when the transmission is no longer gearing down the engine for torque, and is actually gearing the engine up for economy

 

Ahhhhh thank you halfcent.....your my hero lol.

 

helpos fuel economy...... in our cars, im pretty sure this is how it works, halfcent will know for sure..... in first and second gear your motor is spinning faster than your tires (yes i know its more specifically the inpuit and output shaft of the trans but im making it simple)... in 3rd gear ytou are in whats called direct drive... the output and input are directly connected through with no gear ratioing, its just 1:1..... now 4th gear is overdrive.... the motor will be spinning slower than the output to the wheels.... The reason there is no way to go into o/d without being in D is because going into o/d at the wrong time will **** sht up if not just kill the car

 

Yeah basically it's like a 10 speed bike. When you put it all the way into 10th gear you barely have to kick your feet in order to get the bike to go fast, but from a stop, leave it in 10th and it's near impossible to get the thing to move.