Eli5: When a car stops randomly or won’t start up, why does pushing the car get it started?
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Imagine you are on the swings at recess. Once you are swinging, it is not that difficult to keep yourself swinging at the same height. But when you are just starting, it can be very hard to get the swing going. It helps if someone gives you a push instead. Likewise, a car engine is good at keeping itself going once it is started, but it is terrible at getting started. A separate motor called a _starter motor_ is used to give the engine a push when it is completely stopped. But if the starter motor is broken, it can’t give the engine a push to get it started.
When driving a car normally, the engine is connected to the transmission, which is then connected to the wheels to make them turn. When you shift the car into neutral, it essentially disconnects the wheels from the transmission. If shift into neutral and get the car rolling a bit (by pushing it down a hill or something), you can suddenly connect the wheels back to the transmission, which will connect to the engine and start turning it. If you can get the engine turning just a little bit, it can create just enough power to keep itself turning and start the car.
This is not how the car is meant to be started, so it is not recommended unless there is a serious problem with the starter motor (or things the starter needs, like the battery). This is also basically impossible on an automatic transmission car because it connects to the wheels differently than a manual. Somebody in the comments is going to claim to have done it, but it’s almost impossible to do in a manual.
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