Preventing power cut when left foot braking

[awmw]

Hello

When using left foot braking technique, i.e. pressing the brake pedal and throttle pedal at the same time, the ECU cuts engine power.

I understand this is a safety feature in case a fault should develop in the drive by wire throttle.

Can vagcom be used to overcome this power cutting and allow left foot braking?

[Randomjim]

try saving left foot braking for race tracks

[Ess_Three]

Why?
I left foot brake all the time.
You were given two feet...why not use them?

As for the original question...I don't know of any way to stop the power being cut.

[Randomjim]

Why do you need to left foot brake on the road?

[Ess_Three]

Why not?
If you don't need to change gear, you can brush off speed with your left foot, whilst keeping drive just on the edge with the throttle.

It works especially well on a FWD car with an LSD where you can scrub off excess speed whilst keeping some power onto the front to keep it gripping by keeping the power on and hence the LSD 'primed' and locked.

But on open sweeping bends, when you are in the same gear...why not use one foot for braking and the other for throttle?

It's not especially easy on modern VAG cars with their over-servo'd brakes...but with a carefully measured left foot, you can left foot brake in complete safety on the road.

[Randomjim]

But on open sweeping bends, when you are in the same gear...why not use one foot for braking and the other for throttle?

Would it not be easier to do your braking first then accelerate through the corner?

[Ess_Three]

Yes, if you are driving your gran to church...
But on 'full attack' mode on a back road, it's a godsend.
In those circumstances all this slow in fast out crap goes out the window...and it's "fast as you can lads...last one back is bent as a butchers hook"

On a serious note...on roads that undulate and flick left and right why not use both feet?
You can scrub off speed with the left whilst keeping the car loaded up with the right...it avoids lift off oversteer if nothing else.

[Randomjim]

Lol, i think im gonna have to try it. Right foot braking has always worked for me but itas worth a go.

[Ess_Three]

yeah, it's worth a go.
I'll wager you'll almost put yourself through the window the first time you try it...but it's worth practicing.

Ideally, you want it to come as second nature.

My old man has a DSG Golf...and both he and I drive that two footed all the time (left for braking, right for throttle)

[Randomjim]

Lol will try it on a quiet road then as i nearly put myself through the windscreen the first time i drove an auto

[L1 HCS]

yeah, it's worth a go.
I'll wager you'll almost put yourself through the window the first time you try it...but it's worth practicing.

OMG - I had a go this morning... wrong time I suppose!! it really woke me up!! the entire contents of my handbag came flying over the dash!!! I nearly pooped myself!!... I'll keep trying tho..

[Defratos]

Loooll yeah it's the funniest thing ever trying it out for the first time, Wanted to ask a question, is it bad for the engine to down shift through gears?

[awmw]

Rally drivers use left foot breaking to through the car sideways and set it up for the next corner. I realise not many of us will be trying this on the road!

But.......

Used gently, left foot breaking transfers wieght to the front of the car, making it turn in better and correcting the front end when it is running wide, bringing it back into line without having to upset the balance of the car mid corner by lifting off the throttle and avioding turbo lag when the throttle is opened again.


I had heard that it was possibe to allow this with vagcom but I guess it may have just been a rumour

[tonedef]

I've only just read this thread, did anyone find a solution yet?

My wife has the S3 today so I'll take a better look tomorrow but maybe there's an answer without vagcom. A couple of years ago I was working for a rally team and we bought two new Iveco vans with fly by wire throttles. Left foot braking in them was a must if say you were catching someone on a long uphill drag on the motorway when fully loaded and towing a car trailer cos if you lifted off it dropped the boost and you'd not recover until you got over the hill. A little gentle left foot braking could be the difference between 55mph and 25mph!

The Iveco has two switches on the brake pedal, one for the brake lights, another to the ECU, it was simply a case of pulling the ECU switch connection and jumping the wires to show closed contact and all was OK. The Audi must have similar as the brake lights are hard wired to work even with the ignition off, there must be a second ECU input which could be disconnected.

[A4Quattro]

In my old mk2 escort mexico, the pedal box was tiny, you could actually heel and toe in it, I actually found it easier some times.
Non-experienced drivers will normally put you through the windscreen when using the left foot to brake.