Should I Drive with Overdrive on or Off? (Read This First!)

Whenever it comes to reducing fuel consumption in a good economy, you might think of overdrive. So, overdrive provides us an extra gear with low fuel consumption. It will also provide a higher speed at a lower RPM. So, overdrive is pretty convenient while driving.

But many people think that driving with the overdrive off can be safe. So, you might be confused about whether you should drive with overdrive on or off. Well, you have to compare both situations where you can drive safely with a higher fuel economy. Moreover, you have to know the consequences of driving with overdrive on or off.

Should I drive with overdrive on or off?

You should drive with the overdrive on. Because driving with overdrive provides many advantages. For example, driving with overdrive on will lower fuel consumption, reduce emissions and extend engine life. But driving up or down hills with overdrive on might cause some problems.

However, overdrive is an additional feature for reducing fuel consumption at a higher speed. So, if you want to keep the overdrive on or off while driving, you have to know the advantages and disadvantages of keeping the overdrive on or off. Let’s see the details of it.

In the city:

When you are driving in the city, you can also keep the overdrive on. Because overdrive has so many benefits. But whether you will keep the overdrive on or off depends on the style of your driving.

Generally, leaving your overdrive on while driving in the city can provide different advantages. For example, the fuel consumption of your vehicle will be reduced. You can save a lot of money in this case.

You might know that the less the engine uses fuel, the longer its life will be. So, turning the overdrive on will also help extend the engine’s life. When the fuel consumption is lower and the engine life is extended, less noise will be produced.

Leaving the overdrive on will also help to reduce emissions. It will also help increase accessory life. But sometimes, you have to keep off the overdrive.

For example, when you are towing a large road or off-roading, it will not be safe to drive while in overdrive. Because the constant changing of the gears might cause problems in the engine.

Are you supposed to drive with the overdrive on or off? Is it better to drive with overdrive on or off?

It depends on you whether you will drive with the overdrive on or off. Generally, keeping the overdrive on is pretty advantageous. If you keep the overdrive off, the fuel consumption will increase at high speeds. Moreover, the RPM will also be higher at high speeds. So, the engine will be reduced.

So, it will be beneficial if you keep the overdrive on. You can keep it on at any time or all the time. So, you are supposed to keep the overdrive on while driving. But sometimes, you might need to turn it off while driving. Especially, when you want to ascend or descend a steep hill.

It will be better if you drive with overdrive on. Overdrive can provide some other benefits too. For example, the engine life and the other accessory lives will be extended.

Generally, when the fuel economy is good, it will also benefit the engine life. As a result, fewer emissions and noise will be released from your vehicle. So, the overdrive can help the overall performance of your vehicle.

5 reasons why drive with overdrive on

Now that you know that driving with overdrive is advantageous, you might want to know the reasons why. Let’s see why it’s better to drive with the overdrive on.

Provides better fuel economy:

Fuel economy is one of the most essential factors in your vehicle. If the fuel economy is bad, the overall performance of the vehicle will be affected. So, overdrive helps to provide a better fuel economy by consuming less fuel. Even overdrive can help reduce 1/3 of the fuel consumption.

Enhances engine life:

When the overdrive is on, it helps to reach more distance in fewer revolutions. This effect helps to enhance the engine life of your vehicle. Moreover, the better fuel economy will also help enhance engine life. Thus, overdrive also helps extend engine life indirectly.

Increases the lifespan of accessories:

The other parts of the vehicle, for example, the smog pump, compressor, water pump, power-steering pump, etc., will also benefit. If the RPM is lower at a higher speed, this will not affect these parts of your vehicle. As a result, the lifespans of these accessories will increase.

Produces fewer emissions:

When you drive with the overdrive on, it will also help reduce emissions. Nonetheless, it has the potential to reduce emissions by up to a third. So, the overdrive can also help reduce environmental pollution.

Reduces noise:

Noises made while driving is pretty disturbing. The overdrive can help reduce noise while driving. A lower RPM causes lower noise. So, if you drive with the overdrive on, you will experience less noise.

What are the advantages of overdrive?

The overdrive is one type of gear that helps reduce the fuel consumption of the engine. Moreover, it provides many other advantages too. Sometimes, you might need to keep the overdrive off in different places. But most of the time, keeping the overdrive on is beneficial. Let’s see what the main advantages of overdrive are. 

• Overdrive can reduce the fuel consumption of your vehicle by up to 1/3.
• An overdrive can help increase speed at a lower RPM.
• It also helps increase fuel economy.
• The overdrive can reduce the emissions from your vehicle.
• With fewer emissions, the overdrive can help reduce air pollution.
• Overdrive can also reduce the disturbing noise of high RPM.
• An overdrive also extends the lifespan of the other accessories by reducing RPM.
• The overdrive helps to enhance the engine’s life.
• The overdrive provides better distance in fewer revolutions.

How do I know if overdrive is on or off? When to turn overdrive off?

You can tell if the overdrive is on or off by noticing the O/D indicator light. The light will be on when the overdrive is on. But the light will blink or not be on constantly when the overdrive is off.

Simply, the indicator light can tell you whether the overdrive is on or off. But if the light is blinking or the light is on without turning on the overdrive, there might be a problem.

For example, a blinking O/D indicator light might be a sign of automatic fluid leakage, clogging of the hydraulic path, control solenoid value failure, etc. You should seek professional help in this case.

But you have to turn off the overdrive in special cases. For example, if you are driving up or down a steep hill, you should turn it off. Moreover, while driving off-road, you have to turn off the overdrive. You should also keep the overdrive off while pulling a large load or when you are stuck in a traffic jam.

How do I turn overdrive on or off?

If you don’t know how you can turn on or off the overdrive, you can follow the following process.

Finding the overdrive button:

Every feature of your vehicle should have a button. Similarly, the overdrive also has a button. You have to find the button first. You can find the overdrive button on the shifter’s left side.

Besides, you can find the button below the button that is used to shift gears.

Turning on or off the overdrive:

If you want to turn on the overdrive, you have to push it in to turn the overdrive on. When you need to turn off the overdrive, you have to push it in again to change the mode. The process is pretty similar to shifting gears.

When using a manual transmission:

If your vehicle doesn’t have the O/D button or manual transmission, you have to follow another route. You can use higher gears to get the above benefits. Generally, the 5th and 6th gears of your vehicle have overdrive ratios. So, you can use this gear.

Final Thoughts

You should turn on the overdrive while driving. Because overdrive has a lot of benefits. It will keep the internal parts of your vehicle safe. Moreover, the overdrive will help increase fuel economy, enhance engine life, etc. But sometimes, you have to turn off the overdrive when needed.