What is left foot braking?

[Lukerush0]

Can someone explain what benefit there is to using 'left foot braking' and how to do it?

[trickywoo]

You use your left foot to brake HTH.

No benefit unless you are on a special stage.

[tuffer]

You use your left foot to operate the brake pedal rather than your right. Go and try it but make sure you are wearing your seat belt for the first few attempts. HTH.

[aka_kerrly]

Find a quiet bit of road and give it a go.... using your left foot on the brakes whilst your right foot is still poised to accelerate saves milliseconds.

Please come back and report how you got on;)

[kambites]

It allows you to overlap braking and throttle, which (in a RWD car) allows you to be braking the front end whilst maintaining power to the rear.

Largely pointless on the road, and it slows me down even on the track although it's quite entertaining to try.

[mattball]

Not only that but you can then be pressing both pedals at the same time to alter the balance and direction of the car. Wouldn't really recommend it in your standard road car on a public road though..

[PHuzzy]

I used to do it a fair bit in my old 106 and occasionally do it in the Impreza.
Used as an alternative kind of mild lift off oversteer to counteract understeer when pressing on, it is pretty effective.
It takes a hell of a lot of practice to fine tune it, the 1st couple of tries are useless.

[Benbay001]

tuffer said:

Go and try it but make sure you are wearing your seat belt for the first few attempts. HTH.

Yes. The few times ive tried i usually end up doing the greatest impression of a kangaroo.

[stuttgartmetal]

Its being a Protestant and smashing things.

HTH

[kambites]

It's quite easy to do in a car with decent brakes. It's only modern over-servo'd rubbish that tries to put you through the windscreen.

[jon-]

Can also be occasionally useful in a laggy turbo car on track as a way of building boost without increasing the speed until corner exit. Very much balance dependant though.

[psummers]

My dad did this while pulling out in front of someone. He forgot it was an automatic and was trying to depress the clutch

Bloke behind didn't see the funny side.

[JonnyFive]

On some modern cars if you press the brake whilst pressing the accelrator it cuts the power, and I had it on a car where it brought an engine light on too

[300bhp/ton]

trickywoo said:

No benefit unless you are on a special stage.

There are different reasons to left foot brake.


-on turbo cars it can allow you to maintain boost and reduce lag when cornering, i.e. slow the car down with the brakes while still applying load to the engine


-it can alter the cars attitude and handling balance while cornering/sliding


-it can allow quicker reaction times


-along the same theme as quicker reaction times, with a 2 pedal car (autos/sequential) it allows a different driving style


-help promote traction in low grip conditions and load spinning wheels


-doing burnouts

[markmullen]

It can allow you to show tailgating cars the brake lights whilst accelerating away from them.

I imagine.

[Captain Muppet]

trickywoo said:

No benefit unless you are on a special stage.

Or in a kart.

[aka_kerrly]

Benbay001 said:

tuffer said:

Go and try it but make sure you are wearing your seat belt for the first few attempts. HTH.

Yes. The few times ive tried i usually end up doing the greatest impression of a kangaroo.

Spoil sports.

Is it just me that was hoping the OP would go off to find a nice straight and try left foot braking... only to come back with a sore head having whacked the windscreen performing an unintentional emergency stop.

[Tegis]

trickywoo said:

No benefit unless you are on a special stage.

If you are lazy and drive a car with automatic/dsg gearboxbox of some sort you dont need to move your feet around so there are some benefits.

[Baryonyx]

aka_kerrly said:

Spoil sports.

Is it just me that was hoping the OP would go off to find a nice straight and try left foot braking... only to come back with a sore head having whacked the windscreen performing an unintentional emergency stop.

The two times I have discussed left foot braking with colleagues, they have tried it immediately and both times have resulted in us both being thrown forward and strangled by our seat belts. I don't mention that in the car, at least not when I am the passenger.

[PJ S]

stuttgartmetal said:

Its being a Protestant and smashing things.

As opposed to being a Catholic and arranging things?

Er....um.....ah.....no.....I give up, where exactly does left foot braking and religion meet?