{"id":7377,"date":"2024-11-05T23:39:00","date_gmt":"2024-11-05T20:39:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.magaripoa.com\/?p=7377"},"modified":"2024-11-05T23:39:00","modified_gmt":"2024-11-05T20:39:00","slug":"automatic-gear-options-their-meaning-and-how-to-use-each-of-them","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.magaripoa.com\/gari\/automatic-gear-options-their-meaning-and-how-to-use-each-of-them\/","title":{"rendered":"Automatic gear options, their meaning and how to use each of them"},"content":{"rendered":"

Most common featured letters on an automatic car are P \u2013 R \u2013 N \u2013 D \u2013 L<\/strong>.<\/span><\/p>\n

Depending on the type of vehicle you own, it\u2019s also possible that you might see an \u201cM\u201d or a series of numbers \u2014 likely 1 through 3. To simplify things, we will break down each letter listed on most automatic transmissions.<\/span><\/p>\n

How to Drive a Manual and Automatic Car Step by Step [pdf]<\/strong><\/span><\/a><\/h3>\n

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What does the P mean on an Automatic Transmission?<\/span><\/h2>\n

The letters on an automatic transmission are often described as an individual \u201cgear\u201d setting, but that\u2019s a bit misleading. It\u2019s actually an activation setting. The gears inside an automatic transmission are hydraulically shifted and can range from three to nine speeds while in a forward \u2018gear\u2019.<\/span><\/p>\n

The \u201cP\u201d on an automatic transmission stands for the PARK setting. When the gear shifter is in park, the transmission \u2018gears\u2019 are locked, which restricts the wheels from being able to spin forward or backward. Many people use the park setting as a brake, which is a primary purpose for this transmission setting. However, most vehicles also require the car to be started while the transmission is in the \u201cPARK\u201d setting for safety purposes.<\/span><\/p>\n

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What does the R mean on an Automatic Transmission?<\/span><\/h2>\n

The \u201cR\u201d stands for REVERSE, or the gear selected to drive the vehicle backward. When you shift the gear lever from P to R, the automatic transmission\u2019s reverse gear is engaged \u2014 which spins the drive shaft backward, allowing the drive wheels to spin in \u2018reverse\u2019. A car can\u2019t be started in reverse gear, as it would be very unsafe to do so.<\/span><\/p>\n

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What does the N mean on an Automatic Transmission?<\/span><\/h2>\n

The \u201cN\u201d is an indicator that your automatic transmission is in NEUTRAL or a free spinning mode. This setting releases the gear(s) (forward and reverse) and allows the tires to spin freely. Most people do not use the N setting unless their car engine will not start and they need to push it or have the vehicle towed.<\/span><\/p>\n

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What does the D mean on an Automatic Transmission?<\/span><\/h2>\n

The \u201cD\u201d stands for DRIVE. This is when the automatic transmission \u2018gear\u2019 is activated. As you accelerate, the drive gear will apply power to the wheels and progressively shift into higher \u2018gears\u2019 as the engine RPM reaches the desired level. As the vehicle begins to slow down, the automatic drive gear will down-shift to lower gears. The \u201cD\u201d is also commonly referred to as \u2018overdrive.\u2019 This is the top \u2018gears\u2019 setting on an automatic transmission. This gear is used on highways or when the vehicle is driving at the same RPM for extended road trips.<\/span><\/p>\n

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If your automatic transmission has a series of numbers after the \u201cD\u201d those are manual gear settings for the forward gear operation \u2014 with 1 being the lowest gear and larger numbers representing higher gears. They can be if your regular D gear isn\u2019t working, and when going up and down steep hills to provide more engine braking.<\/span><\/p>\n