Even if you aren’t an automotive expert, you undoubtedly know what revving a car entails. You feel incredibly energised as you rev your car’s engine and hear its mechanical heart roar to life. There are instances when revving your car’s engine makes sense beyond just making it feel thrilling. So let’s find out how to rev a car!
Let’s begin!
How Can You Rev a Car?
Below are the ideal ways of revving a car:
Start the car and wait for 20–30 seconds
Allow the engine to warm up for a short while. It’s important to wait roughly 30 seconds before starting your engine to avoid stressing your vehicle.
Keep the car in park or neutral with the e-brake engaged
You have the option to shift into neutral if your automobile is on flat ground and you feel like it won’t roll forward or backward. However, to prevent an accidentally moving vehicle when on a slope or hill, keep your automobile in park.
Before revving the engine, make sure it is in neutral or park.
You run the risk of getting into a serious collision if you accidentally shift into drive or reverse. Engage your e-brake if you decide to put your car in neutral. You have a lot less possibility of rolling forward or backward if you do it that way.
Related: Is it Safe to Drive a Car with the SRS Airbag Light On?
Press the gas pedal to rev the engine
To get the engine going, step on the gas. The accelerator must be depressed. Your car can’t move since it is in park or neutral, but you can still hear the pleasant roar of the engine.
Release the gas pedal if the RPM gets close to the red line
Watch your tachometer, which measures the revolutions per minute (RPM) of your car. Remove your foot from the gas if the dial even creeps close to the red line.
Increasing your RPMs too much could cause your car to “redline”, which means your engine will become overworked and eventually fail.
If you redline your automobile, it’s possible that too much strain on the engine will cause it to break down, and you may need to perform damage control.
Revving Engine While Driving
To rev a car while driving, you must:
Drive your car normally:
Start off slowly when you initially get comfortable revving your engine while you’re driving. Go somewhere with less traffic so you can change gears fast and worry-free.
If you’re operating a manual, engage the clutch:
Simply depress the clutch pedal as if you were about to change gears to rev your engine in a manual. Throughout, keep the clutch pushed in.
Enter neutral gear:
In a manual transmission vehicle, depress the clutch before shifting into neutral. If you have an automatic transmission, simply downshift to neutral using the gear shift.
Remember that at this moment your automobile will be coasting, so applying more gas won’t make it go more quickly.
If you choose, you can just step on the clutch in a manual transmission vehicle without shifting into neutral. Although it may seem unusual to shift into neutral while driving in an automatic vehicle, doing so won’t harm your engine.
Related: Car Oil Leaking: Causes and How To Fix It
Press the gas pedal to rev the engine:
If you engage your clutch or put your vehicle in neutral, pressing the gas pedal won’t accelerate your car. Instead, as you step on the throttle, you will hear the motor roaring loudly.
As you rev the engine, pay attention to your tachometer. Stop revving as soon as the needle even approaches the red line.
Shift back into driving or your regular gear to resume driving:
Once you’ve had a good time revving your engine, either use the clutch to move back into gear in a manual vehicle or apply the brake to put an automatic vehicle into drive. You can now resume your normal driving routine.
How to Rev an Automatic Car
To rev an automatic car engine, start the engine and wait for 20-30 seconds to warm up and circulate oil. Shift the gear to neutral to avoid damaging the engine.
Press the accelerator pedal to rev the engine, ensuring the tachometer remains within the limit. The louder the revving noise, the more force you put on the pedal.
Return to the idle position by removing the foot from the accelerator pedal and ensuring the car engine is in the idle position. This process ensures the engine is functioning properly and prevents damage to the car.
Advantages of Revving a Car Engine
Revving a car engine can improve oil circulation, increase charging rate, and diagnose issues. The oil pump spins faster, leading to increased flow rate and oil pressure, which improves the engine’s oil circulation.
This process also increases the alternator’s output, allowing the car to charge a depleted battery or jumpstart a dead one.
However, revving can cause noise pollution, lower fuel economy, and increased engine wear. The engine burns more fuel, causing it to generate more heat, which can lead to faster engine wear and tear.
Technicians commonly use this practice during vehicle inspections to check charging system performance and cylinder misfires.
Related: How Long Does a Car Battery Last?
FAQs
How should you rev a car?
To rev your engine without moving, turn on your car and put it in park or neutral, then press on the gas. If you’re revving while in neutral, engage the e-brake so your car doesn’t roll forward or backward. To rev your engine while driving, shift into neutral and press the gas while your car coasts.
Do you rev a car in neutral or park?
Revving a car means increasing the engine’s acceleration. This is done by pressing the accelerator firmly – the harder the press, the more the acceleration. Cars are revved when they are in parked or neutral mode.
How do people rev their car?
Gently press the brake. Shift into neutral. With your car in neutral, press on the gas. You should hear the engine rev and see the needles on the RPM gauge move.
Can I rev my automatic car?
In an automatic, there is no clutch pedal. So you would have to switch the car into “N” or neutral. This should allow the car to roll freely and you can rev it while moving. However, this will take a few seconds longer than just using a clutch in a manual transmission.
Do high revs damage an engine?
Over-revving can cause damage to your engine, even if it just lasts a few seconds. It can damage your valve train, throw a connecting rod, or damage your flywheel/clutch.