is it possible to do left foot braking in the Z? I only ask this because I know there is a safety feature that keeps you from doing burnouts, from pushing the brake and gas at the same time. I had a little incident the other day at an autocross when I over cooked the last corner and tried to ease off the gas and then brake, but the power cut and the car jerked the other direction and then came to a stop on top of three cones, and one cone flew into the timing light. It was pretty embarrising.

 

oooooooo thats fun to do with a car that does not have ABS. cuz yer left foot is used to pushing REAL hard on the clutch... its like hitting a brick wall.

 

I've messed around w/ left foot braking on the Z, but I never got the engine to cut power...but I wasn't braking too hard either. An easy fix is pulling the brake light fuse...I made a little switch that can bypass the fuse - fairly simple mod that works well and has other potential uses (no brake lights )

 

Disconnecting the Bosch VDC relay underneath the emergency signal button works too - and you get to retain your brake lights.

 

I have been learning and it has made a marked improvment. It has become second nature for me now.

 

I put a switch in on the power wire for that, it was off but something still caused it to whip back the other direction. maybe it was just me, don't know.

 

Maybe my car was special since it was such an early model? I honestly have no idea... I actually used the gas and brake concurrently at times to scrub my rotors after pad changes (get old pad material off) - power wasn't cut as far as I know.

 

I have never experienced any of the afformentioned problems associated with left foot braking. I even had a couple Evo instructors drive it to help me learn how to brake that way and they never experienced any problems either.

 

2005 touring MT with VDC switch installed, so far couldn't prove whether or not it cuts power and how much... I think it did avoid ABS like feel when braking into a turn. But haven't tried real burnouts to be able to know for sure about how much it cuts power.
(stock, without the switch, it cuts power I believe only by a percentage, not totally)

Some other questions related to left foot braking:

First time I tried AT (learned on, and always drove MT before), I thought it is safer to use the left foot, as you can react faster, or be "brake ready" anytime while driving, and you can save time in emergencies by avoiding having to move the foot.

Why are people saying that in ATs you need to use your right foot for both pedals and leave the left foot bored???
It is under your control how much you avoid stepping on brake and gas at the same time.

Regarding track use:
My understanding so far is that left foot braking can be useful for slight taps on the straight to correct pad knockback. And of course in karting

Aside from minor corrections through a turn, in my understanding you should still go for 1 brake zone, 1 throttle application point, and not apply brake / throttle / brake /throttle multiple times through a turn?

Is there any other use for left foot braking on the track, other than correcting too hot corners?

 

I saw Andy Hohl stop on course at the Walnut Ridge Tour 2 years ago in Chris Hammond's Z because he was left foot braking. We kidded Chris about sabatoging his co-driver because Andy was doing better than he was.

 

Didn't a GT3 just got totalled due to a bad left foot braking job?

It works for Michael Schumacher, but it doesn't mean it will work for everyone. Do whatever you feel is comfortable, don't do it because it seems like the right thing to do.

 

My 2005 Track model works OK with LFB, although there are times that I notice throttle reduction.

And in order for a GT-3 to be totalled, the car would likely be in a small ball. Don't forget, they are built like a race car -- the front and rear clips are designed to be replaced, and "breaking" a corner sucks, but isn't cause for the entire car to be written off.

 

-Zero time bettween gas and brake application (right foot not travelling).
-On turbo cars, it'll keep the engine loaded to maintain boost and reduce turbo lag.
-On a FWD it allows to mimmic a form of front ABS, with the engine preventing the driven wheels from locking. You can set the car into a loooong pendulum that way. Tremendous amount of trail braking can be done too.

To my knowledge, in F1 only Rubens Barrichello and David Coulthard are not left foot braking.

 

Here's a true story; a little funny and a little sad.

A buddy of mine, who is at the opposite end of the spectrum when it comes to cars than us, use to left foot brake while driving on the streets. 3 years ago while on the highway, an accident occured ahead of him. He drove a late 80's automatic Geo Prism (yeah... ) and is about as conservative of a driver like most women over 50. He had to do an emergency stop. He hit the brakes hard but ended up rear ending the guy infront of him, but he was able to step out of the car okay and unharmed. The guy infront of him didn't even know he got hit from the rear until a little later (again... ). When he recalled what happened he said that the engine reved up a little before he hit the car infront of him. We've concluded that during the heavy deceleration, his right foot moved forward onto the throttle causing the engine to rev and reducing his ability to stop.

I guess that's probably why they don't recommend the use of the left foot for braking. But cars w/ electronic throttles today would make it safer to attempt. I guess left foot braking should be left to those who know what it's good for and how to use it. For 90% of the drivers on the road it could be a liablity.

 

In general... the point of LFB is not to be on the gas and the brake at the same time, it is simply to compress the time of the transition from throttle to brake and brake to throttle... and in theory to smooth the transition as well so as not to unbalance the car.

That's not to say there isn't some overlap... but remember, LFB will only be used in situations where shifting is not required (unless you're in an F1 or dog-shift type car). You're still getting off the gas to start braking, and then off the brake to start accelerating.

 

I'm a big proponent of LFB and have been using my left foot on the brake since I started driving back in 1974. I use it all the time (when not having to shift) on the track and at autocroses. Sometimes I use little light dabs to get a little more front grip (weight transfer forward) even when I'm on the throttle in a corner. It also makes trail braking much easier and more controllable.

I have found in my base 2006 350Z (no TC, no VDC) that I can fool the drive-by-wire system so there's a slight delay in throttle application if I've been braking and on the gas at the same time. It doesn't happen every time, but some situations get the computer a little befuddled for a second.

 

I personally cant do it in the Z. I sit too close to the dash, the clutch pedal gets in the way.

 

Try the passenger seat. If you recline it all the way there's enough room if you've taken a couple Yoga classes.

 

Isn't left foot braking or at least a tap on the brakes a necesity when using a BBK on the Z(knockback on track)?


I have yet to track the Z with the the BBk on but I know it'll have to be done based on what I read on this forum.

 

I sit in an office all day, there is no way I can bend my knees. Despite not using left foot braking, the car still goes. So I am not going to change it, why change something that works? Also the Z is a lot more forgiving to drive with its massive torque, it's not as important as a turbo or high revving car that needs to keep the motor spinning.