So I was just coasting down a mountain in neutral, and suddenly the car died while going ~75mph. Slamming on the brakes had little to no effect at all on the car and steering was a ***** to say the least. I was unable to put the car back in drive and trying to restart the car while rolling didn't have any effect. I eventually stopped when I made it to a valley and started going up the other side.

Can anyone tell me what happened? Is that limp mode? The battery light and check engine light were flashing simultaneously but the radio and gps never turned off. If I had been on one of the notoriously curvy roads where I live, I certainly would have flown off the side of a mountain, so any advice on how to avoid that situation would be greatly appreciated. After rolling up the hill to a stop I was eventually able to restart the car.

However, the same thing happened 2 weeks ago while performing a 3 point turn along the cliff edge on my driveway and I was unable to take the car out of drive, and had to have it towed.

 

Why are you coasting down a mountain in neutral?...your car shut off which means no power breaks and no power steering. Your battery was still on which is why the lights radio and gps never went off. That is not limp mode. Keep your car in drive...when your driving, makes sense right?

I can't tell you why it stalled on you, if it happens again while in drive, put the car into neutral and start the car while it is rolling and you will get the brakes and steering back. Once restarted you can put it back in drive without killing yourself, then go straight to the dealer.

 

8 hour drive from home to school, trying to save gas.

Thanks, hopefully it won't happen again. It took 24 hours for roadside assistance to tow my car last time, and the nearest dealer is an hour and a half away. When I took it to them after the first time, they just replaced the battery.

 

Never, ever, ever put the car in neutral while driving. End of story.

 

What he said +1000

 

Thats a easy fix............ just don't put it in neutral at 75mph. Rather run out of gas then run out of road and die

 

That won't save gas. When idleing in neutral the computer has to fire the injectors to keep the engine running. When coasting down hill in gear the computer shuts off the injectors completely. All fuel injected cars with manual transmissions behave that way.

 

This is absolutely true, your gas mileage will increase by leaving it in gear. I'm pretty sure all cars do this now even autos.

 

Putting a car in neutral while rolling shouldn't shut it off like that. No one is really being helpful here other than the obvious answer.

I have had my car in neutral while rolling and this didn't happen so clearly there's an issue.

 

The first time it happened I wasn't in neutral so I'm still a little concerned, although I definitely won't be doing that anymore. The dealer said it was a battery issue, replaced it, and said they needed both of my keys for some reason while it was in the shop. The second time it happened was after that, however.

 

I had that happen to me back in 2010 when I had my RA. Coasting down the mtn, trying to be cheap, put it in neutral, and it stalled on me. Scared the **** out of me, but I was able to restart it while rolling still. Shouldn't be a problem.