left foot braking question...

[apocalypso]

I've read a lot of information on LFB here, but one question I can't seem to find an answer for is what to do about the clutch? If you have to make an emergency stop with your left foot do you not stall the car? Obviously this is ok if you just need to stop, but I can imagine a lot of situations where you would need to stop and then accelerate out of danger.

I am wondering though if I have missed something obvious!

Thanks

[apocalypso]

racingsnake said:

You don't use the left foot for an emegency stop.
It's a means of balancing the car, best used on loose surfaces in FWD cars to induce oversteer and keep up momentum. It's potential is enhanced in a rally car with brake bias adjustment though.
Heel and toe technique is better for road driving in conventional cars IMHO of course.

Well, that's the 'obvious' thing I was missing! When I wrote the original post I was imagining my left foot above the brake and my right foot above the accelerator, and therefore using my left foot to brake. But if I was a good enough driver to even be thinking about using left foot braking on a public road, then I should definitely be good enough to move my feet over.

What prompted the question was reading about people using LFB to slow the car dramatically in an emergency (on a motorway for example) and saving valuable fractions of seconds, but what I hadn't really thought through was that they were slowing the car but not bringing it to a complete stop - therefore no chance of stalling!

racingsnake said:

First time you try LFB do it somewhere away from traffic as your likely to headbut the dash lol.

sounds like pretty good advice

racingsnake said:

Heel and toe technique is better for road driving in conventional cars IMHO of course

I agree - I've been reading about heel and toe and left foot braking and I can see heel and toe helping me develop a smoother driving style, LFB not so much! I've started practicing heel and toe in a stationary car - going to be a while before I try it anywhere else!

Edited by apocalypso on Friday 18th January 14:10

Edited by apocalypso on Friday 18th January 14:14

[apocalypso]

To be honest I have no idea where I read it. I think it was just a site I got to through google. The impression I got from it was that left foot braking was something you did instead of right foot braking rather than as well as right foot braking. Having read this thread, and a few others in this forum, I'm now pretty sure it was referring to an automatic although it didn't make that clear. It may have been an American site though, in which case the reader might have been expected to assume it was referring to an automatic.

I must admit I didn't really understand what left foot braking was for until racingsnake's post above. Now I understand it as a way of balancing the car it makes a whole lot more sense!

ETA - yes the impression was that the foot was poised above the brake pedal. Otherwise, as you say, no advantage at all.

Edited by apocalypso on Friday 18th January 15:58

[apocalypso]

ph123 said:

And in answer to the OP, good point, wtf do you do when you about the clutch when you come to a standstill? Forget it or stop braking? Please …
You asked …

me? I do nothing! I've never used left foot braking, and I probably won't either, I'd just read a lot about it and the question occured to me. I guess I would probably stall the car and end up looking a bit stupid.

[apocalypso]

WhoseGeneration said:

all I want from other drivers is observation, anticipation and that two seconds gap.

Would make a great t-shirt slogan (or bumper sticker)