When driving a vehicle with an automatic transmission, is it proper to use your left foot for braking?

gremlingts

One reason NOT to, is lazy people will rest their foot on the brake pedal, and it'll cause brake drag. I've seen cars going down the road, with their tail lights flickering on and off rapidly, and I can tell that they are a left-footed braker, and have it resting on the pedal.
Most driver ed teachers don't like it, and won't accept it, because a driver MIGHT keep their foot on the gas pedal, and mash BOTH down in an emergency, negating the brake. That's a good reason to use only your right foot for both. Once you've got your license, no one can tell you No, however.
It's been said (probably by the Volvo lawyers ) about that "unexpected acceleration" problem that cropped up with some Volvo models in the 1980's, some drivers swore they had their foot off the gas, some instances the forensics indicated otherwise, that they probably had their foot on the gas( maybe left-footed braking? I don't know) I will sometimes use the left if my right is tired, but I won't normally do it. It's more for a safety issue , and saving your brakes, than anything ( which are good reasons ).
About the ONLY time I'd say to use your left foot for braking is during snow driving, sometimes an automatic trans car will crab sideways, and tapping the brake left-footed will sometimes straighten it out. That's on old cars, the newer ones rarely crab anymore, they've engineered that problem out of most cars now, anyway.

Mr. KnowItAll

NO.
Because if you ever need to learn to drive a stickshift, How are you going to stop in a panic?
Your left foot needs to push down the clutch.

It's just not a good thing to do.
Not to mention, what is your right foot going to do while your left foot is braking? Push the gas?
People tend to push their feet to the floor in a panic. Brake and gas at the same time is why people get run over by accident by old guys, and women drive into coffee shops.

John P

Like others said you always use the right foot for braking. In case of an emergency stop you can very easily push on the gas pedal and brake pedal at the same time. I was behind a couple one time and the brake lights kept flashing, very annoying, at a stop light I got along side and complained about the brake lights coming on, his wife said " Harry, I told you to get your foot of the brake pedal"
Texas

kana121569

I have never heard of using your left foot to break. It would seem that your reaction would be slower having to activate a foot that was just relaxing vs using your active gas pedal foot.

liv3wire ~

She is correct. They teach you not to use your left foot. Reason being, if you have ever get into an intense driving condition it's normal reaction to mash the brake pedal with both feet. Now if one is on the gas and one on the brake you will mash both at the same time and the throttle is going to win every time. That's their theory anyways. I personally drive what they call 2 footed. One on each pedal.

bigfred1954

SMART LISTEN TO HER ALL WAYS .
She is correct .
That is unless you are in England or somewhere like that .
you know with controls on the opposite side and all that .

summer_00_butterfly

Your wife is correct. You might as well forget about your left foot while driving an automatic.

Matt

No you should use your right foot. That is why there is a rest on the left side for your left foot.

Sara L

First of all, if you brake with your right foot, then there is no way you can accidently be on the gas and the brake at the same time.

Secondly, whoever said that race-car drivers brake with their left foot is wrong. The reason being, that race-cars are manual transmission so that the driver has more control, and their left foot needs to be on the clutch.

The Mr. Pine

It causes wear on the brakes.

azrim h

No it doesn't matter, BUT the right foot should be off the accelerator pedal. If you are used to it by now don't worry about the driver ed classes as long as you are comfortable with the left foot braking habit.

Redtoe

As Long as your right foot Knows what your left is doing You should be OK. ( Be sure to let off gas first).
Drivers Ed it's a safety issue, They are afraid a new driver will panic and Push the gas Not the brake and hit something.So they Teach right foot for everything so not to Confuse.
If you Are Used to it & it works for you, without any Negitive side effects Go for it.

Iam!!

You use your right foot to brake also, for one simple reason. If your foot is still on the throttle, and you are braking, your left foot slides off the brake, ooopps. It is also taught in driver education to brake with your right foot, for this reason. But I say whatever your compfortable with.

Fred C

It is not the accepted way to drive. However, it is wise to learn to brake with the left if only to provide increased control when getting out of a snow rut, especially if the bottom is ice, or out of mud. For normal driving, the foot that does the accelerating is normally used to better control, and is less likely to hit the brake to hard when driving in traffic. Using the left for braking all the time also increases by several thousand percent the likelihood of riding the brake, albeit not on purpose, not to mention it will flunk you most driving tests.
By the way, bigfred1954 the pedals are not opposite in Britain!
http://www.2pass.co.uk/auto.htm

inagaddadavida_loca

Forget about the cops and the race car drivers, who use heel-and-toe techniques anyway.

I, for one, have mixed dominance (think dyslexia). Any time that I have tried to stop with my left foot has resulted in a reaction that was less than smooth. Do what works for you, but chances are any supposed increase in reaction will be offset by reduced braking pressure, resulting in a stop that may be not as short as needed.

Fordman

I always have. They used to teach to only use your right foot. The purpose of that was so that you wouldn't have your foot on the gas and the brake at the same time. When you hit the brake, it will throw you forward a bit. With your foot still on the gas you may have the feeling of putting your foot out to stop you from going forward, and would hit the gas.

I always remove my foot from the pedal completely, that way it is always free from the gas.

Your wife is right, that is what they teach and why.

They tell you don't use your left foot in driver's ed in case you ever drive a car with a manual transmission, because in that case you will need your right foot for the brake and gas and your left foot for the clutch. Using your left foot for the brake can get confusing.

However, as long as you know what you're doing, it shouldn't matter what foot you use.

kevin

i would use my left foot as it igive you the feel of a go cart having both feet at the ready but if your in a test i would only use my right as that is the proper way to do it but if your driving a speed it makes it easyier to use both thats why the police probably do it

accomacgeo

police do it and i do too only use this system if you are used it

mufftech008

YES/// BUT only if you have two feet>///////(smile)

racingirl14

tests show your reaction time is better when using your right foot only. i was told that you should never use both feet. although I'm in the habit of doing so.

ridingorracing

I always use my left foot for brakes....race car drivers do
your reaction time is much greater since it's already there

lmehl

My drivers ed teacher taught hundreds of kids in the 1960 to use BOTH feet - left to brake and right for gas. I have been driving 50 years and never have had an accident and I have never kept my right foot on the break. It becomes second nature. I don't think it is a fair observation (and not based on fact) that one foot driving is better than both feet. Stats do not prove this theory at all!!

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