Is it better to shift down to 1st gear rather than go in 2nd and ride the brakes?

Or is it better to burn up the brakes and not the transmission?

Or is it better to ride in 3rd the whole way down and really burn up the brakes?

How hard is it on the 4t60e to hold a continous rev at 35mph in 1st?

How hard is it on the 4t60e to hold a prolonged rev at 55mph in 2nd?


I know with the older non-fwd trans like my th400 is was a monster so leaving it in 1st or 2nd was no problem at all and caused no stress, but what about these newer weaker trannys?

its not good to downshift frequently...ask harofreak and his messed up tranny. It is an auto for a reason. Just use the brakes

That has nothing to do with what I was asking.

somewhat..It still isnt good to shift them like that. i dont know what it is best to keep them in. I live in flat florida.

yes it is good! its like an engine retartder to put your car in 2nd gear. the engine will ....how can i explain it.... the gears wont pull as hard as if it would in drive and the trans and motor rpms will hold the speed back. therefor all you have to do is let the car coast and brake like every 30secs or more to keep from burning your brakes as you go down the grade...however long the grade is. I drive trucks and we use an engine brake(Jacobs brake) and befroe those were out, you just have to use the lowest gear to keep you from going to fast down a grade with all the weight. much easier with a car thoough and it wont hurt your car.

I've got that mechanic buddy and once asked him something similar on a standard. He said to me, which is cheaper and easier to replace, clutch or brakes? Which gets you thinking. But it all comes down to this....if you use the brakes too much and too long they are going to heat and not work as well. If heated too much they won't do anything. Basically you can shift an automatic as much as you want, the only wear and tear is in the fact of how are you doing it. Large RPM changes are not good for engine or tranny, but downshifting reasonably to hold yourself back is fine. You are holding yourself back, not allowing the car to redline or really rev like crazy.

NEVER ride the brakes going down a hill! Brakes will fade and you wont like the end results if you see a curve..... wind up needing to use a run-a-way truck ramp and some toilet paper

depening on the grade of the mountain also depends on the sgear usage. what is the speed, grade of the moutain hill and what kind of curves do it hasd? thiswould actually help me figure out if you would even need to put it in a lower gear.

here is my take on the whole thing. if you downshift at the top of the hill, and ride down in the lower gear, you should be ok, so long as you dont redline, or maintain near redline rpms the whole way down. when you are in the middle of the hill, and feel that you need to slow down, and you decide to downshift then, that is IMO not good for the tranny. also, the brake concern raised by others is totally valid. as far as the speeds, 35 mph in first is a little steep IMO, my bonnie was doing 5500 rpm at that speed, which is in redline territory. 55 mph in second isnt too bad, so long as you pick it at the top of the hill. if you must ride your brakes, dont "ride", because they will overheat <steve put it purty well>. instead, use them, not too hard though, cause you can warp rotors, intermittantly <some on, some off>, allowing them to cool between uses.

just remember, be careful with rpms, when you downshift, and how much you use your brakes.

you know, somebody should come up with a brake fluid temp gauge.

you said what i meant in my first posts. I dont think it is good to constantly shift going down the hill. pick one, and use the brakes for the rest.