Embarrasing question about my car.

Holy cow, this thread took off!

IMO, it sounds like you've got one or more brakes dragging.
Yeah, I was suspicious of that.

I tried while going the fastest I've ever dared; 30km/h. The car didn't jerk so roughly this time, but slowed down severely nonetheless. I bought this current car this summer. It's a '94 Cavalier. For the first week or so after purchasing it, I could hear the brakes screech and scrape during normal driving, but it soon stopped and I stopped worrying. The car had been sitting for 3 years in a driveway prior to me buying it. But despite my daily driving, even recently in the vicious cold, I only have to fill up less than once month. So my mpg is still great.

I should still talk to the mechanic about this, huh.
 
I think that would be more towards hyper-miling than anything else. It's something I do a lot in my Dodge since the transmission is going so I can't do fast accelerations. It takes me about 15 seconds at max acceleration (@1800rpms) to get to 30mph.
Have you tried changing or getting the trans filter changed? If it hasnt ever been replaced do so. I change mine once a year out of habit.
 
Alright. I think we found the problem. But now on to the next question: how the heck am I getting such good mileage while my brakes are supposedly dragging so hard?

After I get this fixed, can I expect to fill up only once every TWO months then? :D

(Though I admit it IS a 60 Litre tank in this ol' thing)
 
Easy to tell if you're brakes are draging. Do a drive and then touch the wheels. If they're too hot or one is hotter than the others you've found your problem. One of the rear flexible hoses on my Herald was breaking down inside. From the outside it seemed fine. It was acting as a one-way valve and not allowing fluid back. I touched the wheel after a "spirited" drive and my fingers sizzled... Also, the brake fluid boiled because of it so I had no brakes. That was fun!
The flexible hoses I bought for a Morris Traveller from one of the main suppliers broke down and had to be replaced after less than six months - the car was in regular use.

If your car has been sitting for a while without use then replace all the rubber parts. They can break down with little use.


The noise you heard could have been the brakes or other parts freeing up.
 
Oh by the way, I sent the car to the shop a while back to have the vibration issue looked at (the vibration was the reason I put my car into neutral at red lights) and they found nothing wrong except that the front brakes were worn. They replaced those. No problem.

But an update: Shortly after starting this thread, I learned I could bump into neutral while driving no problem. Nothing happened and the car didn't jerk. It only happens when my foot is on the brake pedal already.

So, if I'm in the middle of braking, and I bump the car into neutral, the brake pressure seems to double. If I'm just coasting when I do it, nothing happens, as I would expect it to.

I'm still confused as can be about why it does that, but I just thought I'd give you guys the update.
 
the motor is still trying to spin even when you are of the gas. My crapalier (97 cavalier) does it as well. And the ****ting into netrueal wont hurt the trans one bit i do it all the time when i slow down. Also your brake rotors and drums might be out of round, which would cause the thing to vibrate.
 
Oh by the way, I sent the car to the shop a while back to have the vibration issue looked at (the vibration was the reason I put my car into neutral at red lights) and they found nothing wrong except that the front brakes were worn. They replaced those. No problem.

But an update: Shortly after starting this thread, I learned I could bump into neutral while driving no problem. Nothing happened and the car didn't jerk. It only happens when my foot is on the brake pedal already.

So, if I'm in the middle of braking, and I bump the car into neutral, the brake pressure seems to double. If I'm just coasting when I do it, nothing happens, as I would expect it to.

I'm still confused as can be about why it does that, but I just thought I'd give you guys the update.

Even at idle, your engine is still pulling your car along a bit. When you put it into neutral, you're disengaging your engine from the transmission. Also, I wouldn't worry about the vibration. I've had a couple of cavaliers. Both of them vibrated at lights. Whatever is causing it, probably isn't worth fixing.
 

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