OK, so this seems like a fairly simple question, but just so nodboy gets the wron idea, I'm asking what putting the shifter to "park" does mechanically, NOT what is park for, I know it's for when you are stopping the car and PARKing, duh.

What happens inside the transmission? Are the brakes automatically applied to any of the wheels? What is the difference between neutral and park?

Kinda random question, but was jacking up the car the other day and I was curious about what kind of stuff happened that made the tires not move. Just curious.

 

it puts the transmission in neutral but somehow locks the gears from moving it also sets a rev limiter on the engine so it doesnt accidently get blown. OH and it makes the "P" light up on the dash!

 

well yeah neutral does the rev limiter too, so I kinda figured if it was like neutral + gear lock.

so would it not be as bad to put the car from drive to park at 60 mph than it would be to put it in reverse, or would you be just as fucked?

 

it will just click real fast if you put it in park while goin fast.

 

Here's a site that explains a lot about what goes on inside the automatic transmission for you curious mind.

http://auto.howstuffworks.com/automa...ansmission.htm

 

When in park, it is basicly in netural with the main gear locked (shift lever in park engages a locking gear).

 

Mine doesn't have a rev limiter in neutral

 

I did that once...

I was pissed at my girl and I was on the highway doing well over 60. I don't remember what the argument was about (or who the girl was), but I know I put the car in Park in the middle of the highway. The car was making a lot of noise, but kept moving at normal speed. I put it back in drive and continued driving. That was the only time I did that and it was when I first purchased the car. Six years later and 77,000 miles and I'm still on my first tranny.

 

it disconnects the pump in the tranny and engages the parking pawl. (kind of like throwing a wrench in a gear) seriously..

 

which is why its bad to put a car in park with out the e-brake on. as well as putting a manual in 1st w/o the e-brake on.

 

PRND321

Wouldnt it wreak even more havoc because it has to go through reverse first? I would think that modern automatic transmissions would have a lockout feature to prevent such a thing. I'm not disputing that it didnt happen, it just doesnt seem right to me.

 

Oh it did happen. Whether the car actually made it all the way into park, I couldn't tell you. The tranny prevents you from putting the car into reverse (and park for that matter), and forces you to hit the brake. Well, that's what I did, except I didn't come to a stop. I was doing over 60, hit the brake and slammed it into Park. I'm sure I was expecting the whle car to come to a stop, not that I was really thinking at that point. Anyway, once I heard the noise and saw that the car was still moving, I just put it back in drive and kept going.

Since then, I always tell my girl "never piss off the driver". At least wait until the car is stopped!

 

if u ever change ur tranny fluid look at the drain plug. there will be TONS of metal on it (its magnetic) from the parking pawl. also there is prolly lots of metal shavings in the fluid.


im suprised u didnt break it off. its only held on by a little pin bout the size of a sharpe marker.

 

Aren't you supposed to jack up the car with it in neutral to lessen the strain on the transmission. Once it is jacked up you can engage the parking brake and some tire-stops. I thought I read this somewhere in the past...

 

That may be true. When are the first gen's supposed to have their tranny serviced? I don't think I have done it yet. Like I said before, this happened back when I first got the car and I now have 77,000 miles on it. I don't think my tranny is perfect and would like to have it rebuilt/ replaced before my extended warranty expires. Last May, the car was tranny was making noises, but then it stopped a week later.

 

thats the worst idea i have ever heard! the car will roll off the jack if you do that!

 

take it to acura and say its not shifting the same. if they drain the fluid and see all the metal flakes on the drain plug theyll know something is wrong inside. and since they dont rebuild the trannies ull be getting a nother one.

 

I've done it almost every time I jack up my car for the past 2 years. It hasn't rolled off the jack yet. When you have a manual tranny car do you put it in gear before jacking it up?? The trick is to not try jacking your car up while its on a damn hill. If you jack up the rear left corner of an auto in PARK, alot of the car's weight is then transferred directly into the front drive wheels and the "locked up" transmission. Seems like that would be potentially bad. I dunno, before someone told me I was doing it wrong I had always just left the car in PARK and I never noticed any damage to the tranny. Maybe I'll just get ramps.

 

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