Uh, no. Using the transmission to slow the car down would use even less gas. As an ICE driver you should also downshift when the light changes to yellow/red. When you engine brake above certain RPM, the fuel is cut off, so the engine uses less fuel.
-
Want to remove ads? Register an account and login to see fewer ads, and become a Supporting Member to remove almost all ads.
Uh, no. Using the transmission to slow the car down would use even less gas. As an ICE driver you should also downshift when the light changes to yellow/red. When you engine brake above certain RPM, the fuel is cut off, so the engine uses less fuel.
comanchepilot
Member
so every time you take your foot off the gas to coast - the brake lights come on?
Never knew that.
So in a Tesla you will need to decrease your regen braking on the screen because the regen is pretty aggressive in every model S/X I've driven. Seems like if you lift off in Sport or Normal you'd slow down pretty quickly from the regen so you might need some throttle to reach a light!
I was taught to simply coast to the light same as you, or pop a manual out of gear - - but that was 42 years ago. There is prob common core driving class now.
boonedocks
MS LR Blk/Blk 19”
I think so because TACC always leaves too much of a gap in front in stop and go traffic when it tries to follow a stopped then starting car and someone inevitably jumps in front of me and my car has to hit the brakes hard. My wife on the other hand would undoubtedly say YES it is more likely to be rear ended.
Funny, I feel that TACC leaves too LITTLE gap, even at 7. I have now gotten used to it, but I leave more room in my other car, putting along in first gear. I leave so much room that it does not matter if someone jumps in front of me, I continue driving normally without hitting the brakes. I have trouble driving this way in some locations where other drivers find this technique offensive and always try to cut me off -- like in Toronto, for example.
It’s not quite that simple... If you take your foot off the accelerator completely at speed, then yes, the brake lights will come on as regen kicks in and slows the car down. If you keep your foot on the pedel, but pull back enough that regen starts to happen, but the car isn’t slowing down much, then the brake lights may not come on.
You need to be decelerating at a certain rate (and I’m not sure anyone but Tesla knows exactly what that rate is) before the brake lights come on.
As has been mentioned previously in this thread, you can look at the avatar of your car in the instrument cluster and the brake lights on the avatar will come on when the brake lights on the car come on, so you can easily see exactly when they are on.
With an automatic transmission, I let it handle all the shifting and engine braking. On my last car, I went approximately 185,000 before needing to change the brakes for the first time. I regularly coasted and rarely used the brakes and often got 30% higher MPG than my car was rated to get.
arcus
Active Member
Maybe it's just me, but I am not sure what the issue is about. It is everyone's responsibility to keep the safe distance from the car ahead, so you have time/space to respond in emergency. The best piece of advise I was ever given was by the driving instructor: "you apply brakes only when you intend to fully stop the vehicle, when cruising just ease off the accelerator to adjust the speed". Again, that works when you pay attention to the road ahead of you and keep the safe distance. Nothing you can do about jerks behind you, short of flashing hazard lights. Doesn't matter ICE or EV.
As for regenerative braking, it will turn the brake lights on only when there's a significant reduction in speed. You can watch it on the dash as you learn, as there's an indication when the lights come on. So, you can master in no time the throttling not to give a false signals to the drivers behind you.
Honestly, moving from Lexus to Tesla was an easy transition for me, as the throttle response feels almost identical to my previous car. Just let it go gently and the car starts slowing down.
As for regenerative braking, it will turn the brake lights on only when there's a significant reduction in speed. You can watch it on the dash as you learn, as there's an indication when the lights come on. So, you can master in no time the throttling not to give a false signals to the drivers behind you.
Honestly, moving from Lexus to Tesla was an easy transition for me, as the throttle response feels almost identical to my previous car. Just let it go gently and the car starts slowing down.
sport or normal has nothing to do with the regen, that is a steering mode, nothing more
I wouldn't put the car into neutral? why would you want to eliminate the engine braking?
Not every time. It's only when you're at the last tick of full regen. Set your regen to low and let it "fully" regen and you won't see the brake lights come on. Set it to the actual full regen and it won't turn on the light until it gets past the point that it stopped at when it's set to low regen. The brake light comes on when the car is slowing more than an ICE car would in cimilar circumstances, basically. You can see the light on your dash, so play with it. Give the accelerator gradual reduction to see regen increase until the light finally comes on, and that point becomes obvious. I've never noticed the point at which the brake light engages to change.
AMPUP
Member
I have followed what I call ‘poor Tesla driving’ where clearly the driver of said Tesla thinks he/she has an automatic and can coast, resulting in brake lights coming on and off which is super annoying. In fact my wife does this and I give her a hard time about it.
brucet999
Active Member
I find your statement interesting. My experience when I have to drive DW's Lexus RX350 is that there is no engine braking at all in Drive, so it feels for a moment to me like a "runaway accelerator" when i don't feel any decrease in speed. That car needs to be dropped into Tiptronic mode to get any engine braking.
arcus
Active Member
I came from IS 350 F Sport, so the experience might be different as compared to RX.
Id rather feel like a putz than get rear ended Teslas generate some serious deceleration during regen. Im betting tesla did some research on brake light thresholds for regen and or there are mandated requirements from NHTSA
Another possibility is that Tesla drivers use TACC and AP more often than drivers of most other cars. Since these systems don't use the brakes the same way as most drivers do, they might confuse following cars, leading to more Tesla's being rear ended.
Also, every time AEB (and quick braking by TACC/AP) activates, it essentially decreases the likelihood of the Tesla rear ending another vehicle while increasing the likelihood of the Tesla being rear ended.
Also, every time AEB (and quick braking by TACC/AP) activates, it essentially decreases the likelihood of the Tesla rear ending another vehicle while increasing the likelihood of the Tesla being rear ended.
arcus
Active Member
It boils down to people not keeping safe distance away from the preceding car and not paying the attention to the road. If someone tailgates me or just drives too close behind me for my comfort I will flash my hazard light momentarily to let them know they are too close. This applies to any cars I drive, not just Tesla.
Similar threads
