00stang37

not to invade on the new mustangs. but i have a 2000 GT and i put it in gear and use the e-brake. if im facing down a hill i will put it in reverse, faceing up a hill i will put it in first and on flat ground i will put it in first. i was just cruious about putting it in reverse when parking facing down hill or does that not matter? thanks

chevykiller

Any gear is cool to lock up your trans from nuetral but just be careful if you're ever in a hurry, jump in your car, and want to go from gear... could be a bad day...[sm=alcoholic.gif]

05blkstallion

i just use the e brake unless im on a hill. for some eason i worry about if one of my kids ever got the keys and they started it in gear it may go throught the garage door.

grasshopper

Reverse is actually the best gear to park it in. It's the lowest (except for the T-5, 1st is much lower) so provides the most resistance, plus the gears are usually straight cut so they are stronger.

351PONY

Yeah, I leave mine in reverse and set the e-brake;

00stang37

ok thanks. i just wanted to make sure i wasnt going to mess up my trans

blackfoot

you wont mess anything up. when it boils down to it, it doesnt really matter significantly if its in 1st or reverse

ScottRNelson

I leave it in either first or reverse and set the parking brake whenever I park the car. The choice of whether to use first or reverse depends on which I was using at the time that the car stopped moving. It doesn't make a difference if the engine would turn forward or backward as far as how well it will hold the car in place on a hill.

If you always make a habit of using two different things to hold the car in place (brake and transmission), you're much less likely to see your car roll away. I can still remember one time when my three year old son managed to bump the shifter into neutral when the parking brake was not set and rolled a car down the driveway and across the road. Fortunately there was nothing to hit when it happened.

As for the order of shifting, turning engine off, and the rest, I turn the engine off while in gear, then let the clutch out. There is no difference between doing it that way and turning the engine off before shifting into the gear you'll leave it in.

Hidalgo

E-Brake & Reverse ...

JStang78

Thanks all. Now if I start doing this again, I'm going to have to force myself to remember to keep my foot on the clutch after I turn the key. I managed to look like an idiot when I went to look at the Mustang and I started her up...and of course, she lurched forward when I took my foot off the clutch. Then I had to take a minute to convince the dealer that, yes, I did know how to drive stick.