For example, if you shift to 2nd to 1st, does the rpm jump not because the engine load has decreased and it can spin faster, but rather because it has to work harder than it would in higher gears?
In: Engineering
Ever ridden a 10 speed bike? Same thing. Lower gears allow you to pedal quickly with little resistance but you go slow. That’s 1st gear in a car. 10th speed you can only pedal slowly with a great amount of resistance, but with each turn of your crank, your rear tire starts whipping around fast. That’s 5th gear in your car.
When you downshift the engine speed increases because you’ve changed the gear ratio and now a larger engine RPM corresponds to the same wheel RPM or ground speed. It’s a matter of gear ratios. The load on the engine determines your fuel consumption. You can have super high RPM with minimal load, and super low RPM with very high load, depending on your driving conditions, current speed, and throttle position. The engine RPM is set by your gear ratio and your ground speed (more accurately stated: “Your ground speed is set by your engine RPM and your gear ratio.”)
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