Hi everyone, this question has been on my mind the day I bought my first automatic transmission, a 1983 W126 (280SEL). I have always wondered if there is an ideal way to floor the gas pedal, especially from stationary.

Should I gently depress the pedal allowing the car to pick up speed, and all this while keeping the fuel economy needle below the half-mark? Or should I floor the pedal much more and letting the fuel economy needle hit the max?

Or is the fuel economy gauge an indicator at all in determining how fast, how much we step on the gas pedal?

I heard that the car will consume more fuel if we allow the automatic car to drag, so therefore it is a better option to pick the car up as soon as possible and get it into a cruising gear.

My main objective for asking this question is more geared towards fuel economy.

And since I'm on this, another question is: should I leave the gear in "Drive"(D), "Neutral"(N) or "Parked"(P) during traffic stops? Is it true that leaving it in Neutral will eventually harm the auto transmission?

Thanks for all input in advance!

Mervyn