left foot braking?

NiSmO

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C_Breeze

basically its for track use or competitive racing.

it exactly that -braking with your left foot! the advantage to this is that your right foot is always on the accelerator , so its faster comin out of coners.

takes a while to get used to it , but i tried it and i always end up jamming the brake as i havent got so much sensitivity in my lef foot as my right one.

truly , its a bit pointless and stupid.
i gave it a try out of curiosity, its crap.

double clutching- now theres something usefull

fletch

It's basically using your left foot to brake going into a corner (a lot harder to do than you might think)....however it allows a "much" faster exit from the corner as you don't have to transfer your right foot from the brake pedal to the accelerator....you're only talking milliseconds but on a track that can make all the difference.
My mate does it all the time when he's driving fast on a back road....worries the hell outta me because in a panic situation where he might have to make an evasive manoeuvre, instinct will take over & he could get completely confused.

Villain

Normally used by rally drivers on tight and twisty sections of a stage, it is used in front wheel drive cars mostly.

Heres a good summary:

Left-foot braking is primarily used in front-wheel-drive cars and comes in handy during cornering at high speeds.

A severe problem affecting most front-drivers is under steer during fast cornering. Under steer generally means that during cornering at a high speed, the car has a tendency to keep moving straight and to the outer edge of the curving road rather than the direction in which you are pointing the car. To cancel out under steer, there should be more grip at the front wheels than at the rear. The left-foot braking technique more or less helps you to do just that.

When approaching a corner, you should start slowing down like you normally do, using your right foot to apply the brake. At this point, you can use the heel-and-toe maneuver and downshift to the proper gear. Now, you should move your right foot over to the accelerator and your left foot to the brake at the same time. You are now ready to perform left-foot braking.

Continue slowing the car down to a reasonable - but not too low - speed by applying the brakes with your left foot. As you are about to turn into the corner, hit the gas with your right foot and keep braking with your left foot at the same time. Being a front-wheel-drive, the rear wheels will lock while the front wheels keep moving. The car's weight is transferred to the front, causing the front wheels to have more grip than the rear wheels. The car now starts to over steer.

Now keep the car in control by steering in the direction that you want to go, and applying more or less throttle and braking as needed. You have to use both your pedals at the same time, which will take practice. Lifting off the accelerator will cause more over steer and flip out the car's rear even more. Applying more throttle while easing off the brakes will reduce over steer and straighten out the car. Keep performing this balancing act to smoothly clear the corner at high speed, all the while making little corrections to your steering. At the end of the corner, just floor it and power out.

When you get good at this technique, you should be able to just keep the accelerator completely floored and keep the car moving in your preferred direction using just your brake pedal and steering wheel. Under steer is eliminated if done correctly and you clear the corner at a higher speed than in normal driving. The trick is to keep practicing braking with the left foot and learn to apply the brakes as well with the left foot as with the right.

With a typical race-car gearbox, you can even start your initial braking with your left foot instead of your right without having to use the clutch pedal. When braking, you can blip the throttle between the gear change. Most normal gearboxes cannot cope with such abuse and so it is generally better not to even think about trying such a move with your commuter car unless you have deep pockets to foot the resulting repair bill! Also keep in mind that many up market cars are equipped with computer-controlled stability systems that will help you to safely keep a car in control during high speed cornering. But with practice, you can control a car better with the stability system turned off and turn at an even higher speed.

fletch

C_Breeze wrote:

takes a while to get used to it , but i tried it and i always end up jamming the brake as i havent got so much sensitivity in my lef foot as my right one.

Yeh it's a hard one to master as your left foot is used to either applying all or nothing in terms of pressure on the clutch

spunkymunky

I thought it was something you do on a small back road at night when someone is up your ar5e. Ive been lied to!! I must tell my friend the truth!!!

C_Breeze

spunkymunky wrote:

I thought it was something you do on a small back road at night when someone is up your ar5e. Ive been lied to!! I must tell my friend the truth!!!

That too , lol

SouperComputer

LFB is more to do with the balance of the car in performance driving than the added time of moving from right to left foot.

It can be used to induce oversteer, or reduce understeer induced by power on the front wheels of FWD drive cars. Pretty much as someone else quoted from rallying. Works to good effect with 4WD too if you keep the power on.

Its used in circuit racing somtimes, but generally in an "feck, ive overcooked it" situation. Handy for drifting too

[edit] oh and can be used to hold a RWD car on the spot for a rather good burnout [/edit]

C_Breeze

[edit] oh and can be used to hold a RWD car on the spot for a rather good burnout [/edit]




Oh yeah

Kersh

Its used to stabilise a car through quick corners... it eliminates the need to lift off the throttle which makes the car twitchy... I use it for very quick corners that require just a dab of the brakes (Richies at snet, for example). Very risky on the road, as most people clutch with their left foot, so tend to stamp on the brake when they try it. It takes a lot of nerve on track, never mind public roads...

fletch

As I said before it's very dangerous to practice this on public roads.....in an emergency your right foot is going instinctively press down, however your right foot is going to be covering the accelerator and not the brake and you will more than likely get completely confused.

KTRIC

Now you've all confused the F**k out of me !!! I've driven a car only a couple of times (driving bikes for years) and I allways though you should use your left foot for the break. :eek:

C_Breeze

K-TRIC wrote:

Now you've all confused the F**k out of me !!! I've driven a car only a couple of times (driving bikes for years) and I allways though you should use your left foot for the break. :eek:

oh sweet jesus *shakes head*


and how exactly would you come to a complete stop then ??? ....press the clutch with your right foot?? lol

KTRIC

C_Breeze wrote:

oh sweet jesus *shakes head*


and how exactly would you come to a complete stop then ??? ....press the clutch with your right foot?? lol

If it work's , then why not ??:p

C_Breeze

K-TRIC wrote:

If it work's , then why not ??:p

LOL, well each to their own , i guess.

i knew of some one who would just yank it into neutral before coming to a halt without pressing the clutch at all:eek:

it can be done! i tried it

fletch

C_Breeze wrote:

i knew of some one who would just yank it into neutral before coming to a halt without pressing the clutch at all:eek:
it can be done! i tried it

I do that most of the time coming to a stop....but it doesn't need a yank...just a gentle push and it tends to just fall into neutral

C_Breeze

fletch wrote:

I do that most of the time coming to a stop....but it doesn't need a yank...just a gentle push and it tends to just fall into neutral

yeah but do you break with your left foot while doing it?!?!

also , techincally your not meant to put it into N until you reach a complete stop. theyd fail you on the full test for that!
-but thats just being nitpicky

stevenmu

spunkymunky wrote:

I thought it was something you do on a small back road at night when someone is up your ar5e. Ive been lied to!! I must tell my friend the truth!!!

I thought the idea behind that was to use your left foot to press the pedal just enough to make the brake lights come on, making the tailgator back off, while keeping you speed constant with your right ?

fletch

C_Breeze wrote:

yeah but do you break with your left foot while doing it?!?!

also , techincally your not meant to put it into N until you reach a complete stop. theyd fail you on the full test for that!
-but thats just being nitpicky

I'm well aware of that thanks but like lets face it, who does it in practice!

Oh and I brake with my right foot while braking....ever try cross your legs and drive....word of warnin...dont! I tried it once....nearly rear ended the car in front cause you get completely and utterly confused.....try it on a beach if you're going to try it at all

C_Breeze

fletch wrote:

I'm well aware of that thanks but like lets face it, who does it in practice!

Oh and I brake with my right foot while braking....ever try cross your legs and drive....word of warnin...dont! I tried it once....nearly rear ended the car in front cause you get completely and utterly confused.....try it on a beach if you're going to try it at all

lol, i tried the crossed legs thing all the way up my road and reversed into my driveway! ....now thats a feat. - im surprisingly good at that!

NiSmO

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KTRIC

Anyone know a good gearbox mechanic ?:eek:

Savman

NiSmO wrote:

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Don't do it ever.

NiSmO

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Rovi

It's a well known but 'not strictly recommended' technique for driving automatics.
My dad used to drive autos, and various industrial loaders we've had over the years only had two pedals (right to go, left to stop). My current and previous off-roaders have also been automatics, so I 'left foot brake' all the time while driving them.
It takes a while to develop the same feel for the brakes in your left foot that you have in your right, but it can be done with a bit of perseverance.

Please note though, that this has a somewhat different objective to playing 'rally driver' with a manual box! Left foot braking is a very useful technique in an automatic for getting nice smooth transitions between braking and accelerating.

It's a wonderful thing in an off-roader too.


.

Gerry

I've tried it, on a big empty roundabout. It really does work, the car is FWD ( saab 900 turbo ) but I dunno if you'd be using it on a normal journey, it requires planning and good knowledge of the road if you are going to take corners at the limit. On the open road, lifting off is usually enough to make the car tuck in.

Savman

Gerry wrote:

if you are going to take corners at the limit..

Absolutely insane.:rolleyes:

Con_316

C_Breeze wrote:

[edit] oh and can be used to hold a RWD car on the spot for a rather good burnout [/edit]




Oh yeah

Well you could do that as it is, which destroys your back brakes, or you can fit brake bias valve or line lock type thing which lets you use only the front brakes by shutting off pressure to the back ones (only works properly if you've discs on the back). That way your rear wheels will be able to spin more freely. Any yes, you'r still using your left foot on the brakes, so this is still relevant

RobAMerc

On the open road I break with my left foot all the time.
The time it takes for you right foot to cross from the accelerator to the break could be the difference between you stopping inches away or hitting something.

Just coz you tried something once and couldn't manage it does not mean it's a bad idea. It a technique and needs be learned .