My friend owns an MR2 and we took it on a trip through the blue ridge mountains. Parked overnight at Wintergreen on a very steep road. He just set the parking brake and overnight the car rolled forward. Luckily there was a pole 6 feet in front, otherwise it would have rolled into a tree down the road. Created a huge dent in his bumper but it popped itself back out as it got warmer outside (plastic bumper). He thought his parking brake was set very well but you never know.
Same happened to a 2004 TSX 6spd I had. I always put in gear and set the parking brake. For whatever reason that morning, I forgot to put it in gear. Came out at lunch and my rear bumper was resting on a coworkers car behind me. Was only a couple feet away and I guess a slow roll so no damage.
My understanding is that things are hot when you set the brake and after some cooling the rear drums aren't going to have the same force they had when originally set, due to a little contraction.
That might explain it, when going into wintergreen from the blue ridge parkway, there is a mile long 15% grade descent, before a large ascent, which could definitely contribute to high brake temps.
Similar happened with my old toyota hilux ,set brake and forgot to put it in gear,next morning it was against my neighbors van,since then its been set brake,in gear and if theres a curb ,i always turn my wheel facing the curb
Had this happen to my ranger, rolled probably 100 feet through a parking lot into a 10 inch curb(probably would have rolled over anything smaller), and barely missed a car by about 3 feet on its journey.
I used to always park in neutral with my first manual car. I noticed my dad would park it in gear whenever he used it and thinking to myself how it was probably a “trick of the old” or something.
One day I found the car rolled down my driveway. A lady informed my mother that my car was halfway on the driveway and halfway on the road. It was a cold rainy morning, and I got into my car with wet socks and no pants, thinking I might’ve left the parking brake off like an idiot.
I got in the car and saw that the brake was up, looked normal, but it had no resistance when you’d remove it on or off. It was just a lever to mess with when you were bored now. Turns out the parking brake snapped, and luckily it was at my house with a not so steep incline. This car wasn’t old mind you, it was a 2015 and I think this happened in ‘22, so it was a seven year old car and I think it happened a little over 100k miles. Ever since then I always put by e-brake up, left off the foot brake, put the car in gear, and shut it off.
Tl;dr: not very old 2015 car’s e-brake snapped, car rolled down luckily a safe area, now I always park in gear.
Yeah that’s pretty much my reasoning. Pulling up the handbrake and staying in gear is instinctual for me when parking, but I’m also prone to mistakes just like anyone else and it is possible that I may forget to pull up the handbrake, like if I’m very tired or stressed. There’s also the possibility of the handbrake failing, especially for my sister’s car which is pretty old. Our driveway is also on a relatively steep slope, so if the car were to roll away it will crash into some trees and vegetation and cause significant damage.
I used to install alarms/interlock/coded anti-theft/remote start systems in college, one of the first places I worked at was best buy, they only carry the cheapest & shittiest kind ofc & these are specifically not to be used on manual. That didn't stop employees who would constantly buy them with their employee discount for next to nothing & try to get them installed, eventually one of those people was the new assistant manager so eventually they got their way. I almost refused & straght up walked out but my supervisor convinced me I wouldn't be liable, keep in mind these garbage viper systems weren't in any way designed for this so the best I could do safety-wise was using the e-brake basically as a kill switch on the ground side, so basically it wouldn't be grounded without that engaged. I explained to them that for obvious reasons they could no longer leave their cars in gear, it still *HAD* to be left in neutral if they were going to remote start, even with the e-brake. Well, one day I was working & CRASH.. I immediately had a sick feeling, went running to the front of the store where an employees car that I had literally just worked on the week prior had reversed itself right into a new excercise equipment store that, thankfully had no one in it bc they were still remodeling. All I can remember thinking was the maternity store literally right there where folks would walk by with their kids & strollers.. whenever I park my car something inside my brain always reminds me of that right before I get out, so I always just take it out of gear & use the e-brake.
As long as you park in gear, you really could just forget the hand brake and be fine. Just relying on the handbrake in neutral on the other hand is a huge gamble, loads of these stories on new cars
Same thing happened to me. Friend who taught me to drive manual told me to park in neutral. Rolled away once and now I always park in gear. Parking break was useless.
Had a similar situation on an old Nissan pickup I had. Came out of a theater and my truck wasn't where I expected it to be. Looked down the slight hill and there it was wedged in between two parked cars with the complex security guard looking at it confused. No damage at all to one of the cars and only a small dent and scuff on the other. We waited awhile until the owners came out and the guy who's car got damaged was super chill and said don't worry about it and left. I've parked in gear ever since.
thinking about getting one to fix up and repaint black with the 80s purple striping on it. ideally maybe a king cab 96 so it's got OBD 2 on it. they're going for around 2 grand? 3, maybe, what with the bad car market.
That would be a cool project. Not sure what they're going for these days. I bought mine for 1k back in about 2000. Had it for about 5 years and sold it on for 400
a grand back in 2000 must have been a bit more like what we consider a 5 or 6k car. I personally wouldn't know but 7 grand was what I paid for my first car and ended up selling it for 660 dollars lmao
You're probably about right. It was my second car. First was an 82 monte carlo that I bought for 400, drove for a year and sold for 700. To this day the only car I've ever made money on lol.
my dad's always telling me about how he wishes he kept his 72 gran Torino. the resale value would probably literally be in the hundreds of percentages profit wise.
Absolutely. A lot of those old cars are worth a ton these days. Makes ya wish you could see the future to know which cars will end up being valuable classics.
English is not my main language, so keep that in mind:
The car rolling a few minutes after parked has to do with how you applied the hand brake. You have to really pull that thing, hard, when parking because if you don't, when the car/brake's parts start to cool down it can be ineffective.
You usually don't NEED to leave the car in gear. But it can help in situations where your hand brake "fails" like that
I get what you’re saying, it’s just that mine eventually just didn’t work AT ALL! You could yank that thing as hard as you wanted, it didn’t do squat. You could tell it had no resistance and just wasn’t engaging at all
Never heard about anything like that from anyone I know, but I suppose, yes, you can. Car manufacturers make their profits from selling car parts and not actual cars, so I don't see why that wouldn't be possible
You are incorrect about that. Car manufacturers make their money selling new cars. Aftermarket part supply from the OEM is usually limited at best, because they want you to buy a new car. Back when I was working on an engine platform for the F150, the cost of shutting down engine production was $10k every 59 seconds. The $10k is the profit for that particular F150 model, the 59 seconds was the tac time, or how long it took to produce one engine once the line was at production rate. That was 2016, and last I heard the annual rate has come down a bit (300k engines a year down to 225k) but the platform is still expected to net a hefty profit per vehicle.
If you're curious, the platform was for the 5L v8, and my team was lining the piston bores on the aluminum block. 9 machines feeding 2 engine plants doing the rest of the assembly.
I’ll be real honest with you, when I was younger I’d yank the parking brake every time, giving it a really good pull, and I don’t know if that’s necessary. Nowadays I’m firm but not crazy like I once was with it, it should’ve lasted longer than it did
EDIT: just to add, this was on a 2015 Miata, and it wasn’t a common thing with these cars, I could barely find anything at the time when I did some research on it. All the things I’d find on a damaged parking brake were on older Miata’s, but I take it that was due to age
I wish, I no longer have the car but I did order the component, it just too way too long to get here and the car was already planned to be sold, it just so happened the car was sold before the part actually made it
On inclines it's recommended to park in the gear opposite of the downhill direction in case the parking brake fails. On flat ground it's more a matter of preference. I generally always park in gear.
Direction doesn't matter. The engine isn't easier to spin forwards than it is backwards.
In fact, if it does roll, you'll be running the oil pump and timing system backwards, which is often bad
Assuming 1st and R are practically the same as far as holding power, I choose to park in the gear that has less consequence if I accidentally stall the car when starting up. For instance, when pulling front-in into my garage, I park in R because I’d think bucking backwards towards an open door is less bad than towards my house’s wall. Also a good precaution if you have kids or someone who might accidentally get into the car and manage to start it.
Of course, you *should* return the shifter to neutral before starting the car.
So you don't drop the clutch and jump while setting the climate controls, ratio, make sure you aren't in a gear you didn't intend, or if someone else parked it in a way you don't usually. Don't trust your past self, just good habits.
That's just fine, taking it out of gear before you let go of the clutch. Just making sure you (or someone else) doesn't put it in a state you don't expect and that impacting you somehow.
my process basically is confirming neutral by shaking the shifter left to right before my foot comes off the clutch. I have the same car as you, so button+clutch is how it starts.
Your way still leaves open the possibility (however slim) of dropping the clutch while the engine is running, which is the entire point of shifting into neutral BEFORE turning the engine on. Do what you want, and this is really splitting hairs, but technically going to neutral before turning the car on is “safer”.
I don't don't like or trust past me. He is inconsiderate, lazy, and an a** sometimes. Always leaving things out, sometimes hiding stuff I need. I'd slap him, but I can't reach him. I know that he laughs at me, too.
Basically what BupherNinja said. Just eliminate any chance of bad stuff happening by engraining those habits. Cars are too expensive and dangerous to make a silly mistake.
The oil pump system isn’t engaging without power or crank. Spinning it backwards isn’t just pulling oil backwards or pushing more in, it’s not doing anything.
Same with timing. If you’re fucking up your timing by spinning the engine backwards, you’d fuck the timing any time you’d need to push the car a handful of feet backwards. Rolling backwards on an off vehicle doesn’t damage the interiors whatsoever, unless you already have broken/lemon parts.
The engine is the same effort to spin forwards than backwards, *when there’s no load*. When the vehicle gets put into gear, the gear is *loaded*, and creates a pull against the wheels directionally whichever the transmission is set for. This directional movement is *easier* on the engine, or *harder* on the engine depending on the ground you’re on. Which would imply, direction *does matter* because the transmission load is what is holding the vehicle in place *against* the weight of the car.
Put your car in first nose down without the parking break. You roll forward on an incline. Put the car in reverse nose down without the parking break. You don’t roll forward. The transmission is stopping the rolling, not the engine.
Final Edit: no more on this topic after this because one of my cars is now in my shop again after having a brand new starter solenoid fuck up and not connect to the flywheel any longer after attempting first on a hill instead of reverse. This is a brand new starter, replaced within the last 2 months, on a vehicle that isn’t driven by a teenager on a joyride. Your gear ratios, will fuck up other parts of your car, because of how physics pulls against the mechanic pieces, and how different pieces aren’t meant to spin in certain ways. You all who defend gear ratioing have simply been lucky, nothing more or less, and haven’t had the wear on those parts culminate into a repair shop trip that you were aware of. Just do it the right way and not attempt to defend a horrible way to keep your vehicle from rolling.
I will not respond to anymore after this, because at this point y’all are just going to ignore the repercussions to beat a dead drum.
No, the trans will spin either way, it doesn't care. Same with the engine. There is no sprag or one way clutch that just magically prevents moment in the 'opposite' direction. When the engine is running, moment is what provides the bias. But when it isn't, both the engine and trans will spin both ways.
You know this is a manual trans sub right? There is no parking pawl in play.
Push the clutch in while in gear, and the car rolls, right.
The trans doesn't provide the resistance, it comes from the engine. Sure the trans delivers it, and modify it with ratios, but that's like saying it comes from the axles or the diff. Their resistance alone is negligible
If you have to press the clutch in, to remove the transmission load. How is the engine holding that load? It’s not. The transmission is. Then engine is not providing any resistance at no power and no compression.
The clutch is not an engine part, it is a *transmission* part. You depress the clutch to remove the tranny load, to allow the engine to free spin out of gear. Put your engine in neutral and spin the crank by hand. Put it into gear and try again. I can guarantee you won’t be able to do it the second time.
Okay, so take your parked vehicle, in gear, no parking brake. Use a luggage scale and see how hard it is to pull. Then, take the spark plugs out and try again. It is going to be significantly easier.
Your example is the opposite. Using the weight of the vehicle to hold the engine same premise, but the holding power is from the intetia (or lack the of) of the vehicle, not the trans itself
The transmission is a linkage, not the source of resistance.
It's like saying the trans is the source of energy when driving the vehicle forwards. It is part of the system, but doesn't provide the actual energy.
It is a linkage, but it also creates a source of resistance. As I said in the first one, it depends on how much the ratio of the gear takes, but it is always better to go opposite while regarding that the gear ratio *may not hold* the vehicle in the same position because of how *physics works*. There is no compression, no load, gear ratioing is just asking to slide.
You could replace the trans with a big driveshaft from the diff to the flywheel, and the car would still be difficult to move.
With no engine or suitable resistive device, the trans cannot hold the vehicle.
The holding power comes from the engine. Even if you get frictional force from the trans, the friction is directly proportial to the load being put on the engine, and is negligible compared to the engine, regardless of what gear you are.
Direction is irrelevant. All that matters is the gear ratio. It is just as hard to go forwards in first as it is backwards. Reverse is the same.
First are reverse are only different because of the ratio, direction does not matter for holding power.
In your car, they said first gear is shorter than reverse. That means it's easier to push (regardless of direction) in reverse than first.
Yes, why wouldn't you?
It's not like being in reverse provides extra holding power. The only reason the engine had a directional preference is because it is already spinning that way. When it isn't spinning already, it'll go either way about as easily.
Yes. Put your car in first and try pushing it forward, it's not gonna budge. When you park your car in gear it's the engine that's holding it, doesn't make a difference if it's first or reverse
Not the guy you responded to, but yes. If you do start to roll forward in reverse you could do damage to your engine by spinning it backwards.
So yes, park in first if facing downhill.
Nope, I’m pretty sure that’s what they taught me. It’s not so unbelievable either, when there are a few people in this comment section who say they park in neutral, and when my mom and my sister both park in neutral.
Yeah, and it’s the not the only thing lol. My instructor told me I could fold the mirrors in when doing the reverse parking test…imagine my shock when the test officer told me I couldn’t do that and I had to ask for my 2nd attempt.
Yeah luckily I passed the test 1st try, but I had a couple of close calls. Like I said, I nearly failed the parking test, and during the driving part I accidentally turned right when the officer told me turn left, so he nearly failed me for that.
I park just like your dad. Park in first on flat surfaces and in reverse when sloped forward. Also make sure to turn my wheels inward when parallel parking with a slope. I will leave it in neutral if I know someone else is going to be getting into the car (Service, valet, etc)
Putting the car in reverse will not make it any easier or harder for the car to move. The engine is held by compression and can rotate either direction. The best gear is the one with the most ratio. It could be first or reverse but whatever one has the most ratio will offer better holding power.
Correct, though I think that first and reverse are close enough in ratio in most cars that it probably makes no difference. I’d be interested to hear if I’m wrong on that.
In the past I have just left it in reverse if it was already there, left it in first if it was already in first, and usually throw it in first if I was in neutral or a higher gear.
I put it in the gear that goes with the direction of the slope: 1st for flat or downhill, reverse for uphill. The engine is not designed to spin backwards so this prevents it from happening. For me first and reverse are the same ratio.
In gear. Always. First or reverse can potentially help if you’re on a steep slope depending on which way you’re facing.
I’ve accidentally parked in neutral before and had the car roll out of the parking spot a few minutes later on a very gently sloped surface.
In neutral, you are resting all your hopes and dreams on a parking brake cable.
I'm 100% on the " in gear and parking brake" group.
Don't rely on a single point to hold your multi ton hunk of metal in place.
Friendly reminder to all that direction doesn't matter, use the shortest gear, uphill or downhill. Your engine doesn't care if it spins forwards or backwards. R and 1 are close in most cars though.
I have a hard time believing any driving school would advise parking in neutral. Every car I have ever owned has had the parking brake fail at some point. I even used to have a SAAB that had to be in reverse to remove the key & the damn thing eventually would still roll even with the parking brake on & being in gear. It got to the point where I couldn't park that car on any incline.
Ok, well I’m not lying to you, so I don’t know what to say. None of the cars I’ve driven can’t be parked in neutral and I only noticed that the way I was parking wasn’t the norm when I saw how my Dad parked.
Usually neutral, because I always forget that I'm in gear when I start the car again and it will instantly stall which is kinda scary if you're not expecting it. (My car has a switch that should activate when the clutch is pushed, only allowing starting if it "detects" the car is in neutral, however the plastic tab that pushes the switch has broken twice)
Yeah I’ve done that once or twice in my family’s car when I was still learning. Thankfully it happened when the handbrake was on. My car requires the clutch to be depressed when starting, but it’s also recommended that you do so in general.
This happened to me once.
Was going to eat at this really good restaurant with my friends. The whole ride they were complimenting the car, but when I parked the car, I don’t know why, I just turned it off and just walked out. Everyone’s still inside and the car starts rolling. Thankfully it wasn’t so fast, I quickly get in it and pull the handbrake.
I have the same engine as your car(provided its 1.1L) , but yeah, i park like your dad, if you are facing downhill, then reverse, otherwise, in 1st gear)
On an MR2, I parked it in neutral / e-brake on a fairly level spot. Went into the store right in front. Luckily, I noticed when it started to roll slightly backward out of the spot. Have always left it in gear and e-brake after that.
Edit: the car was only like 2 or 3 years old when it happened.
Neutral on flat and in gear on anything inclined at all and the reason I park in neutral on the flat if you hit my car you aren’t going to destroy my transmission if it’s in neutral and I live in Florida so that’s a very real possibility.
Hell it’s possible to get hit by a car while in a Walmart here
You should use the gear with the highest gear ratio, as it will take the most effort to overcome the compression of the engine when the weight of the vehicle is on it. Usually 1st or Reverse.. personally, I use 1st gear. Then you let the weight of the vehicle rest on the in-gear transmission, and then use the e-brake as the final puzzle piece, as the back up. Easy Peasy
Thr first car i had was a 2001 nissan sentra 5 speed, i always parked it in nuetral idk why i kinds tought myself hiw to drive it and never really thought about it. One day i had a coil go bad so me and my dad took it to autozone (he drove) and we bought the part, had thr guy come out to read the code so we knew which one to change and he told me to turn it on. clutch in, started engine, immediatly released clutch thinking it was in nuetral (cause it always was) and i about ran the autozone employee over. Thats when i learned my ebrake hardly even worked at all. I was like dad wtf you left it in gear, he told me thats common practice and why i should be doing it too, ever since then i park in gear.
In my Saabs you had to have the transmission in reverse to remove the key. In my Miata, I use first. Never rely solely on hand/parking brakes. They fail. And turn your wheels against the curb to prevent rolling when on a hill.
I park mine in gear, but move it into neutral when starting up the car. I usually let the car run for a minute or two before riding off--you know... buckling up, hooking up Car Play... put the music or Podcast on as desired.
The only time I might try to pick up the pace, is if I'm in a parking lot, and I can see someone waiting on me to leave my spot.
When I'm parked in my garage, I park in neutral, because I don't want a particular type of accident to happen. When I'm parked anywhere else, it's in gear, and it's in the gear that would cause the least amount of damage if I were to accidentally dump the clutch after start up and forget it was in gear.
I am flat out giggling at this.
We jsut replaced a garage door for this type of accident. Except it wasn't a manual. My MIL just backed into the damned door. Straight up.
In gear, typically second gear in most cases as this will always remind me "hey, take it OUT of gear so you can go to first" - though sometimes when I back into my driveway, I park it in reverse too (habit).
I park in neutral at home. I'm on a flat driveway with stones, plus there are deep holes in the rocks where my car usually sits, so it ain't rolling anywhere. I'm so used to parking in neutral that if my dad uses my car (he parks in gear), I sometimes stall because I forget that it's in gear.
If I'm on a hill though yeah for sure I'll park in gear
My first car was a stick and the brake didn't work so I parked in gear and put a wood block with a string under the tire as a wheel chock, had a string on it so I could pull it in the car when I was leaving the spot lol
I park in neutral, my remote starter only works if I park in neutral and activate it while holding the brake & clutch before turning it off. Lots of redundancies to prevent starting it in gear, it's pretty cool.
I don't use the remote starter in the summer but I still park in neutral out of habit
I passed on a remote starter years ago just because the one compatible with manual was the shittier option and the remote for it sucked.
One of the only times Ive ever been jealous of automatics
It's pretty sweet, and I think it works with all manuals you just have to get a different harness. It's Viper brand.
To actually use it I have to put it in neutral while holding the clutch and brake, pull the e brake, release the brake and clutch, activate the starter, remove the key, get out of the car, then turn it off using the remote. If I unlock the doors or open the trunk it won't work unless I repeat the process.
Sounds like a lot you get used to it. I do it all in one fluid motion after using it 100+ times lol.
I always park in gear. Once stopped. I leave the clutch engaged while in gear, pull up the ebrake then turn the car off. Foot off the clutch once off. Nice to have redundancy.
When I was driving manuals regularly it was always in gear and with the parking brake applied.
The exception might have been during winter with ambient temperatures may have led to issues.
Some cars force you to park in reverse. SAAB comes to mind.
For some reason my dad has a special hatred for parking in gear, I don’t know why he just does. So he taught me to park in neutral. My grandfather, and everyone else in my life always parks in gear.
It’s just extra security if your parking brake fails, that’s all it is. Some people prefer to only park in gear on inclines, some do it regardless. When to park in gear or in neutral is probably one of the more contentious issues on this sub for some people lol.
So everyone agrees parking in gear is best, but how exactly should we do it? E-brake, release footbrake, shift into gear, shut off? Or e-brake, shut off, shift into gear? Is there any difference?
Always in gear. So one wintry night, I had just finished doing whatever on my car in the garage—maybe putting on snow tires. I started up the car to warm up, and put the car in neutral so I could release tension on the rear chocks to remove them (I suppose that tension is a sign that our garage floor isn’t completely flat but mostly), then I went to grab my wallet or whatnot to leave, come outside to find my car rolling into neighbors driveway. Fortunately nobody was home and nobody witnessed it although snow tracks in driveway left their mark, but definitely a learning lesson.
Just because the car doesn’t start rolling right away in neutral doesn’t mean it won’t
I forgot to put my parking brake up one time on my sloped driveway. No clue how I did, but I did, and the only reason the car didn't roll off my driveway is because it was in gear
All the components of the handbrake can expand when hot and contract when cool, why take a chance?
Ideally put it in first or reverse, choose the direction that would do the least damage if you forgot to put it in neutral, AND forgot to put your foot firmly on the brakes AND the slave cylinder failed.
Im an oddball but I park in neutral with the smallest amount of e brake possible to not move the car +1 click, if the hill is steep enough I will put it in reverse (always turning the wheels so the car will turn into the curb if something happens).
I always park in 1st gear. If I'm on sloped ground the parking brake will not hold it, even if I yank it as far as it'll go. It's absolutely necessary in some cases.
any slope at all she goes in first.
if i'm parking on the street and it's flat i leave it in neutral in case it gets hit, less likely to damage transmission/engine. IF IT IS FLAT.
Reverse, always.
Doesn't matter if I'm in my driveway, a flat parking lot, or on a hill. REVERSE.
Why? Because they're my vehicles and that's the way I've done it for the last 25-30 years and will continue to do so for no other reason than... MINE and I CAN.
Always in gear in case the parking brake fails that way you don't roll away it doesn't do anything unlike some people will try to say there isn't anything I can think of that would cause any damage if the engine won't while driving
follow this flow chart:
1. Put car in neutral, release clutch, keep foot brakes on.
2. Evaluate slope & curb and turn steering accordingly.
3. engage parking brake, release foot brake.
4. turn off the Car engine.
5. If slope is forward, engage Reverse gear using clutch. If slope is backwards, engage 1st gear using clutch.
In a diesel neutral should be considered. It would be a freak series of unfortunate events, but if something decides to leak oil at the same time the parking brake fails the motor could start and continue running despite the fuel and electrical cutoff still active. Diesel is robust like that.
I park it in gear. I also use wheel chocks for extra assurance, but that's mostly for when I'm at home or work when the car is parked for most of the day.
When parked on an incline leave in first, when park on a decline leave in reverse, when on flat ground neutral is fine first or reverse for added safety.
Here's a definitive answer from the owners manual of a 2002 Jeep Liberty...
**WARNING!
When parking your vehicle, always leave a manual transmission in first gear and apply the parking brake fully to guard against vehicle movement and possible injury or damage. Never use any gear as a substitute for the parking brake.**
I'm almost certain every manual from every manufacturer will contain something similar.
In gear.
Why would the school teach you to park in N? Asking for the car to roll if the parking brake doesn't get all the way applied, or if it slips. You have all the weight of the car on it with no backup. I prefer to have the weight of the car on the transmission, in gear, and the e-brake as a help.
Park in gear. There's no guarantee the parking brake will hold, however if it's a old transmission, there's no guarantee the transmission will hold either.
Sequence:
1) Come to a complete stop, keep foot on brake
2) Put transmission in neutral
3) Apply parking brake
4) Release brake
5a) Put it in 1st, if pointing up a hill
5b) Put it in R, if pointing down a hill
I always park mine in gear now but when i first started learning how to drive stick i parked in neutral. it takes one time when you find your car somewhere other than where you parked it and then you start leaving it in gear
I drove my first stick in 1980ish, in gear with parking brake set.
Been riding a motorcycle just as long. Motorcycle is in gear or on the center stand.
I also have a large scooter, that's an odd duck. Automatic trans, no parking brake, it always free rolls. That gets put on the center stand and I carry a small wheel chock in case I absolutely have to park on an incline.
Being told to park any vehicle in neutral is very odd.
Can't remember which car, I have a 16 focus and 19 mustang, had a 19 wrx, but I remember reading in one of the owners manuals that they recommend shutting the car off in 1st gear and setting the brake when parking.
Always in gear unless the ground is so flat that it seems rather silly to double up. If I can idle in a parking spot for 30 seconds with the e-brake off and my foot off of the brake, and the car doesn't roll anywhere, I'll just leave it in neutral and put the e-brake brake on.
This is rare. Very few places are perfectly flat. I park in gear probably 90% of the time.
I've parked in neutral without handbrake multiple times cuz I forgot lol. Luckily I live in the flattest country on earth so it didn't really matter.
Anyways, I usually park in neutral with the handbrake on. Sometimes in gear without handbrake, sometimes both. On hills I use gear and handbrake.
I've never understood what help it is? I mean, say your parking brake doesn't work, what is it being in gear going to do? If you're on an incline, and you put your car into 1st, it still rolls backwards?
I'm usually on flat ground, so neutral. If I park in gear, I immediately stall upon starting, as I *forget I'm in gear*.
Hills, park in gear, angle tires so you'd roll towards the curb.
I park in 1st cause I used to have a BMW with a dodgy handbrake so I had that security that it wouldn’t go anywhere if the handbrake gave up. Been driving my fiancés brand new polo around for two weeks now while my auto car is being repaired (again) and I’m still parking in first just in case. Doesn’t matter that it’s new, there’s still the fear in the back of mind from that BMW
1st gear if it's a uphill slope, reverse gear if it's a downhill slope. In case the parking brake fails, the transmission and engine will stop the car from rolling out of control.
Most car owner's manuals also list the same precaution. [Page 260 (6-14)](https://www.hyundai.com/content/dam/hyundai/in/en/data/connect-to-service/owners-manual/newi20-bi3.pdf)
Park in gear. If there is any slope, I put the parking brake on. One time in an old truck that I owned at the time I used to only park in neutral with the parking brake. The parking brake failed. The parking lot had a light slope. I was at work. The security guard came and got me because my truck was in the middle of the aisle. Luckily it didn't hit any other vehicles.
I’ve never parked in gear that I can remember unless I was on a hill and I would also turn the wheels in to make it even safer. But after reading some stories of what might happen, I think I’m gonna start parking in gear. Definitely don’t want it to roll anywhere, because of the emergency break and the cooling off! Much easier to avoid the trouble
My friend had a C5 Corvette. Refused to park it in gear. One day, he came back from the gym and his car was gone. It had rolled in the parking lot maybe 50 yards. Hand brake failed. Luckily it was late and an empty lot. Really freaked him out. Now he always parks in gear. This was on a relatively flat surface too.
Moral of the story, always park in gear. If you are one of those people that is paranoid about putting stress on the gear, engage the parking brake and while the clutch is pressed in, take your foot off the brake and let the car settle on the hand brake. Then turn car off and release the clutch while in gear. To me, this doesn’t matter but some people are weird about that.
When I went to driving school in the 80's, I learned on a stick. The instructor taught me to put it in Reverse, and engage the parking brake.
When I went for my road test, I did just that... and got dinged for it by the Ontario Provincial Police sergeant who accompanied me on said road test. I explained to her that's what I was taught and she said it was wrong. I got my license and informed my instructor and he got pissed. That was the only item that prevented me from getting a perfect score.
Always park in gear and with the hand brake. Let the car's weight pull against the brake, then put the car in gear. This puts strain on the brake, not the transmission while parked.
If the car faces downslope, leave gear in reverse to counter forward motion. If the car is facing an incline, park it in 1st gear.
Check the hand brake wire once in a while to set it to the right tension.
I just recently purchased a 24 SI (my first Manual car). My mom picked it up with me and took me for a drive to teach me some tricks and get more comfortable and familiar. She always told me when I park to make sure it's in gear so I always park it in gear (moms just always know best right? Lol😅)
Flat surface? Neutral. My e brake is more than enough on a hill already, so I know a flat surface is more than safe
On an incline? Add the gear for a backup. As previously stated, my e brake does just fine, but it never hurts to be safe
My driving school taught me to park in gear.
My friend owns an MR2 and we took it on a trip through the blue ridge mountains. Parked overnight at Wintergreen on a very steep road. He just set the parking brake and overnight the car rolled forward. Luckily there was a pole 6 feet in front, otherwise it would have rolled into a tree down the road. Created a huge dent in his bumper but it popped itself back out as it got warmer outside (plastic bumper). He thought his parking brake was set very well but you never know.
Same happened to a 2004 TSX 6spd I had. I always put in gear and set the parking brake. For whatever reason that morning, I forgot to put it in gear. Came out at lunch and my rear bumper was resting on a coworkers car behind me. Was only a couple feet away and I guess a slow roll so no damage. My understanding is that things are hot when you set the brake and after some cooling the rear drums aren't going to have the same force they had when originally set, due to a little contraction.
That might explain it, when going into wintergreen from the blue ridge parkway, there is a mile long 15% grade descent, before a large ascent, which could definitely contribute to high brake temps.
Similar happened with my old toyota hilux ,set brake and forgot to put it in gear,next morning it was against my neighbors van,since then its been set brake,in gear and if theres a curb ,i always turn my wheel facing the curb
Had this happen to my ranger, rolled probably 100 feet through a parking lot into a 10 inch curb(probably would have rolled over anything smaller), and barely missed a car by about 3 feet on its journey.
I used to always park in neutral with my first manual car. I noticed my dad would park it in gear whenever he used it and thinking to myself how it was probably a “trick of the old” or something. One day I found the car rolled down my driveway. A lady informed my mother that my car was halfway on the driveway and halfway on the road. It was a cold rainy morning, and I got into my car with wet socks and no pants, thinking I might’ve left the parking brake off like an idiot. I got in the car and saw that the brake was up, looked normal, but it had no resistance when you’d remove it on or off. It was just a lever to mess with when you were bored now. Turns out the parking brake snapped, and luckily it was at my house with a not so steep incline. This car wasn’t old mind you, it was a 2015 and I think this happened in ‘22, so it was a seven year old car and I think it happened a little over 100k miles. Ever since then I always put by e-brake up, left off the foot brake, put the car in gear, and shut it off. Tl;dr: not very old 2015 car’s e-brake snapped, car rolled down luckily a safe area, now I always park in gear.
Yeah that’s pretty much my reasoning. Pulling up the handbrake and staying in gear is instinctual for me when parking, but I’m also prone to mistakes just like anyone else and it is possible that I may forget to pull up the handbrake, like if I’m very tired or stressed. There’s also the possibility of the handbrake failing, especially for my sister’s car which is pretty old. Our driveway is also on a relatively steep slope, so if the car were to roll away it will crash into some trees and vegetation and cause significant damage.
I used to install alarms/interlock/coded anti-theft/remote start systems in college, one of the first places I worked at was best buy, they only carry the cheapest & shittiest kind ofc & these are specifically not to be used on manual. That didn't stop employees who would constantly buy them with their employee discount for next to nothing & try to get them installed, eventually one of those people was the new assistant manager so eventually they got their way. I almost refused & straght up walked out but my supervisor convinced me I wouldn't be liable, keep in mind these garbage viper systems weren't in any way designed for this so the best I could do safety-wise was using the e-brake basically as a kill switch on the ground side, so basically it wouldn't be grounded without that engaged. I explained to them that for obvious reasons they could no longer leave their cars in gear, it still *HAD* to be left in neutral if they were going to remote start, even with the e-brake. Well, one day I was working & CRASH.. I immediately had a sick feeling, went running to the front of the store where an employees car that I had literally just worked on the week prior had reversed itself right into a new excercise equipment store that, thankfully had no one in it bc they were still remodeling. All I can remember thinking was the maternity store literally right there where folks would walk by with their kids & strollers.. whenever I park my car something inside my brain always reminds me of that right before I get out, so I always just take it out of gear & use the e-brake.
As long as you park in gear, you really could just forget the hand brake and be fine. Just relying on the handbrake in neutral on the other hand is a huge gamble, loads of these stories on new cars
Same thing happened to me. Friend who taught me to drive manual told me to park in neutral. Rolled away once and now I always park in gear. Parking break was useless.
Get your parking brake fixed.
Had a similar situation on an old Nissan pickup I had. Came out of a theater and my truck wasn't where I expected it to be. Looked down the slight hill and there it was wedged in between two parked cars with the complex security guard looking at it confused. No damage at all to one of the cars and only a small dent and scuff on the other. We waited awhile until the owners came out and the guy who's car got damaged was super chill and said don't worry about it and left. I've parked in gear ever since.
hardbody pickup?
Yes, a 1986 model. It was a great little truck.
thinking about getting one to fix up and repaint black with the 80s purple striping on it. ideally maybe a king cab 96 so it's got OBD 2 on it. they're going for around 2 grand? 3, maybe, what with the bad car market.
That would be a cool project. Not sure what they're going for these days. I bought mine for 1k back in about 2000. Had it for about 5 years and sold it on for 400
a grand back in 2000 must have been a bit more like what we consider a 5 or 6k car. I personally wouldn't know but 7 grand was what I paid for my first car and ended up selling it for 660 dollars lmao
You're probably about right. It was my second car. First was an 82 monte carlo that I bought for 400, drove for a year and sold for 700. To this day the only car I've ever made money on lol.
my dad's always telling me about how he wishes he kept his 72 gran Torino. the resale value would probably literally be in the hundreds of percentages profit wise.
Absolutely. A lot of those old cars are worth a ton these days. Makes ya wish you could see the future to know which cars will end up being valuable classics.
English is not my main language, so keep that in mind: The car rolling a few minutes after parked has to do with how you applied the hand brake. You have to really pull that thing, hard, when parking because if you don't, when the car/brake's parts start to cool down it can be ineffective. You usually don't NEED to leave the car in gear. But it can help in situations where your hand brake "fails" like that
I get what you’re saying, it’s just that mine eventually just didn’t work AT ALL! You could yank that thing as hard as you wanted, it didn’t do squat. You could tell it had no resistance and just wasn’t engaging at all
are you supposed to replace handbrake components? is it something i can ask my mechanic to check?
Never heard about anything like that from anyone I know, but I suppose, yes, you can. Car manufacturers make their profits from selling car parts and not actual cars, so I don't see why that wouldn't be possible
You are incorrect about that. Car manufacturers make their money selling new cars. Aftermarket part supply from the OEM is usually limited at best, because they want you to buy a new car. Back when I was working on an engine platform for the F150, the cost of shutting down engine production was $10k every 59 seconds. The $10k is the profit for that particular F150 model, the 59 seconds was the tac time, or how long it took to produce one engine once the line was at production rate. That was 2016, and last I heard the annual rate has come down a bit (300k engines a year down to 225k) but the platform is still expected to net a hefty profit per vehicle. If you're curious, the platform was for the 5L v8, and my team was lining the piston bores on the aluminum block. 9 machines feeding 2 engine plants doing the rest of the assembly.
I’ll be real honest with you, when I was younger I’d yank the parking brake every time, giving it a really good pull, and I don’t know if that’s necessary. Nowadays I’m firm but not crazy like I once was with it, it should’ve lasted longer than it did EDIT: just to add, this was on a 2015 Miata, and it wasn’t a common thing with these cars, I could barely find anything at the time when I did some research on it. All the things I’d find on a damaged parking brake were on older Miata’s, but I take it that was due to age
Fix it!
I wish, I no longer have the car but I did order the component, it just too way too long to get here and the car was already planned to be sold, it just so happened the car was sold before the part actually made it
On inclines it's recommended to park in the gear opposite of the downhill direction in case the parking brake fails. On flat ground it's more a matter of preference. I generally always park in gear.
Direction doesn't matter. The engine isn't easier to spin forwards than it is backwards. In fact, if it does roll, you'll be running the oil pump and timing system backwards, which is often bad
Assuming 1st and R are practically the same as far as holding power, I choose to park in the gear that has less consequence if I accidentally stall the car when starting up. For instance, when pulling front-in into my garage, I park in R because I’d think bucking backwards towards an open door is less bad than towards my house’s wall. Also a good precaution if you have kids or someone who might accidentally get into the car and manage to start it. Of course, you *should* return the shifter to neutral before starting the car.
Yes, that is good logic for choosing a gear. I just always use first, but your thought process makes perfect sense.
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So you don't drop the clutch and jump while setting the climate controls, ratio, make sure you aren't in a gear you didn't intend, or if someone else parked it in a way you don't usually. Don't trust your past self, just good habits.
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That's just fine, taking it out of gear before you let go of the clutch. Just making sure you (or someone else) doesn't put it in a state you don't expect and that impacting you somehow.
my process basically is confirming neutral by shaking the shifter left to right before my foot comes off the clutch. I have the same car as you, so button+clutch is how it starts.
Your way still leaves open the possibility (however slim) of dropping the clutch while the engine is running, which is the entire point of shifting into neutral BEFORE turning the engine on. Do what you want, and this is really splitting hairs, but technically going to neutral before turning the car on is “safer”.
I don't don't like or trust past me. He is inconsiderate, lazy, and an a** sometimes. Always leaving things out, sometimes hiding stuff I need. I'd slap him, but I can't reach him. I know that he laughs at me, too.
Basically what BupherNinja said. Just eliminate any chance of bad stuff happening by engraining those habits. Cars are too expensive and dangerous to make a silly mistake.
Larger gear has more staying power.
The oil pump system isn’t engaging without power or crank. Spinning it backwards isn’t just pulling oil backwards or pushing more in, it’s not doing anything. Same with timing. If you’re fucking up your timing by spinning the engine backwards, you’d fuck the timing any time you’d need to push the car a handful of feet backwards. Rolling backwards on an off vehicle doesn’t damage the interiors whatsoever, unless you already have broken/lemon parts. The engine is the same effort to spin forwards than backwards, *when there’s no load*. When the vehicle gets put into gear, the gear is *loaded*, and creates a pull against the wheels directionally whichever the transmission is set for. This directional movement is *easier* on the engine, or *harder* on the engine depending on the ground you’re on. Which would imply, direction *does matter* because the transmission load is what is holding the vehicle in place *against* the weight of the car. Put your car in first nose down without the parking break. You roll forward on an incline. Put the car in reverse nose down without the parking break. You don’t roll forward. The transmission is stopping the rolling, not the engine. Final Edit: no more on this topic after this because one of my cars is now in my shop again after having a brand new starter solenoid fuck up and not connect to the flywheel any longer after attempting first on a hill instead of reverse. This is a brand new starter, replaced within the last 2 months, on a vehicle that isn’t driven by a teenager on a joyride. Your gear ratios, will fuck up other parts of your car, because of how physics pulls against the mechanic pieces, and how different pieces aren’t meant to spin in certain ways. You all who defend gear ratioing have simply been lucky, nothing more or less, and haven’t had the wear on those parts culminate into a repair shop trip that you were aware of. Just do it the right way and not attempt to defend a horrible way to keep your vehicle from rolling. I will not respond to anymore after this, because at this point y’all are just going to ignore the repercussions to beat a dead drum.
No, the trans will spin either way, it doesn't care. Same with the engine. There is no sprag or one way clutch that just magically prevents moment in the 'opposite' direction. When the engine is running, moment is what provides the bias. But when it isn't, both the engine and trans will spin both ways. You know this is a manual trans sub right? There is no parking pawl in play.
Yes, I’ve been taking apart and rebuilding manuals the last 10 years of my life. You have no idea how tranny load works if you think this really.
Push the clutch in while in gear, and the car rolls, right. The trans doesn't provide the resistance, it comes from the engine. Sure the trans delivers it, and modify it with ratios, but that's like saying it comes from the axles or the diff. Their resistance alone is negligible
If you have to press the clutch in, to remove the transmission load. How is the engine holding that load? It’s not. The transmission is. Then engine is not providing any resistance at no power and no compression. The clutch is not an engine part, it is a *transmission* part. You depress the clutch to remove the tranny load, to allow the engine to free spin out of gear. Put your engine in neutral and spin the crank by hand. Put it into gear and try again. I can guarantee you won’t be able to do it the second time.
Okay, so take your parked vehicle, in gear, no parking brake. Use a luggage scale and see how hard it is to pull. Then, take the spark plugs out and try again. It is going to be significantly easier. Your example is the opposite. Using the weight of the vehicle to hold the engine same premise, but the holding power is from the intetia (or lack the of) of the vehicle, not the trans itself The transmission is a linkage, not the source of resistance. It's like saying the trans is the source of energy when driving the vehicle forwards. It is part of the system, but doesn't provide the actual energy.
It is a linkage, but it also creates a source of resistance. As I said in the first one, it depends on how much the ratio of the gear takes, but it is always better to go opposite while regarding that the gear ratio *may not hold* the vehicle in the same position because of how *physics works*. There is no compression, no load, gear ratioing is just asking to slide.
You could replace the trans with a big driveshaft from the diff to the flywheel, and the car would still be difficult to move. With no engine or suitable resistive device, the trans cannot hold the vehicle. The holding power comes from the engine. Even if you get frictional force from the trans, the friction is directly proportial to the load being put on the engine, and is negligible compared to the engine, regardless of what gear you are.
>Direction doesn't matter. Are you really saying to park in first when the nose is downhill?
Whichever gear has the shortest ratio. If that is first, then yes.
I having mixed thoughts on this, i actually think it make sense
Your vehicle specifically will have 8% more rolling resistance in first.
So if this is true, if you wanted to push a car forward, it will be easier to do with car in reverse?
Direction is irrelevant. All that matters is the gear ratio. It is just as hard to go forwards in first as it is backwards. Reverse is the same. First are reverse are only different because of the ratio, direction does not matter for holding power. In your car, they said first gear is shorter than reverse. That means it's easier to push (regardless of direction) in reverse than first.
Yes, why wouldn't you? It's not like being in reverse provides extra holding power. The only reason the engine had a directional preference is because it is already spinning that way. When it isn't spinning already, it'll go either way about as easily.
Yes. Put your car in first and try pushing it forward, it's not gonna budge. When you park your car in gear it's the engine that's holding it, doesn't make a difference if it's first or reverse
Not the guy you responded to, but yes. If you do start to roll forward in reverse you could do damage to your engine by spinning it backwards. So yes, park in first if facing downhill.
I keep trying to get into the habit of parking in gear, but I always forget I'm in gear and unintentionally stall it 😂
Same… I was taught to park in neutral and keep forgetting when I do park in gear 🤦♂️🤦♂️
i always got into the habit of wiggling the shifter every time to make sure i’m in neutral even while driving
Neutral is dumb. A single point of failure (E-brake) makes no sense when there's a backup already there (gear)
I strongly doubt that OP’s driving school taught them to park in neutral. Probably a misunderstanding.
Has to be. Maybe they're confusing parking an automatic in "park" with neutral.
I’ve driven an automatic only once in the three years I’ve been driving. I also learnt to drive on a manual. I promise you I’m not crazy.
Nope, I’m pretty sure that’s what they taught me. It’s not so unbelievable either, when there are a few people in this comment section who say they park in neutral, and when my mom and my sister both park in neutral.
Gotcha. Well, this is a case where your driving school was simply wrong. It happens, unfortunately.
Yeah, and it’s the not the only thing lol. My instructor told me I could fold the mirrors in when doing the reverse parking test…imagine my shock when the test officer told me I couldn’t do that and I had to ask for my 2nd attempt.
Oh, yikes! Did it work out in your 2nd attempt?
Yeah luckily I passed the test 1st try, but I had a couple of close calls. Like I said, I nearly failed the parking test, and during the driving part I accidentally turned right when the officer told me turn left, so he nearly failed me for that.
Then you went to a bad school. Even in my regular drivers Ed class to get a license, they said to park on gear if you drive a manual
I park just like your dad. Park in first on flat surfaces and in reverse when sloped forward. Also make sure to turn my wheels inward when parallel parking with a slope. I will leave it in neutral if I know someone else is going to be getting into the car (Service, valet, etc)
Putting the car in reverse will not make it any easier or harder for the car to move. The engine is held by compression and can rotate either direction. The best gear is the one with the most ratio. It could be first or reverse but whatever one has the most ratio will offer better holding power.
Correct, though I think that first and reverse are close enough in ratio in most cars that it probably makes no difference. I’d be interested to hear if I’m wrong on that. In the past I have just left it in reverse if it was already there, left it in first if it was already in first, and usually throw it in first if I was in neutral or a higher gear.
I put it in the gear that goes with the direction of the slope: 1st for flat or downhill, reverse for uphill. The engine is not designed to spin backwards so this prevents it from happening. For me first and reverse are the same ratio.
I understood the principles and was over simplifying for the comments, but this is a much better explanation of why
This is the way.
I've always used both and have never had any problems.
In gear. Always. First or reverse can potentially help if you’re on a steep slope depending on which way you’re facing. I’ve accidentally parked in neutral before and had the car roll out of the parking spot a few minutes later on a very gently sloped surface.
Park with both. Put the parking brake on and then put either 1st gear or reverse if facing down a hill.
In neutral, you are resting all your hopes and dreams on a parking brake cable. I'm 100% on the " in gear and parking brake" group. Don't rely on a single point to hold your multi ton hunk of metal in place.
Friendly reminder to all that direction doesn't matter, use the shortest gear, uphill or downhill. Your engine doesn't care if it spins forwards or backwards. R and 1 are close in most cars though.
I agree, keeping it in the shortest gear is the way to go regardless of direction. It's all about efficiency and keeping that engine happy
I have a hard time believing any driving school would advise parking in neutral. Every car I have ever owned has had the parking brake fail at some point. I even used to have a SAAB that had to be in reverse to remove the key & the damn thing eventually would still roll even with the parking brake on & being in gear. It got to the point where I couldn't park that car on any incline.
Ok, well I’m not lying to you, so I don’t know what to say. None of the cars I’ve driven can’t be parked in neutral and I only noticed that the way I was parking wasn’t the norm when I saw how my Dad parked.
In gear
I always park in gear, does it matter which gear? I've always gone with first.
In gear bc my ebrake may or may not stay engaged lmao
Usually neutral, because I always forget that I'm in gear when I start the car again and it will instantly stall which is kinda scary if you're not expecting it. (My car has a switch that should activate when the clutch is pushed, only allowing starting if it "detects" the car is in neutral, however the plastic tab that pushes the switch has broken twice)
Yeah I’ve done that once or twice in my family’s car when I was still learning. Thankfully it happened when the handbrake was on. My car requires the clutch to be depressed when starting, but it’s also recommended that you do so in general.
I parked in neutral until I forgot the e brake one day and my car rolled into a coworkers lol
This happened to me once. Was going to eat at this really good restaurant with my friends. The whole ride they were complimenting the car, but when I parked the car, I don’t know why, I just turned it off and just walked out. Everyone’s still inside and the car starts rolling. Thankfully it wasn’t so fast, I quickly get in it and pull the handbrake.
Always park in gear.
Driving stick 40 years and always park in gear + Ebrake.
In gear, because right now that is the only thing keeping my truck from rolling off on me. Parking brake isnt yet fixed.
I have the same engine as your car(provided its 1.1L) , but yeah, i park like your dad, if you are facing downhill, then reverse, otherwise, in 1st gear)
I parked in neutral with the E-brake until it started seizing up. Now park in gear and don't use the E-brake.
Just gear is better than just e brake.
On an MR2, I parked it in neutral / e-brake on a fairly level spot. Went into the store right in front. Luckily, I noticed when it started to roll slightly backward out of the spot. Have always left it in gear and e-brake after that. Edit: the car was only like 2 or 3 years old when it happened.
Neutral on flat and in gear on anything inclined at all and the reason I park in neutral on the flat if you hit my car you aren’t going to destroy my transmission if it’s in neutral and I live in Florida so that’s a very real possibility. Hell it’s possible to get hit by a car while in a Walmart here
You should use the gear with the highest gear ratio, as it will take the most effort to overcome the compression of the engine when the weight of the vehicle is on it. Usually 1st or Reverse.. personally, I use 1st gear. Then you let the weight of the vehicle rest on the in-gear transmission, and then use the e-brake as the final puzzle piece, as the back up. Easy Peasy
My ebrake sucks even after a full replacement and won't hold the car on anything more than a flat surface, so always park in gear.
Thr first car i had was a 2001 nissan sentra 5 speed, i always parked it in nuetral idk why i kinds tought myself hiw to drive it and never really thought about it. One day i had a coil go bad so me and my dad took it to autozone (he drove) and we bought the part, had thr guy come out to read the code so we knew which one to change and he told me to turn it on. clutch in, started engine, immediatly released clutch thinking it was in nuetral (cause it always was) and i about ran the autozone employee over. Thats when i learned my ebrake hardly even worked at all. I was like dad wtf you left it in gear, he told me thats common practice and why i should be doing it too, ever since then i park in gear.
In my Saabs you had to have the transmission in reverse to remove the key. In my Miata, I use first. Never rely solely on hand/parking brakes. They fail. And turn your wheels against the curb to prevent rolling when on a hill.
I park mine in gear, but move it into neutral when starting up the car. I usually let the car run for a minute or two before riding off--you know... buckling up, hooking up Car Play... put the music or Podcast on as desired. The only time I might try to pick up the pace, is if I'm in a parking lot, and I can see someone waiting on me to leave my spot.
In my garage i park in neutral no hand brake. In the wild I park in first gear still no brake.
When I'm parked in my garage, I park in neutral, because I don't want a particular type of accident to happen. When I'm parked anywhere else, it's in gear, and it's in the gear that would cause the least amount of damage if I were to accidentally dump the clutch after start up and forget it was in gear.
I am flat out giggling at this. We jsut replaced a garage door for this type of accident. Except it wasn't a manual. My MIL just backed into the damned door. Straight up.
In gear, typically second gear in most cases as this will always remind me "hey, take it OUT of gear so you can go to first" - though sometimes when I back into my driveway, I park it in reverse too (habit).
I always park in reverse
I park in neutral usually since my driveway and parking spot at work are both level ground, if im on a hill I'll park in gear
I park in neutral at home. I'm on a flat driveway with stones, plus there are deep holes in the rocks where my car usually sits, so it ain't rolling anywhere. I'm so used to parking in neutral that if my dad uses my car (he parks in gear), I sometimes stall because I forget that it's in gear. If I'm on a hill though yeah for sure I'll park in gear
My first car was a stick and the brake didn't work so I parked in gear and put a wood block with a string under the tire as a wheel chock, had a string on it so I could pull it in the car when I was leaving the spot lol
In gear after hand brake is applied
I park in neutral, my remote starter only works if I park in neutral and activate it while holding the brake & clutch before turning it off. Lots of redundancies to prevent starting it in gear, it's pretty cool. I don't use the remote starter in the summer but I still park in neutral out of habit
I passed on a remote starter years ago just because the one compatible with manual was the shittier option and the remote for it sucked. One of the only times Ive ever been jealous of automatics
It's pretty sweet, and I think it works with all manuals you just have to get a different harness. It's Viper brand. To actually use it I have to put it in neutral while holding the clutch and brake, pull the e brake, release the brake and clutch, activate the starter, remove the key, get out of the car, then turn it off using the remote. If I unlock the doors or open the trunk it won't work unless I repeat the process. Sounds like a lot you get used to it. I do it all in one fluid motion after using it 100+ times lol.
It's def a pain in the ass ritual! And I have kids and I'm forgetful. So I'm always in and out of the car looking for shit, lmao.
1st always
I always park in gear. Once stopped. I leave the clutch engaged while in gear, pull up the ebrake then turn the car off. Foot off the clutch once off. Nice to have redundancy.
When I was driving manuals regularly it was always in gear and with the parking brake applied. The exception might have been during winter with ambient temperatures may have led to issues. Some cars force you to park in reverse. SAAB comes to mind.
I know of no reason why anyone would ever park in neutral
For some reason my dad has a special hatred for parking in gear, I don’t know why he just does. So he taught me to park in neutral. My grandfather, and everyone else in my life always parks in gear. It’s just extra security if your parking brake fails, that’s all it is. Some people prefer to only park in gear on inclines, some do it regardless. When to park in gear or in neutral is probably one of the more contentious issues on this sub for some people lol.
So everyone agrees parking in gear is best, but how exactly should we do it? E-brake, release footbrake, shift into gear, shut off? Or e-brake, shut off, shift into gear? Is there any difference?
1st gear always
Always in gear. So one wintry night, I had just finished doing whatever on my car in the garage—maybe putting on snow tires. I started up the car to warm up, and put the car in neutral so I could release tension on the rear chocks to remove them (I suppose that tension is a sign that our garage floor isn’t completely flat but mostly), then I went to grab my wallet or whatnot to leave, come outside to find my car rolling into neighbors driveway. Fortunately nobody was home and nobody witnessed it although snow tracks in driveway left their mark, but definitely a learning lesson. Just because the car doesn’t start rolling right away in neutral doesn’t mean it won’t
I forgot to put my parking brake up one time on my sloped driveway. No clue how I did, but I did, and the only reason the car didn't roll off my driveway is because it was in gear
All the components of the handbrake can expand when hot and contract when cool, why take a chance? Ideally put it in first or reverse, choose the direction that would do the least damage if you forgot to put it in neutral, AND forgot to put your foot firmly on the brakes AND the slave cylinder failed.
Im an oddball but I park in neutral with the smallest amount of e brake possible to not move the car +1 click, if the hill is steep enough I will put it in reverse (always turning the wheels so the car will turn into the curb if something happens).
I’ll coast into my garage in neutral, pull ebrake, turn off vehicle and put it in first gear.
Always in gear.
I park in neutral. I live in an extremely flat place, and all my cars that have been regularly parked in-gear have worn out centering springs.
I always park in 1st gear. If I'm on sloped ground the parking brake will not hold it, even if I yank it as far as it'll go. It's absolutely necessary in some cases.
I'm from Florida so I got used to parking in neutral.
any slope at all she goes in first. if i'm parking on the street and it's flat i leave it in neutral in case it gets hit, less likely to damage transmission/engine. IF IT IS FLAT.
Gear all the time
You never leave a car parked in neutral. Ever. Put it in gear and set the parking brake. Your driving school was dangerously wrong.
Reverse, always. Doesn't matter if I'm in my driveway, a flat parking lot, or on a hill. REVERSE. Why? Because they're my vehicles and that's the way I've done it for the last 25-30 years and will continue to do so for no other reason than... MINE and I CAN.
Always in gear in case the parking brake fails that way you don't roll away it doesn't do anything unlike some people will try to say there isn't anything I can think of that would cause any damage if the engine won't while driving
follow this flow chart: 1. Put car in neutral, release clutch, keep foot brakes on. 2. Evaluate slope & curb and turn steering accordingly. 3. engage parking brake, release foot brake. 4. turn off the Car engine. 5. If slope is forward, engage Reverse gear using clutch. If slope is backwards, engage 1st gear using clutch.
In a diesel neutral should be considered. It would be a freak series of unfortunate events, but if something decides to leak oil at the same time the parking brake fails the motor could start and continue running despite the fuel and electrical cutoff still active. Diesel is robust like that.
I park it in gear. I also use wheel chocks for extra assurance, but that's mostly for when I'm at home or work when the car is parked for most of the day.
I always park in gear ⚙️
When parked on an incline leave in first, when park on a decline leave in reverse, when on flat ground neutral is fine first or reverse for added safety.
Here's a definitive answer from the owners manual of a 2002 Jeep Liberty... **WARNING! When parking your vehicle, always leave a manual transmission in first gear and apply the parking brake fully to guard against vehicle movement and possible injury or damage. Never use any gear as a substitute for the parking brake.** I'm almost certain every manual from every manufacturer will contain something similar.
I park in gear. I have a fwd car. My reasoning is parking brake secures the rear axle, parking in gear helps secure the front axle.
In gear. Why would the school teach you to park in N? Asking for the car to roll if the parking brake doesn't get all the way applied, or if it slips. You have all the weight of the car on it with no backup. I prefer to have the weight of the car on the transmission, in gear, and the e-brake as a help.
I park in neutral. 90's turbo needs extra time and oil to cool down.
Park in gear. There's no guarantee the parking brake will hold, however if it's a old transmission, there's no guarantee the transmission will hold either.
Always in first. Never had a manual with an e brake.
Sequence: 1) Come to a complete stop, keep foot on brake 2) Put transmission in neutral 3) Apply parking brake 4) Release brake 5a) Put it in 1st, if pointing up a hill 5b) Put it in R, if pointing down a hill
Leave it in gear. Handbrakes can fail, and when that happens, the car in neutral will roll away.
Gear
I always park mine in gear now but when i first started learning how to drive stick i parked in neutral. it takes one time when you find your car somewhere other than where you parked it and then you start leaving it in gear
I drove my first stick in 1980ish, in gear with parking brake set. Been riding a motorcycle just as long. Motorcycle is in gear or on the center stand. I also have a large scooter, that's an odd duck. Automatic trans, no parking brake, it always free rolls. That gets put on the center stand and I carry a small wheel chock in case I absolutely have to park on an incline. Being told to park any vehicle in neutral is very odd.
you should always leave it in gear and I was taught in reverse is the most safe
Can't remember which car, I have a 16 focus and 19 mustang, had a 19 wrx, but I remember reading in one of the owners manuals that they recommend shutting the car off in 1st gear and setting the brake when parking.
Handbrake n first gear always when parking
in gear on any incline! 1st for backwards, r for forwards
Always in gear unless the ground is so flat that it seems rather silly to double up. If I can idle in a parking spot for 30 seconds with the e-brake off and my foot off of the brake, and the car doesn't roll anywhere, I'll just leave it in neutral and put the e-brake brake on. This is rare. Very few places are perfectly flat. I park in gear probably 90% of the time.
I've parked in neutral without handbrake multiple times cuz I forgot lol. Luckily I live in the flattest country on earth so it didn't really matter. Anyways, I usually park in neutral with the handbrake on. Sometimes in gear without handbrake, sometimes both. On hills I use gear and handbrake.
I've never understood what help it is? I mean, say your parking brake doesn't work, what is it being in gear going to do? If you're on an incline, and you put your car into 1st, it still rolls backwards?
I adjust my parking brake cable yearly and am confident in it. I park in neutral.
I'm usually on flat ground, so neutral. If I park in gear, I immediately stall upon starting, as I *forget I'm in gear*. Hills, park in gear, angle tires so you'd roll towards the curb.
Always in gear. Always.
I typically only ever put it in gear if I’m on an incline. Other than that, I always just leave it in neutral with the parking brake.
Rest the weight of the vehicle on the parking brake, shut the engine off, shift into gear.
Gear
In gear allways
I park in 1st cause I used to have a BMW with a dodgy handbrake so I had that security that it wouldn’t go anywhere if the handbrake gave up. Been driving my fiancés brand new polo around for two weeks now while my auto car is being repaired (again) and I’m still parking in first just in case. Doesn’t matter that it’s new, there’s still the fear in the back of mind from that BMW
1st gear if it's a uphill slope, reverse gear if it's a downhill slope. In case the parking brake fails, the transmission and engine will stop the car from rolling out of control. Most car owner's manuals also list the same precaution. [Page 260 (6-14)](https://www.hyundai.com/content/dam/hyundai/in/en/data/connect-to-service/owners-manual/newi20-bi3.pdf)
Parking in nuetral is the true sign of growing up wealthy. My first several vehicles didn't have trustworthy handbrakes!
depends. I live in a very flat area so I generally just park in neurtral. however, I visited a not-so-flat area this past weekend and used 1st.
Always park it in gear with the parking brake on, unless the owner’s manual specifically says to do something else.
Always park in gear.
In neutral most of the time. If the car gets tapped from the front or back when parked I do not want to to damage trans.
Park in gear. If there is any slope, I put the parking brake on. One time in an old truck that I owned at the time I used to only park in neutral with the parking brake. The parking brake failed. The parking lot had a light slope. I was at work. The security guard came and got me because my truck was in the middle of the aisle. Luckily it didn't hit any other vehicles.
I always park in first or reverse and set the parking brake. Better safe than sorry!
I’ve never parked in gear that I can remember unless I was on a hill and I would also turn the wheels in to make it even safer. But after reading some stories of what might happen, I think I’m gonna start parking in gear. Definitely don’t want it to roll anywhere, because of the emergency break and the cooling off! Much easier to avoid the trouble
My friend had a C5 Corvette. Refused to park it in gear. One day, he came back from the gym and his car was gone. It had rolled in the parking lot maybe 50 yards. Hand brake failed. Luckily it was late and an empty lot. Really freaked him out. Now he always parks in gear. This was on a relatively flat surface too. Moral of the story, always park in gear. If you are one of those people that is paranoid about putting stress on the gear, engage the parking brake and while the clutch is pressed in, take your foot off the brake and let the car settle on the hand brake. Then turn car off and release the clutch while in gear. To me, this doesn’t matter but some people are weird about that.
You should park in second facing uphill, and reverse facing downhill. With wheels turned the appropriate way to aim for the curb if brakes fail.
I always park in neutral unless on a slope and I'll also point the tires to the curb
When I went to driving school in the 80's, I learned on a stick. The instructor taught me to put it in Reverse, and engage the parking brake. When I went for my road test, I did just that... and got dinged for it by the Ontario Provincial Police sergeant who accompanied me on said road test. I explained to her that's what I was taught and she said it was wrong. I got my license and informed my instructor and he got pissed. That was the only item that prevented me from getting a perfect score.
Always park in gear and with the hand brake. Let the car's weight pull against the brake, then put the car in gear. This puts strain on the brake, not the transmission while parked. If the car faces downslope, leave gear in reverse to counter forward motion. If the car is facing an incline, park it in 1st gear. Check the hand brake wire once in a while to set it to the right tension.
Gear plus e brake. Don't want that thing going anywhere.
Your driving school was 100% wrong. Always leave it in gear and set the parking brake.
Gear
Parking brake and 2nd gear.
In gear. Always
I just recently purchased a 24 SI (my first Manual car). My mom picked it up with me and took me for a drive to teach me some tricks and get more comfortable and familiar. She always told me when I park to make sure it's in gear so I always park it in gear (moms just always know best right? Lol😅)
In gear, the parking brake stopped working years ago.
Interesting question, i park in neutral but i dont have a reason, thats how i was taught.
You were taught wrong
If anything I'd rather park in gear, no handbrake, than the opposite.
If i've been ripping it and brakes are hot, park in gear. Otherwise i park with the e-brake. Both if its a steep hill.
Flat surface? Neutral. My e brake is more than enough on a hill already, so I know a flat surface is more than safe On an incline? Add the gear for a backup. As previously stated, my e brake does just fine, but it never hurts to be safe