How to Turn Off a Car: The Systematical Way
You may think that there could be no disagreement over the topic – how to turn off a car – right? Well, you are wrong! While the basics are same, people like to tweak one or two steps to their own way, the way they feel the most comfortable. We are going to show you the standard and most common steps of powering down a vehicle.
How to Turn Off a Car? Step-by-Step System
There are many vehicles that have a one-stop button for killing the power. However, these won’t let you just stop the engine while the transmission is in gear. It is a safety feature that prevents accidental killing of the engine to avoid accidents.

The step-by-step procedure of switching off a car is as follows:
- Park the car at the place where you want to stop and put the gearbox in the neutral mode. Take your foot off the clutch but don’t take the pressure off the service brake.
- Then, apply the parking brake, release the brake pedal, and switch off the engine.
- When you are parking the car on a hill or steep road, turn the wheels toward the curb. Do the opposite when you are parking downhill. It is a safety precaution that will save the vehicle from rolling down the hill if the brake gets disengaged or there is a bump from another vehicle.
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Sometimes, people leave their car in gear when in a hurry. The problem is most of them don’t remember it and try to restart the car after getting back, making it jumping forward abruptly, which can cause an accident. If you need to leave the vehicle in gear, apply the neutral mode and the parking brake to secure it in the parking spot.
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The Outline of How to Turn Off a Car
In a nutshell, the sequence of how to turn off a car will be:
- Park the vehicle and put the gearbox in ‘N’ mode
- Engage the brake pedal
- Shift the gear in ‘P’
- Press the parking brake
- Disengage the brake pedal
- Push the stop button to shut the engine off

The steps are not tough to remember. Especially, you should not skip any of the 2-4 steps before switching off the engine as it will ensure that the vehicle will not roll down and cause an accident.
Some people like to pull up the handbrake after engaging the brake pedal because it holds the car stationary and protects the parking gear from extra stress. Another caution that you should follow is to Park the vehicle before killing the engine. Why? The reason is it the right thing to do and it will set the controls in the proper order and prepare the vehicle to turn off.