll flip the ignition off with the bike in high gear for a few hundred feet and wring the throttle three or four times to get a big charge of fuel off into the header. When I flip the ignition back on, it’ll blow a huge fireball and thunder like a cannon. Never had anyone tailgate me a second time! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alpo Posted February 19 Author Share Posted February 19 A friend of mine used to do that in his car. Turn the engine off if it was riding down the road at 40 50 mph, pump the gas two or three times then turn the ignition back on. Always a backfire and occasionally a little flamethrower. Until he did it one day and his muffler went flying down the street. Oops. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bailey Creek,5759 Posted February 19 Share Posted February 19 If it was a older car. With a mechanical fuel pump. You could have the ignition on. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.