Automobile pedal

Hanging pedals in a Subaru Legacy. From left to right: foot rest, clutch, brake, gas.

Standing pedals in a Saab Sonett (clutch, brake, gas)

An automobile may have two to four foot pedals. The arrangement is the same for both right- and left-hand traffic. From left to right:

• normally operated by the left foot:
  • clutch pedal, not in the case of automatic transmission
• normally operated by the right foot:
  • brake pedal, which is sometimes wide and elevated above the car floor
  • throttle (known as the 'accelerator' or 'gas pedal'), controls fuel and air supply to the automobile's engine. It is usually narrow and close to the car floor allowing the driver's heel to rest on the car floor.

Some vehicles have a parking brake pedal instead of a hand brake lever. Pedals can be either 'hanging' from the bulkhead or 'standing' on the floor.

Since the right foot is normally used (for the accelerator or brake) there is no foot rest on the right, not even in cars with cruise control. The left foot only has to operate the clutch intermittently (or has no function in an automatic vehicle) so sometimes a foot rest is provided to the left of the pedals.

Many cars now include pedals with electric adjustment, a modern iteration of a manual adjustment system available sporadically since the 1950s.

See also

• Heel-and-toe
• Left-foot braking

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