Swapping accelerator and brake pedals - yes or no?

[Robert Clifford-Wing]

Have any members experience or views on swapping the accelerator and brake pedals to produce what is now the accepted pedal configuration.

I am torn between retaining original pedal configuration but concerned it is only a matter of time until the right foot hits the accelerator instead of the brake, with what might be catastrophic results!

What is best for the car and driver enjoyment?

Comments invited please.

[Chris Card]

Rob - It's like riding a bike - once you stop worrying about falling off, it ceases to be difficult. (I'm assuming that you can ride a bike!)
In my yoof I had a 12/60 Alvis and, when home on leave from National Service, my father and I went for a drive - my father driving - joining the big roundabout at Dorking, he tried to ram a Police car by hitting the wrong pedal - the occupants of the Panda were not amused, especially as the Alvis wasn't taxed. However, those were the days when you could get away with saying that the tax was in the post!
I took over the driving!
Seriously, I don't think you will have a problem as the 3L is so different from your daily driver. Further, it would be a shame to mess it about, quite apart from the difficulty.

Chris

[Paul Spencer]

My immediate reaction was "no! no! no! no! no!". But in the end, you will only enjoy the car if you are confident driving it. If you haven't had the car long, leave it as it is and see how you get on. Like Chris, I have never had a problem in the Bentley. If you have had the car longer, you probably know what you want.

Until recently, I had access to four cars, all with different ways of starting and stopping them, and all with different ways of changing gear. Now the two moderns are more similar - just that one has reverse where the other has sixth. Far more scary than pedals in a different order!

[Stephen Blakey]

My immediate reaction was the same as Paul's.

I'm lucky enough to do many miles each year driving a pal's 4½ and 8L cars. The 4½ has the centre throttle whereas the 8L has the throttle on the right. Without wishing to tempt fate, I've never had a problem. It just seems to become second nature. Stick at a bit longer and you'll forget all about it.

I generally try to avoid expressing opinions on here, but you did ask.

[Christopher Carnley]

Norma Stokes 80, escapes 2 year jail sentence for mowing down 8 school children, leaving one brain damaged after mistaking the pedals, in a modern car.
As the average age of the BDC drivers is 69 3/4, there really is no debate, when and if you consider other people's well being over an antique original.

[Paul Spencer]

Chris,

That depends on whether having the pedals the "wrong" way is likely to confuse you! Neither Chris nor I has a problem, and I don't know of anyone else who does. What about if you then sell the car to someone used to the WO layout?

I remember reading of other cases of people driving modern cars miles at high speed because the throttle stuck. Just turn off the ignition! (But don't engage the steering lock.) Perhaps the problem is that modern cars don't require any knowledge or thought (when they are working properly).

I need to get the AC out this afternoon ready for an event at the weekend. This has a pedal that acts as a clutch in low gear and a brake in high gear.

[Chris Card]

I consider myself to be an "antique original", but have only confused the pedals once, when, in the late 1950'5, driving my Dad's 2.4 Jaguar Mk1 automatic I put both feet on the fashionably wide brake pedal. This had quite a dramatic effect as, with both feet on the pedal, and being thrown forward under decelaration, I couldn't get off the brakes! A lot of rubber smoke, and we had to practically scrape ourselves off the windscreen. I didn't do that again!

Taking up C C's point, if you are not competent to drive without getting confused by the pedals of even a modern car, you shouldn't be driving at all. The layout of the pedals is irrelevant.

Chris

[John Murch]

I would add my agreement to Chris and Paul's views.
The problem of confusion of pedals with the elderly usually seems to be with automatic cars. And yes some people should not be driving, the ability to self certify your health on the licence renewal is ludicrous, at the very least a doctor should check reactions and an optician eyesight.
Drifted off topic!
I would think that if you wanted to move the accelerator to the right, it could be done without causing irreversible changes.
John

[Robert Clifford-Wing]

Members comments on experience in driving centre accelerator configured pedals is relevant as I have managed only a few thousand miles so far in Alvis and W.O. To date I have had no issues, I was responding to a mechanic friend who asked what was if the greater importance: to preserve authenticity or prevent damage by pedal error. In actual fact I have more fears of depressing the clutch and accelerator in an emergency stop. I must find a way of separating those pedals, maybe by moving the accelerator right it, perhaps inserting a separation plate or, as I have seen fitting an accelerator plate screwed to the floor and hinged. That might cure the problem as I have no wish to over Rev the engine once again.

Anecdotally, a senior club member did say there was a modification available for brake and accelerator. If that mod' were reversible I might concider as I have no wish to irreversibly change the car.

[Robin Gurdon]

[Robert Clifford-Wing]

[Paul Spencer]

The only time I had this problem was the second time I drove a Bentley - on a test drive in Central London near Hyde Park. I was overtaking a stationary bus when it pulled out and I stamped on the throttle and clutch by mistake. No harm done and never repeated in 13 years with a WO.

A bigger problem for me was the hand throttle. A couple of years ago I was looking over my shoulder reversing down our drive and caught the hand throttle with my sleeve. Like Robin, it took a while for me to realise what had happened, during which time I very nearly hit our neighbour's wall.