by "WilliamsSW" (williamssw)
Published 03/01/2017 at 12:29
by "WilliamsSW" (williamssw)
Published 03/01/2017 at 12:29
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STARS: 0
I’m curious Oppo - what foot do you brake with? I’m strictly referring to normal street driving, and I presume everyone with 3 pedals is using their right foot (if you’re using your left foot for the clutch AND brake, I’d love to hear about it). When I learned to drive (1984, I’m old!), I was told to use the right foot - partly because there were more 3 pedal cars around then, and also I was told that left foot braking caused people to ride the brakes. I still use my right foot, because 1/3 of my fleet has 3 pedals, and I’ve never gotten a feel for left foot braking. My assumption is that left foot braking is being taught more and more now, and I know Oppo skews a lot younger than me. So - which foot is best foot?
"TheHondaBro" (wwaveform)
03/01/2017 at 12:30, STARS: 0
Right foot. I tend to be overly aggressive with the brakes if I use my left foot.
"Ash78, voting early and often" (ash78)
03/01/2017 at 12:31, STARS: 1
I taught myself to brake with my left foot last year (at age 37) after getting rid of our only manny tranny. I picked it up pretty quickly and generally find it to be safer, quicker, and smoother than using my right foot. However, there are cases where the left foot braced against the dead pedal can be safer, so I try to mix it up depending on the conditions. It
’
s a good skill to have and I definitely advocate it. It only took me about 2 hours of (terrifying) suburban driving to get it down.
"WilliamsSW" (williamssw)
03/01/2017 at 12:32, STARS: 0
Yeah - my feel is horrible with the left, and I’ve never had the patience to work on it.
"HammerheadFistpunch" (hammerheadfistpunch)
03/01/2017 at 12:33, STARS: 0
Left foot braking is a skill to be applied when the moment calls for it, you shouldn’t be left foot braking full time. I mean, I guess it doesn’t matter so long as you are safe but given that cars today don’t really allow for left foot braking (thanks pedal confusing Toyota drivers!) so doing it as a general practice is both unnecessary and pointless.
I DO left foot brake though if I can and need to, i.e. rock crawling or in my old subaru to get the turbo going before corner exit.
"Textured Soy Protein" (texturedsoyprotein)
03/01/2017 at 12:33, STARS: 1
The only time I left foot brake is when a rental car has a pedal activated parking brake and my muscle memory from stepping on the clutch to start kicks in.
I seriously doubt that left food braking is being taught as the standard way of driving.
"WilliamsSW" (williamssw)
03/01/2017 at 12:34, STARS: 0
Yes - this is kinda why I’m asking the question, actually. My stepfather is 80, and at some point he switched, so it can be done. I think it’s something I need to work on. Most, but not all, of my driving these days is in 2 pedal cars, so it seems like it could be safer. Do you hover your foot over the brake?
"Ash78, voting early and often" (ash78)
03/01/2017 at 12:35, STARS: 0
Yep, I sort of keep my left foot on
“
standby
”
which is sort of how you treat the clutch in a manual (which is all I drove for 20 years). Once I
’
m on wide
-
open highway, it goes back to the dead pedal.
"WilliamsSW" (williamssw)
03/01/2017 at 12:36, STARS: 0
Good point on the turbo cars — it’s a good way to keep the boost up, I wasn’t thinking of that. Currently, all of my vehicles are NA, but it seems unlikely that my next car will be.
"Nibby" (nibby68)
03/01/2017 at 12:37, STARS: 1
hah, braking
"ceanderson920" (ceanderson9290)
03/01/2017 at 12:37, STARS: 2
When I was taught to drive we were told to always use your right foot. This was so we would take our foot completely off the gas when we began to brake. I still only use my right foot to brake.
"HammerheadFistpunch" (hammerheadfistpunch)
03/01/2017 at 12:37, STARS: 0
not that it matters with modern cars though, since they all require brake override so you can’t do that anyway if you bought a modern turbo
"bob and john" (bobandjohn)
03/01/2017 at 12:37, STARS: 3
I use my hand.
"WilliamsSW" (williamssw)
03/01/2017 at 12:38, STARS: 0
So, your answer is ‘no’?
"WilliamsSW" (williamssw)
03/01/2017 at 12:39, STARS: 0
Haha - I figured that was a given with the 2 wheels good crowd.
"WilliamsSW" (williamssw)
03/01/2017 at 12:40, STARS: 0
Yes - same for me. The concern was that you’d be riding both pedals unintentionally if you braked with the left.
"404 - User No Longer Available" (toni-cipriani)
03/01/2017 at 12:40, STARS: 1
Unless you’re racing of if you drive an early Saab 92, I don’t see why you need to left foot brake.
"WilliamsSW" (williamssw)
03/01/2017 at 12:41, STARS: 0
I was under the impression that some people were being taught to brake with the left - but that’s not based on any factual data, so I may be way off.
"Tekamul" (tekamulburner)
03/01/2017 at 12:43, STARS: 0
You better be a right foot braker, especially at hill stops.
"Cé hé sin" (michael-m-mouse)
03/01/2017 at 12:44, STARS: 0
Left, in an automatic. I’ve always been told that this is Bad. I began so doing in a Mk1 Escort with erratic tickover when cold and later found myself doing it all the time at which point I said to myself”what a sensible idea!”.
"MonkeePuzzle" (monkeypuzzle)
03/01/2017 at 12:45, STARS: 1
I use the handbrake in all situations. the top gear fellas have led me to believe this will instantly intoxicate all women
!!! UNKNOWN CONTENT TYPE !!!
"bob and john" (bobandjohn)
03/01/2017 at 12:46, STARS: 1
truth is, dragging the rear brake for us has an entirely different purpose. it helps to stabilize the bike at slow speeds and enables those crazy gymkhana videos you see.
"functionoverfashion" (functionoverfashion)
03/01/2017 at 12:48, STARS: 1
I’m only a little younger, but I braked almost entirely with my right foot until I got a chance to attend Team O’Neil rally school a few years ago. Now I use my left foot when it’s appropriate, and in particular when it’s very slippery and I’m deliberately trying to mess around. I’m speaking strictly of manuals here.
I did use my left foot on the brake with automatics when I worked at a marina, because you regularly need to make small, precise movements when hooking up to trailers, or backing them up into tight spaces.
On very long solo road trips I used to try switching my feet entirely, just out of boredom. Clutch with right foot. Gas with left. Brakes? Probably left? I can’t recall. Mostly this was in upstate NY where you’d go 55mph for 30 minutes and then come into an intersection or tiny town in the middle of nowhere and meet a single stoplight. Then back up to 55... no traffic... yeah it was still pretty dumb.
"Stapleface" (patrickgruden)
03/01/2017 at 12:50, STARS: 0
Been driving for 25 years, I was taught to use the right foot. I didn’t use the left foot for the reasons already mentioned. I also (until the last 6 years or so) have always had manual cars, for the most part.
I’ve tried to left foot brake before, and I am not good at it. I stab the brakes WAY too hard. I imagine it’s probably a handy skill to have though.
"TheBimmerGuyWhoNowOwnsAChevy" (thebimmerguy)
03/01/2017 at 12:51, STARS: 1
I’d have to say 95% of the tme I use my right foot, but when the twisties have no traffic, I have a little bit of fun and left foot brake. That’s especially important since I have a FWD now.
"gogmorgo - rowing gears in a Grand Cherokee" (gogmorgo)
03/01/2017 at 12:51, STARS: 1
In my driver’s ed class, c. 2008, we were strictly taught to not use the left foot. For the not braking without coming off the gas aspect.
In terms of driving myself, I generally don’t use my left foot on the brake unless I’m doing something silly, like brake torquing in advance of launching at a green light, or other similar activities that generate a lot of smoke. Although I have been occasionally known, after several months of exclusively driving three-pedals, to peg the brake with my left foot at the first stop sign after I get into an automatic.
"Frank W. Doom" (frankwdoom)
03/01/2017 at 12:57, STARS: 1
left foot
I had to adapt a few years ago driving my old pos buick that would die if it idled down too far. that made stops tricky.
"DC3 LS, will be perpetually replacing cars until the end of time" (dc3ls-)
03/01/2017 at 12:58, STARS: 1
I’ve done regular driving while left foot braking in a manual before. I went about it two ways. I started off at stop signs and just put the car in neutral w/o the clutch which is easy. When I got used to the feel of it I would do the same thing, but rev match into the gear I wanted near the end of my braking w/o using the clutch.
The number two way, which is much easier. Is too simply initiate the braking with the left foot, leaving room on the right side of the pedal, then positioning your right foot to heel toe and taking my left foot off to use the clutch. I actually got good enough at this to use it in traffic.
"smobgirl" (smobgirl)
03/01/2017 at 13:05, STARS: 0
I learned to left foot brake when my old auto required constant throttle to not stall (i.e., light gas application while idling). That said, the only thing that annoys me worse than burned out brake lights are people who employ them so often that they MUST be left foot braking - like pulling away from a light with their brake lights still illuminated. If you aren’t doing that then I don’t care how you’re braking :)
"WilliamsSW" (williamssw)
03/01/2017 at 13:17, STARS: 1
Haha - -that seems to be a common theme among left foot brakers on Oppo - they learned to do it out of necessity because of a car that didn’t like idling. I think that accounts for almost all of the left foot brakers who responded!
"WilliamsSW" (williamssw)
03/01/2017 at 13:18, STARS: 0
Ha- so, for weight transfer, and perhaps to keep the engine spooled up, then?
"TheBimmerGuyWhoNowOwnsAChevy" (thebimmerguy)
03/01/2017 at 13:29, STARS: 0
Now that I think about it, it does help keep the turbo spooled up, but it’s actually so I can make sharper turns since fwd tends to understeer under power, so yeah weight transfer.
"Shoop" (shoopdawoop993)
03/01/2017 at 13:31, STARS: 1
I was taught right foot, but use left when I want to cover the brake while maintaining speed, driving quickly, or rev and launch because I’m an ass hat.
It basically depends on how much I’m paying attention to my driving.
It took a while to get the feel.
In emergency situations which foot I brake with varies. Usually depending on which one I’m using currently. I have done the 70's land barge double foot brake by accident before however.
"ceanderson920" (ceanderson9290)
03/01/2017 at 13:47, STARS: 1
Exactly, I don’t really seen a reason to left foot brake when you are just casually driving.
"RallyDarkstrike - Fan of 2-cyl FIATs, Eastern Bloc & Kei cars" (rallydarkstrike)
03/01/2017 at 13:48, STARS: 1
Right for me because 3 pedals!
"Justin Hughes" (justinhughes54)
03/01/2017 at 14:05, STARS: 1
Though I am trained in left foot braking techniques for rally and to make a terminally understeering FWD car rotate, I typically don’t left foot brake in normal street driving. It’s a different story in other situations, or when the street is covered in fresh powdery snow. >:)
"TorqueToYield" (torquetoyield)
03/01/2017 at 14:07, STARS: 0
Left foot braking with slight throttle - only for maneuvering on steep hills (no hill hold assist).
"Die-Trying" (die-trying)
03/01/2017 at 14:14, STARS: 1
i dont brake much. when coming up to slower traffic, i usually start by just taking my foot out of the gas, and letting the engine brake for me, then if things are still slowing down more, i mush the gas just enough to pull the shifter out of whatever gear that i am in, and i give the truck enough gas to slip into the next lower gear, and then take my foot out again.....
when braking real hard, i start by mashing on the brake, right foot, then, clutch and downshift, and dump the clutch, while keeping the truck pointed safe, all while maintaining the solid pressure on the brake........ if things get REAL BAD, start centering up on the car ahead of you, thats what the bumper is for........
most everything else is engine brake, and right foot brake.
manual brakes keep the whole driving experience exciting. it also keeps you from being too aggressive, because you KNOW that the truck isnt going to even be able to stop short. so it keeps following distances large.........
"Full of the sound of the Gran Fury, signifying nothing." (granfury)
03/01/2017 at 14:29, STARS: 1
Rarely do I use my left for braking in a real car, but when I’m on the computer/playing a videogame I never use my right for braking. Based on this experience, maybe I should try it again in the car.
This reminds me of the first time I drove a car with an automatic. I was bringing a car to the autoshop that belonged to a classmate that was too young to drive (it was his sister’s car). We came up to a speed bump and I instinctively mashed down full force with my left foot on the left-most pedal, which in this case was the brake pedal. My classmate was wondering what freaked me out so much that I would come to a screeching halt whilst driving over a speed bump, but since he didn’t know how to drive he didn’t understand why I did what I did.
"WilliamsSW" (williamssw)
03/01/2017 at 14:36, STARS: 0
Ha - that’s good. I live in fear of doing something stupid in a 2 pedal car like that - - although, generally, I worry more about grabbing the shifter and throwing it into Park.
"WilliamsSW" (williamssw)
03/01/2017 at 14:37, STARS: 0
Tractor-trailer? I try to use engine braking as much as possible, but there’s very little available in most cars (ex. hybrids and electrics) - and I don’t downshift unless I know I’m going to be accelerating again without stopping.
"WilliamsSW" (williamssw)
03/01/2017 at 14:38, STARS: 0
Yes - that’s an even more interesting game in a 3 pedal car. I’ve gotten pretty good at going up ramps in my 3 pedal car without spinning the wheels or stopping, but it’s not easy!
"WilliamsSW" (williamssw)
03/01/2017 at 14:39, STARS: 1
See, part of me wants to get better at this in order to find ways to do it in mild hooning situations...
"WilliamsSW" (williamssw)
03/01/2017 at 14:40, STARS: 1
This is best answer
"WilliamsSW" (williamssw)
03/01/2017 at 14:42, STARS: 0
Makes sense - I currently don’t spend any time in FWD or turbo cars, though- it’s been a while.
"WilliamsSW" (williamssw)
03/01/2017 at 14:43, STARS: 1
Bingo - the reason this popped into my head is because, on my way to work this morning, I was following a clown whose brakelights were coming on randomly for several miles. Drives me nuts.
"WilliamsSW" (williamssw)
03/01/2017 at 14:46, STARS: 0
The first seems doable, and once in a while I do drive without the clutch for entertainment purposes and to get a better feel for rev matching. The second does seem more useful, though, and something I need to practice.
"WilliamsSW" (williamssw)
03/01/2017 at 14:47, STARS: 0
A common theme among left foot brakers here - cars that hate idling, it seems...
"Die-Trying" (die-trying)
03/01/2017 at 14:48, STARS: 1
old truck.... the brakes WILL slow you down, but it is a whole lot faster to use some gears too. and ABSOLUTE panic stop, is to shut off the truck, while mashing on brakes, and downshifting.......
i live near some very winding, fun roads, and actively work on maintaining my momentum, without having to brake, it makes slow cars feel fast.......
"WilliamsSW" (williamssw)
03/01/2017 at 14:48, STARS: 0
same!
"WilliamsSW" (williamssw)
03/01/2017 at 14:51, STARS: 1
I’m pretty sure that if I were to try it, I would have the same experience that May did...
"WilliamsSW" (williamssw)
03/01/2017 at 14:53, STARS: 1
Ah - 4 wheel drums FTW!
"Die-Trying" (die-trying)
03/01/2017 at 15:06, STARS: 1
no, it does have discs up front( first year available), but the fronts still have a tendency to want to lock up when you are real hard on the brakes. they are manual, not power assisted. i treat it like when i was a kid on a bicycle and went to stop(coaster brakes), and i prefer to try to have the rears doing more work, so that atleast if the rears are locked, i can chose what i am running into, bus full of nuns, or tanker truck of explosives.......
"Manwich - now Keto-Friendly" (manwich)
03/01/2017 at 15:08, STARS: 1
Right foot.
Left foot braking is for racing situations and people who are annoying tailgaters
"TheBimmerGuyWhoNowOwnsAChevy" (thebimmerguy)
03/01/2017 at 15:11, STARS: 0
Most cars have turbos now, not sure why, but my mind is telling me high mpg at highway speeds
Edit: By most I mean many, my information is anecdotal at best.
"WilliamsSW" (williamssw)
03/01/2017 at 15:17, STARS: 1
Nice! Back in the day, I recall nearly buying a ‘71 Malibu that had front discs, but no power assist. Nice car, but took a lot of effort to slow down.
"WilliamsSW" (williamssw)
03/01/2017 at 15:19, STARS: 0
I think you’re right - and the NA cars are slowly going away. I specifically wanted NA in my last car, and it GREATLY reduced my possibilities. I still have nightmares from the 1 turbo car I’ve owned - a 1990 Pontiac Sunbird convertible, with a 5 speed.
"TheBimmerGuyWhoNowOwnsAChevy" (thebimmerguy)
03/01/2017 at 15:24, STARS: 0
Just went and read an article, so many cars have turbos because automakers can make smaller more efficient engines that still have power thanks to the turbos, and generally are more economic till you stomp in the gas and spool it up. Very interesting. I think I still like NA more as well.
"Die-Trying" (die-trying)
03/01/2017 at 15:28, STARS: 0
yes, JUST like that, you have to plan your stops a bit ahead of time.....
"Axial" (axial)
03/02/2017 at 03:08, STARS: 1
Right foot. Stepped pedals and narrow foot-well makes left-foot braking quite awkward and heel-toe pretty much impossible unless you are driving flat out.
"pip bip - choose Corrour" (hhgttg69)
03/02/2017 at 05:21, STARS: 1
left foot for clutch
right foot for brake