Ask Honest John

Honest John Ask Honest John » Coasting in neutral - bad for economy?

Coasting in neutral - bad for economy?

The Department of Transport says in one its leaflets: "Don't coast downhill or towards lights in neutral as this uses more fuel" Is this true? The leaflet is called "Be a smarter driver and save money."

Asked on 9 August 2012 by Ivan S

Answered by Honest John
Yes. The engine requires a little bit of fuel to tick over while coasting out of gear. In gear with foot off the accelerator, the drivetrain turns the engine and the fuel supply to it is cut off entirely.

Real MPG enables you to register the fuel economy you are actually getting against your make and model of car, its engine and type of transmission.

Every time you enter an average consumption figure against your car, the overall average automatically adjusts to reflect it.

Real MPG
Similar questions
Twice in the past year you have answered a similar question to 'is it economical to coast in neutral down hill'. Both times your answer is wrong! Of course you are correct that in neutral the engine is...
An article in yesterdays paper that recommends, "Never coast in neutral; idling uses more fuel than running in gear on a closed throttle.” I don't understand how this can be. If you go down a hill for...
The article by Kara Gammell in the Money Supplement in a recent Sunday Telegraph stated towards the end:- "But don't think that freewheeling down a hill will save you petrol. It won't. Not only is coasting...