Why sometimes my car slows down going downhill?
I drive a small automatic car. For the most part, it struggles a bit with steep uphills, and picks up speed when going downhill. That's to be expected.
But then I noticed some downhills actually slow it down. I've noticed during a two-hour motorway trip I often do to visit family, there are some specific downhills, not all, just some, where my car always slows down and I have no idea why.
Ideas?
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Optical illusion is most likely the reason instead of engine brake if your vehicle slows down significantly in certain areas and doesn't on other downhills with "similar" angle.
There is this slope near a waterfall around where I live. If you put your car in neutral gear at the bottom of the slope, it rolls "up" the hill. We named it magnetic hill back in high school, but I later found out that it is just an optical illusion that happens everywhere around the world. Basically some uphills look like downhills and vice versa. Google "gravity hill".
Okay. I'll fix a marked water bottle to the dashboard for the next trip, and see how the level stacks against the mark.
The water level will be affected by the car's acceleration, which is likely also affecting your inner ear and causing the illusion in the first place.
You've crushed my hopes. There has to be a way that doesn't require stopping the car