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Car Forum / Driving, Maintenance, Tuning / Maintenance and Repair / August 2005Two Footed Driving Opinions (left foot for brake) Solicited ?
Hello: Have a continual debate within the family on which is "better". I've always braked with my left foot (on auto trans. cars), and am convinced it's a better way. Also, a split second faster in an emergency, I would argue. What do you experts do, and think of this ? Do any driving schools teach two-footed driving, or am I the only one ? Curious to get some opinions on this. Thanks, Bob > Hello: > [quoted text clipped - 6 lines] > > What do you experts do, and think of this ? Search for a long recent thread on that very subject. I won't tell you my feelings other than to say I can usually spot "two footed" drivers in traffic. The brake light is continually flickering off and on and in heavy traffic the car seems to porpoise along. > Do any driving schools teach two-footed driving, or am I the only one ? No licensed ones that I'm aware of. > Curious to get some opinions on this. > > Thanks, > Bob Only for racing, never seen a course for street driving that uses both feet. I think the idea behind it is to attempt to prevent problems with people during panic situations. Probably intended to keep them from stomping the gas and brake at the same time. Also may help during accidents since the average person tenses up and braces out of instinct, with one foot driving that foot should be on the brake when they tense up possibly lowering the impact speed.  SignatureSteve W. > Hello: > [quoted text clipped - 13 lines] > Thanks, > Bob > Hello: > [quoted text clipped - 13 lines] > Thanks, > Bob Both me and my wife use left foot braking with auto trans cars. I agree with you about the better reaction time. I'm quite confident you would fail your exam if you were doing this in Sweden. On the other hand, no one with working legs take their exams in auto cars in Sweden, as that would show on the license and you would only be allowed to drive auto cars. Thomas ok so the left hand is for the cell phone the right hand for shifting and your knees are for driving ? > Have a continual debate within the family on which is > "better". [quoted text clipped - 5 lines] > > What do you experts do, and think of this ? I'm not an expert, but been doing left-foot braking for years now. Definitely improves reaction time, and on occasion I've managed to avoid accident only because my left foot was on brake. Such driving style can be stressful, though... your foot is constantly twitching over the brake pedal, and can get muscle cramps ;) Peter Just seems like a way to shorten your brake life to me. [non-expert opinion here] Contrary to the screwed up red-light-camera city I'm in, intersections are supposed to be timed to allow for somone to stop in time. Seems like a matter of preference. If it floats your boat....go for it. Just don't have a bad sneeze and push both feet down at the same time with someone behind you. :) >Hello: >Have a continual debate within the family on which is >"better". >I've always braked with my left foot (on auto trans. cars), and am convinced >it's a better way. Also, a split second faster in an emergency, I would >argue. Unless both feet are damn fast, one getting on the brake and the other getting off the gas, your time benefits are lost when you are braking against an engine that is getting gast. >What do you experts do, and think of this ? Expert??? Who? I think it is a bad idea. ------------- Alex It is as simple as this.. (With right foot only on an auto) When your foot is on the brake, it is NOT on the gas. And when your foot is on the gas, it is NOT on the brake. KenG > Hello: > [quoted text clipped - 13 lines] > Thanks, > Bob >> Hello: >> [quoted text clipped - 6 lines] >> >> What do you experts do, and think of this ? as an expert, i say use whichever is correct for the circumstances. in shopping malls i two-foot. on the high-way i right foot. if my car isn't running well (like stalling), i give gas and adjust my speed with the brake (just at lights) ...thehick >as an expert, i say use whichever is correct for >the circumstances. in shopping malls i two-foot. >on the high-way i right foot. if my car isn't >running well (like stalling), i give gas and >adjust my speed with the brake (just at lights) I drove a friend's Accord on 3 cylinders the other day. It also had a completely dead battery. In that case, two feet were most definitely required for the reason you state. An alternative is to put it in neutral at the light so the motor can idle higher, but then when you get a green light and drop it back into drive, it may die before the idle can stabilize - a big problem without a battery. You can try to counteract that by revving the motor before shifting into drive, but something tells me the trans doesn't like that much. >You can try to counteract that by revving the motor before > shifting into drive, but something tells me the trans doesn't like that much. You could shift to D2 at high rpm. Since the third gear has a different gear ratio on the third clutch. >Hello: > >Have a continual debate within the family on which is >"better". And it's a continual debate on here too. >I've always braked with my left foot (on auto trans. cars), As have I >and am convinced >it's a better way. Also, a split second faster in an emergency, I would >argue. Right on both counts. >What do you experts do, and think of this ? In terms of LFB you are as much an expert as anyone on here. Some people apparently are not skilled enough to do LFBing and believe that because they can't do it right no one else can. >Do any driving schools teach two-footed driving, or am I the only one ? I think it would depend on the instructor and/or school policy. I can easily imagine some schools would not want to teach it because it requires more skill for both the instructor and student. Much easier to stick with the simple one-foot for everything mode. >Curious to get some opinions on this. For those who have the skill to do it, it's a far superior style of driving an automatic equipped vehicle. It allows shorter reaction times, easily providing an extra car length of stopping cushion in a panic situation on the highway. It also allows you to both be *prepared* to stop/slow WITHOUT changing your speed, i.e. smoother driving, less wasted gas. Once you get the feel for the brake pedal you can have your foot ready over the brake without actually moving the pedal, just as you do when you have your foot over the gas pedal but are coasting. >Thanks, >Bob The problem is that holding your foot in the air over the brake gets very fatiguing in time, and some folks leave their foot resting on pedal. The result is wasted gas, and irritation of drivers following behind due to continued flashing of light. Nothing wrong with left foot braking, but there IS for people who use brake pedal as a foot rest. > Once you get the feel for the brake pedal you can have your foot ready > over the brake without actually moving the pedal, just as you do when > you have your foot over the gas pedal but are coasting. |
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