Driving with Automatic Transmission

In the past month, it was the only time I started to drive a car with automatic transmission. I have been used to driving vehicles with manual transmission for more than 30 years. The reason I did not like cars with automatic transmission is because of the engines sound like a sliding clutch and is not as responsive as a car with manual transmission. It is more challenging and exciting to drive with standard gear shifting. Well, I had to learn how to use the automatic transmission properly to achieve fuel economy while not sacrificing engine power. The car is a 1994 Mitsubishi Lancer and the shifter had the regular P, R, N, D, L1 and L2 shifting options. This really made me say that it is so easy to drive with automatic transmission. But then, I saw two buttons, one on the gear stick shaft and another on the console below it. The button on the console is easier to understand because it had the options to press for either power or economy. When I pressed the button on the stick shaft, a display showed on the instrument panel said "Off O.D.". O.D. means over-drive. This meant that when driving with automatic transmission with overdrive "On", it means a gear on the transmission is delivering a speed faster than the engine speed. This is the reason that when going downhill, you need to step on the brakes more frequently! When it is on the "Off O.D." setting, the engine brakes will help in slowing down the car downhill. This means that the engine speed is governing the speed of the car and you will have lesser need for the use of the brake. For uphill driving, it is not very noticeable but it helps very much when in times there is a need to decelerate then accelerate again. So, when is it best to use with the Overdrive set "On"? It is best to use when driving on generally flat roads and while cruising on the highway. It relieves stress from the engine and would give better fuel economy. Once you have gotten the hang of when to use that button, it will be an advantage using it with the power and economy button. There are some cars though that do not have the power and economy button. To get more mileage out of driving a car with automatic transmission, take time to learn when and where to use the "Off and On" settings of the Overdrive button. I am now getting better fuel economy with its proper use.