Redsox401

The 2009 Florida Statutes

Title XXIII
MOTOR VEHICLES Chapter 316
STATE UNIFORM TRAFFIC CONTROL View Entire Chapter

316.2024 Coasting prohibited.--The driver of any motor vehicle, when traveling upon a downgrade, shall not coast with the gears or transmission of such vehicle in neutral or the clutch disengaged. A violation of this section is a noncriminal traffic infraction, punishable as a moving violation as provided in chapter 318.

History.--s. 1, ch. 71-135; s. 1, ch. 76-31; s. 154, ch. 99-248.

Note.--Former s. 316.094.


in FL it’s against the traffic code. it wouldn’t be illegal for no reason so I’m going to have to side on the group who thinks it is potentially dangerous.

07 Stang

Making a note not to ever drive a manual in Florida.
I've driven (as stated before) manual for 30 years without any mishap in many states in different driving situations. Some laws just don't make sense or have enough to back it up.

bluovalguy

Just because it is against the law does not make it dangerous. It is against the law to pump you own gas in Oregon and Jersey. Does that mean it is dangerous?

Copied this from CNN:

In California, no vehicle without a driver may exceed 60 miles per hour.

In Florida, if an elephant, goat or alligator is left tied to a parking meter, the parking fee has to be paid just as it would for a vehicle.

In Montana, it is illegal to have a sheep in the cab of your truck without a chaperone.

In Oregon, a door on a car may not be left open longer than necessary.

In Tennessee, it is illegal shoot any game other than whales from a moving automobile.


Lots of stupid laws out there that do not make any sense.

Norm Peterson

Yes, blueoval, there are some laws on the books that don't make a lot of sense. But this isn't one of them.


Sorry, 07, but you're just a sample size of one (just like the rest of us). Quite possibly you've never had a problem, but that doesn't mean that no other driver hasn't or ever will. IOW, you can't extrapolate your (fortunate) experience (so far) in this matter to cover the entire driving population or suggest/recommend it to others as being an acceptable driving practice.

At issue is giving up a degree of control over vehicle speed. Whether that be some amount of engine braking or the ability to have power available instantaneously without having to get the car back into gear is immaterial. More than likely, this regulation has its roots in the days where brake capacity wasn't as good as it is now. But on the other hand, there wasn't any ABS to go into an "ice mode" either. There really isn't any reason to take it out of gear, even if all you consider are the fuel cut on decel and ice mode possibilities.


Norm

07 Stang

Is it wrong to say one is uncomfortable with down-shifting Vs putting it in Neutral? I would think I would pose more danger to others as well as myself if I were to change now.
It's hard to teach an old dog new tricks.

Redsox401

The more I read into this Florida statute I’m beginning to think it was enacted mostly to keep 18 wheelers from coasting and using too much brake without the assistance of engine breaking and having them fail causing an accident. Being a Law Enforcement Investigator I could see this coming into play in a liability case or a negligent homicide case where a driver admitted to coasting making him “liable” or “Negligent” for the death/damage.

Norm Peterson

SE Virginia is pretty flat land, so there isn't any real need to downshift other than if you're anticipating the need for more acceleration than the gear that you're in will easily give you. Even then, you could wait until you find out that the gear that you're in isn't quite cutting it and downshift then. When slowing/stopping, just slow down with the brakes until somewhere before the engine starts to "lug" if you're driving a manual tranny car, at which time you simply declutch.


In addition to the 18-wheeler reasoning (as a rough guideline, you go down the hill in the same gear you'd use to climb up it - this being per my son who currently drives CDL-A for a living, frequently with over 40,000 lbs of cargo in the box), I suspect that the Fla. and other similar statutes came out of the days when four wheel drum brakes was the setup on just about everything and most were without any sort of power assist.


Norm