WTF Stories of the Week

[Alex]

Yes, that is absolutely the right choice. Especially when it won't actually blow up the engine.

That said, if you don't know that the choice doesn't feel like:

A. Keep going 120 miles hour; or
B. Put it in neutral, risk destroying the engine, and stop safely

but rather

A. Keep going 120 miles hour and try to find some way to stop the car; or
B. Destroy the engine while still going pretty fast, and possibly lose all power and control.

That was one of my concerns when it happened to me. If I killed the engine (either by turning the ignition or destroying it) what would still work? If I lost power steering and power brakes how well would I be able to try and stop the car while avoiding all the other cars around me.

It also felt weird to steer around other cars while going at high speeds in neutral.

But yes, with the experience of more driving experience I should have moved to an edge lane, put my hazards on, put it in neutral and just stood on the brake until I was going slow enough that I could pull onto the shoulder safely.