What is the purpose of N, neutral?

Neutral is used for same purpose as other cars, tow truck applications, car washes and illegal gliding.

 

rolling an extra 75 yds. after u run out of gas

 

Or pushing your vehicle out of the travel lanes after it has stalled etc. <_<

 

It's for indecisive moments

But how do you tow in neutral? The engine must be in "Ready," therefore working, therefore probably not needing a tow. If you tow it behind your Winnebago I think you need to use a trailer, don't you? We have a tow-hook portal on our front bumper but it seems useful in only very special circumstances, not with a dead car. If you run out of gas, I think you'd walk to the nearest station and buy a canfull to bring back, not tow your car there (if AAA unavailable.)

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Alnilam @ Sep 11 2006, 10:30 AM) [snapback]317715[/snapback]</div>

That's right. The car cannot be towed on "all fours" if it is dead or turned off. The front wheels need to be off the ground, which requires a tow truck to lift the front of the car or use dollies under the front wheels. Recreational towing requires a dolly or car carrier.

 

A mildly educated guess says that N is some sort of requirement for highway vehicles.

 

I use neutral all the time. On my daily commute, there is a long stretch of downhill road that my speed gradually reduces on if I coast. But if I switch to neutral, my speed remains almost constant for the entire hill (several miles). The car is still 'on' when in neutral, and the brakes still work, so I always switch to neutral on this and other similar hills.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(kingofgix @ Sep 11 2006, 02:47 PM) [snapback]317854[/snapback]</div>

I think you can destroy your car doing that. If your speed exceeds 42 mph while in neutral it is my understanding that one of motor/generators will overspeed as it is not connected and you could burn it out.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(kingofgix @ Sep 11 2006, 02:47 PM) [snapback]317854[/snapback]</div>

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Not to mention that it's illegal in many (or maybe "most") states.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(kingofgix @ Sep 11 2006, 02:47 PM) [snapback]317854[/snapback]</div>

I do exactly the same thing. The transmission is not affected as in a regular car and this practice is not illegal around here (and if it were, who would know?).

Neutral is also the default "gear" is you shift to reverse or park when the car's moving.

 

How can anyone prove that you are using neutral? What about standard transmissions you shift into neutral all the time. When I had my Mini I would just push the clutch in and cost on hills or what ever. How is it illegal?

 

Whether legal or not, it's unarguably unsafe, as you would not have proper control in an evasive situation requiring an immediate increase in speed.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Alnilam @ Sep 11 2006, 08:30 AM) [snapback]317715[/snapback]</div>

If the car is in the IG-ON mode it will shift only into Neutral from Park and into no other gear.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(IsrAmeriPrius @ Sep 11 2006, 09:13 PM) [snapback]318139[/snapback]</div>

Ah, good point. So you can tow the car with the engine off as long as you can power up the IG-ON bus. Now the tow hook makes a little more sense.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Betelgeuse @ Sep 11 2006, 02:27 PM) [snapback]317891[/snapback]</div>

It may not be completely illegal. In California the prohibition on coasting in neutral only applies on on a downgrade. The exact wording is:

21710 The driver of a motor vehicle when traveling on down grade
upon any highway shall not coast with the gears of such vehicle in
neutral.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(george6233 @ Sep 11 2006, 04:53 AM) [snapback]317643[/snapback]</div>

I use Neutral at the car wash.

Godfrey

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(kingofgix @ Sep 11 2006, 01:47 PM) [snapback]317854[/snapback]</div>

In my state (CA) it is not legal to drive in neutral. The reason is that your are always supposed to be in control of your vehicle. In neutral you are not in control of your vehicle and in an emergency situation you might have to react quickly do avoid an vehicle or to avoid an obstacle. Accidents happen because something unexpected takes place. And that is why you need to be in control of the car at all times.

There is however an even more important issue. Placing the Prius in neutral is not like placing a standard car in neutral, which disconnects the ICE from the wheels. When the Prius is in neutral it disconnects the power transistors from MG2 and MG1 nothing more. MG2 still spins in direct proportion to the speed of the wheels and MG1 and ICE interact with each other also. It’s no different than towing the Prius on all four wheels. You are not supposed to do it. If the ICE is off (0-RPM) MG1 spins at ratio proportional to what MG2 is spinning at. The faster MG1 spins the faster MG2 spins (with ICE at zero). When you get to more than 64 miles and hour in neutral MG1 will exceed its RPM limit of 10,000 RPM. In the Classic that is 42 MPH and 6500 RPM. In other words you have a good chance ruining that very expensive motor. If the ICE was off while doing this, the electronics can’t start the ICE either. That needs to be a controlled spin up of the ICE by MG1. But MG1 is not under any proper control (its power transistors are shut off) so it can’t start the ICE. If the ICE is already running when it is put into neutral it is questionable whether the electronics could detect the speed of MG1 (with its electronics turned off) to know what RPM to run the ICE at to keep the RPM of MG1 in a safe range.

I think those you that are doing this on a regular basis are just asking for trouble.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(RolfS @ Sep 12 2006, 01:56 AM) [snapback]318200[/snapback]</div>

Not 100% true. See my post above ref. vehicle code sec. 21710.

The computer system still operates when the car is powered on and in "N". As pointed out by another, You have to be "Ready" or in IG-ON mode to even get to "N". Even though the power is disconnected to the MGs when in "N", the system should be able to monitor MG1's speed. It is my understanding that the ICE will run (though you may not see arrows on the Energy Monitor) to control the freewheeling speed of MG1.

I don't do this driving in Neutral stuff because I think it is just a bad idea. And you are correct that riding in Neutral is the same as towing on all fours, which Toyota says should only be done in an emergency for a short distance.

 

Curtis, the engine can't start if you're in N. What would turn it over?