Left Foot braking
Discussion
Ive been wondering about left foot braking for a while now and basically... im not really sure where to use it 
I can only think of when braking for corners which don't require a downshift. I gather it can be used mid corner in some situations? also, how much of an advantage does it give if you can do it?
Matt
I can only think of when braking for corners which don't require a downshift. I gather it can be used mid corner in some situations? also, how much of an advantage does it give if you can do it? Matt
It's primary use is to adjust the balanc of a car mid corner. It is particulary useful for killing understeer in a FWD car.
It's a bit of a bitch to learn though and you *will* chew the dash a few times in the process! Unfortunately in my Octavia vRS it is next to usless though, because the brake lights and monitered by the ECU and if it detects left foor braking it automatically opens the wastegate...
It's a bit of a bitch to learn though and you *will* chew the dash a few times in the process! Unfortunately in my Octavia vRS it is next to usless though, because the brake lights and monitered by the ECU and if it detects left foor braking it automatically opens the wastegate...
iv noticed many new cars dislike left foot braking. when rallying i left foot brake in a strait line for stability also, say a series of jumps or a big braking zone that will unsettel the car.
with brake bias its good for getting the back out.
on road in the ka i use it to incress wieght on the front tyres incressing grip on tight apexes. the old micra had a pan har bar at the rear that cocked the rear tyre up, it was massive fun sharp jab of brake with gas would shoot the rear out wet or dry for masively entertainig drifts, untill the panhar bar snaps, i went through 4 then the diff barrings went poor micra. modern ABS just gets grumpy, but once u get used to the juding the power ur left foot needs then try it on apex, just a smothe stab and it should took the front in nice and tight.
iv only ever tried it on FWD. dont know how it is with RWD
with brake bias its good for getting the back out.
on road in the ka i use it to incress wieght on the front tyres incressing grip on tight apexes. the old micra had a pan har bar at the rear that cocked the rear tyre up, it was massive fun sharp jab of brake with gas would shoot the rear out wet or dry for masively entertainig drifts, untill the panhar bar snaps, i went through 4 then the diff barrings went poor micra. modern ABS just gets grumpy, but once u get used to the juding the power ur left foot needs then try it on apex, just a smothe stab and it should took the front in nice and tight.
iv only ever tried it on FWD. dont know how it is with RWD
hehe bobdylan said:
iv noticed many new cars dislike left foot braking. when rallying i left foot brake in a strait line for stability also, say a series of jumps or a big braking zone that will unsettel the car.
just out of interest, what do you do about the gears if left foot braking for a big stop? i heard Colin Mcrae (
) can do clutchless downshifts whilst on the brakes matt
924racer said:
just out of interest, what do you do about the gears if left foot braking for a big stop? i heard Colin Mcrae (
) can do clutchless downshifts whilst on the brakes matt
I think quite a few pro- race or rally drivers can do this, I guess its just being reallly good at rev-matching.
Theres a vid floating around on the net of Walter Rohrl in-car in the group-B Audi which shows some pretty amazing footwork.
Edited by GravelBen on Sunday 17th December 23:15
Good practice can be had at night whilst ambling along empty roads when your bored...
Use dipped headlights & watch the car dip as you gently squeeze the brake, you'll soon see how much it changes the pitch of the car, great way to learn LFB'ing left foot control.
First timers JUST TRY IT VERY VERY GENTLY FIRST!!!!! or you'll be through the windscreen
Use dipped headlights & watch the car dip as you gently squeeze the brake, you'll soon see how much it changes the pitch of the car, great way to learn LFB'ing left foot control.
First timers JUST TRY IT VERY VERY GENTLY FIRST!!!!! or you'll be through the windscreen
i tried to learn left foot braking. Never again. I tried to learn the basics on the approach to my driveway. My neighbours must have thought i was nuts or was having some form of brake pedal epilepsy. Im not certain, but i think left foot braking was devloped for turbo lag. Seemingly (and im not to sure) left foot braking was created to allow the driver to get on the accelerator quickly, so as to reduce lag times. Probably wrong, but thats my understanding.
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For the definitive information and training on the subject, try www.leftfootbraking.com/
Years ago I did Pentti's one day course, based on a disused airfield near Oxford and using his Sierra Cosworth 4x4 and Fiesta Turbo. It was a really fun day and I learned a lot about car control in general, as well as the why, how and when of left foot braking. In general, there are two reasons to left foot brake: firstly, to give you more options to adjust the balance of the car whilst cornering, especially by tucking the nose of the car into the apex whilst keeping the power on and secondly, by reducing the time it takes to hit the brake in an emergency stop. By approaching a hazard with your left foot covering the brake pedal, you reduce the time it takes to come off the accelerator, move your right foot across to the brake, and then to press the brake pedal.
There is also the reason that it is a way to overcome turbo lag but this is generaly not the problem it used to be so is pretty much an irrelevance.
In practice I find that for road driving, adusting the cornering line is seldom appropriate - you have to be far too committed (or have a really understeery car) for it to be sensible (good fun on a gravel track, though). However, covering the brake with the left foot when approaching a potential hazard is something that I do do and it has proved beneficial more than once. On one occasion I came round a narrow, blind corner to find a police panda car on my side of the road overtaking a bicycle. I think we were both impressed at how quickly I managed to stop! In those circumstances the fact that you will stall the engine for the lack of a foot for the clutch is the least of your worries.
Years ago I did Pentti's one day course, based on a disused airfield near Oxford and using his Sierra Cosworth 4x4 and Fiesta Turbo. It was a really fun day and I learned a lot about car control in general, as well as the why, how and when of left foot braking. In general, there are two reasons to left foot brake: firstly, to give you more options to adjust the balance of the car whilst cornering, especially by tucking the nose of the car into the apex whilst keeping the power on and secondly, by reducing the time it takes to hit the brake in an emergency stop. By approaching a hazard with your left foot covering the brake pedal, you reduce the time it takes to come off the accelerator, move your right foot across to the brake, and then to press the brake pedal.
There is also the reason that it is a way to overcome turbo lag but this is generaly not the problem it used to be so is pretty much an irrelevance.
In practice I find that for road driving, adusting the cornering line is seldom appropriate - you have to be far too committed (or have a really understeery car) for it to be sensible (good fun on a gravel track, though). However, covering the brake with the left foot when approaching a potential hazard is something that I do do and it has proved beneficial more than once. On one occasion I came round a narrow, blind corner to find a police panda car on my side of the road overtaking a bicycle. I think we were both impressed at how quickly I managed to stop! In those circumstances the fact that you will stall the engine for the lack of a foot for the clutch is the least of your worries.
Andrew Noakes said:
benzo said:
Im not certain, but i think left foot braking was devloped for turbo lag.
Left-foot braking has been used for much longer than that. Timo Makinen regularly used it in Minis in the 1960s, for instance.
Destroyed 3 mini gearboxes doing that, with regard to LFBing i you can practise doing it off road and use it to set the car up for corners
924racer said:
bobdylan said:
iv noticed many new cars dislike left foot braking. when rallying i left foot brake in a strait line for stability also, say a series of jumps or a big braking zone that will unsettel the car.
just out of interest, what do you do about the gears if left foot braking for a big stop? i heard Colin Mcrae (
) can do clutchless downshifts whilst on the brakes matt
I did it once. While I was impressed, gearbox hated it and sulked. We never spoke about it from then on...
If you're in the right gear, which you should be anyway for left-foot braking (on the road), it's not an issue really. Having said that, I only really used it in high-speed sweeping corners to stop the front of the car washing wide.
The first time I did it though, I went round with 'Pilkington' embedded in my forhead for days...It does take a bit of getting used to.
renny said:
Don't try left foot braking on a modern fly-by-wire throttle car. It causes all sorts of problems. The ECUs get confused and just cut the power.
Some of them will reapply the power if you come right off the throttle and then back on it, while holding the brakes on. Just one more loop to jump through if you decide you want to be in control of the car yourself rather than let the ECU have the last word.
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