Left-foot braking

[whitenemesis]

Going off topic (as the original topic has been done to death by now!)...

It would be really useful to have a foot rest on the right side too, annoying to have your foot "hovering" whilst on cruise control

Going even further off topic but sticking with cruise control, has anyone else noticed than, when cruising along and coming up behind a marginally slower car, they invariably speed up as one pulls out to pass? I've come to call this behaviour as the "Bow-wave effect"..

 

[219]

It must be a nightmare when you have to steer and shuffle your hands to keep them in the 10 to 2 position.

In general road driving ( not low speed manoeuvring ) wheel movements tend not to be huge .

I find quarter to three more comfortable , and if you watch film of some older generation racing drivers Moss , Fangio , Kling , twenty to four was the favoured position .

 

[219]

Going even further off topic but sticking with cruise control, has anyone else noticed than, when cruising along and coming up behind a marginally slower car, they invariably speed up as one pulls out to pass? I've come to call this behaviour as the "Bow-wave effect"..

I have noticed that too .

Also if gaining on a couple of slower moving vehicles , the one behind often pulls out just as you’re about to pass , rather than going earlier , or waiting for you to pass first .

 

[whitenemesis]

In general road driving ( not low speed manoeuvring ) wheel movements tend not to be huge .

I find quarter to three more comfortable , and if you watch film of some older generation racing drivers Moss , Fangio , Kling , twenty to four was the favoured position .

In cars fitted with steering wheel air bags it is now strongly recommended to use the quarter to three grip, not the original ten to two, to help reduce the chances of wrist injury should the bag go off.

 

[PhantomF4]

I’m totally neutral in this left Vs right foot debate but can’t help wondering why Mercedes and other manufacturers have spent millions developing safety systems like Emergency Autonomous Braking, Pre-Safe etc. Surely they exist to mitigate for slow reactions or the tiny delay whilst moving the right foot from accelerator to brake pedal?

 

[Deleted member 113659]

Who's driven a vehicle with the clutch on the gear knob......??

Tell us more!

 

[Deleted member 150136]

It’s the shuffling of feet from one pedal to another rather than having a 1:1 correspondence that adds it , however slight it might be .

Again to this point.
So from what I gather from this post, is that you keep your foot on the brake pedal at all times to avoid the unnecessary shuffle?
I was always told not to rest the foot on the brake pedal whilst in a kart or any other such vehicle to avoid brake drag, wearing out components etc.
Either you have very good calf muscles or you're talking out of your ãŕśè regarding the great effort involved with the shuffle.

 

[SW18]

Just caught up on this thread. For me, one of the joys of driving a large Auto is that it rolls very freely and will travel a long way before it loses speed. Therefore if I am not on the gas I tend to move my right foot over the brake, particularly if approaching a hazard such as a side turning that may have cars entering/exiting. Thus, should I need to brake, I am already there ready and don't lose a few fractions of a second in moving my foot over. Hence, I haven't considered the need to left-foot brake.

 

[Deleted member 149005]

Again to this point.
So from what I gather from this post, is that you keep your foot on the brake pedal at all times to avoid the unnecessary shuffle?
I was always told not to rest the foot on the brake pedal whilst in a kart or any other such vehicle to avoid brake drag, wearing out components etc.
Either you have very good calf muscles or you're talking out of your ãŕśè regarding the great effort involved with the shuffle.

Nah - he gets one of his pretty young ladies to get his leg over the pedal for him...in between making him a cuppa

 

[unimog]

Keeping your foot, any foot, on the brake pedal (known as riding the brake) is a fail on a US driving test.

Left foot braking is for rally drivers, everyone tries (and epically fails) after watching this amazing footage of Walter Rorhl:

To view this content we will need your consent to set third party cookies.
For more detailed information, see our cookies page.

Accept third party cookies

 

[artyman]

Did anyone ever do a Health & Safety Assessment for the spectators

 

[Teego]

What about no-foot breaking?
A late friend broke his neck on an army assault course and became tetraplegic. Nothing below his armpits worked and what did work was very weak. He became a fearless, and fearsome, driver using a knob on the steering wheel and a combined brake/accelerator lever behind it. Tricky switching between radio stations on the move, though.

Or one-arm driving. My uncle lost his right arm as a child in a bicycle accident. He always had manual cars so that was more or less OK. Sometimes, if he needed to steady the car while changing gear or tuning the radio, he would steer with his knees. He was 6'2".

 

[ToeKnee]

The plan was to drive the 1,110 miles to New Orleans overnight and get there in time for some early evening beers with some mates who'd flown down ahead of time.

Is it possible to drive over 1100 miles in the states overnight? Genuine question!

 

[unimog]

Is it possible to drive over 1100 miles in the states overnight? Genuine question!

Yep, I did New York to Fort Lauderdale last year, 1250 miles in 18 hours.

 

[Londonscottish]

Is it possible to drive over 1100 miles in the states overnight? Genuine question!

Yes. Set off 10.00-ish. Arrived 6pm-ish. Slept for 3 or 4 hours in a layby/car park half way.

Mainly just trundling along on cruise at 60/70 IIRC. Daft speed limits at the time.

 

[John]

I’ve used both feet in MB autos ranging from W108/123/124/201/203/107/129/116/126/140and never found the pedal placement an issue in any of them .

My manual W124 with four pedals to contend with was more of a challenge .

Hmm, think I started it in my 211 and carried it over into the 216 and I think that was when it started.

Could have been me - I need the seat very far back!

Not done it that much in the 222.

 

[ToeKnee]

Yes. Set off 10.00-ish. Arrived 6pm-ish. Slept for 3 or 4 hours in a layby/car park half way.

Mainly just trundling along on cruise at 60/70 IIRC. Daft speed limits at the time.

Sorry, misread your post, I thought you meant you started at 10 pm and only drove through the night, not most of the next day too. Thanks for clarifying.

 

[Deleted member 150136]

I've just driven an auto Toyota hi lux 200 miles.
There's no way in the world that those pedals are set up for ambidextrous foot work.
You'd end up steering with your knee everytime you tried to brake

 

[219]

I’m totally neutral in this left Vs right foot debate but can’t help wondering why Mercedes and other manufacturers have spent millions developing safety systems like Emergency Autonomous Braking, Pre-Safe etc. Surely they exist to mitigate for slow reactions or the tiny delay whilst moving the right foot from accelerator to brake pedal?

None of my cars have had such features , but anticipation is a big part of it : when approaching a hazard , the left foot will come up from its resting position to cover the brake pedal , thus ready to brake without any delay due to movement .

 

[219]

Again to this point.
So from what I gather from this post, is that you keep your foot on the brake pedal at all times to avoid the unnecessary shuffle?
I was always told not to rest the foot on the brake pedal whilst in a kart or any other such vehicle to avoid brake drag, wearing out components etc.
Either you have very good calf muscles or you're talking out of your ãŕśè regarding the great effort involved with the shuffle.

Nope , the left foot rests to the left of the pedal most of the time . When braking is anticipated , the foot is rotated about the heel , which remains where it was , to cover the brake pedal , ready for use .

Thus the right foot still covers the accelerator allowing smooth transition between acceleration / deceleration / braking / part throttle downshifts during braking / and back onto accelerator to progress through/leave a hazard .

it really isn’t complicated and is certainly advantageous.