Can You Shift Into Reverse At 40 MPH?

“Just because you can do something doesn’t mean you should do it.” Just like when you’re browsing down the accessories aisle in Autozone or Pep Boys: You can certainly buy that “chromed out” hood vents, but that’s not going to make Sheila like your rust bucket any better, Doug. This should be the old adage that runs through your head every time you want to do something utterly dumb. Like wanting to shift into reverse while going at XX mph. We’ve all had this thought running through our head at some point in our lives.

Luckily for everyone here, you can now rest easy. This pickup truck driver has sent his gearbox to a grinding death of metal dust and clutch smoke, to find out what it’s like to shift into reverse, while going forward at 40 mph. No, the pickup truck did not flip on its roof, as I had cartoonishly imagined. Instead, the tires felt the sudden shock of changed direction, and worked overtime to pull the truck the other way. This resulted in A LOT of tire smoke as the truck came slowly to a stop and start going in the opposite direction.

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So now you know what it’s like to do this to an old Ford Ranger. It’s unlikely that you can do this to most cars as there is a lockout feature, preventing you from doing irreparable damage to your transmission and drivetrain components. But “when there’s a will, there’s a way”, which is definitely the adage you should live by if you don’t believe in the first one.

(Source: YouTube)