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GasPedalBrake

 Correct unintentional use of gas pedal instead of brakes
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Place a "kill switch" beneath the gas pedal that is activated whenever the pedal is pushed all the way down. The switch would either cut the engine (zero gasoline) or perhaps activate the brakes. The kill function would remain active until the gas pedal was fully released. (1) Few sane people floor it and they can learn how far they can press before activating the switch. (2) Should someone accidentally trigger the switch, they would only have to remove their foot and then press down again to re-acccelerate. (3) And, significantly, should any person become confused and believe they are pressing the brakes while they pressing the gas pedal, the car would not continue to accelerate into nearby crowds, buildings, etc.
—RLH, Sep 08 2003

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       Make the kill switch applies full brakes, too.   

       Do you suppose that the incidents that we have all heard about resulted from a fully depressed throttle?
—bristolz, Sep 08 2003
   

       <Merging in from the on ramp>
uh oh, that guy's coming pretty fast; I'd better step on it! Vroom... putt putt put -- What the?
CCRRAASSSHHH!
</merging in from the on ramp>
—phundug, Sep 08 2003
   

       How about when you push the gas pedal all the way down, giant mechanical arms come out of the side of the car and flail around up in the air, and a loudspeaker plays a "Waaaugh!" recording.
—DeathNinja, Sep 08 2003
   

       Sane people do floor the gas pedal occasionally, especially those who drive the underpowered-but-economical variety of car.
—AO, Sep 08 2003
   

       [phundug]'s scenario could also cover flooring the brake by accident. Maybe then it should act as an accelerator.
—FarmerJohn, Sep 08 2003
   

       "You seem to be trying to find the brake..."
—phoenix, Sep 08 2003
   

       It was my impression that that feature is not because there is a switch in the pedal, but that it's part of the transmission itself, responding to a certain input power vs output speed ratio...
—DeathNinja, Sep 08 2003
   

       If you want full throttle power from you car (eg - fleeing volcanic eruption) there should be a small handle labeled "Nitro!" on the dash. Only on pulling the "Nitro!" handle do you get full acceleration. Only the most confused folks would mix this up with the brake.
—bungston, Sep 08 2003
   

       Or professional wrestling.
—DeathNinja, Sep 08 2003
   

       If the gas pedal is that depressed, it should see a doctor.
—thumbwax, Sep 09 2003
   

       It experienced a brake down.
—FarmerJohn, Sep 09 2003
   

       //Few sane people floor it...//   

       Apparently I'm at risk of losing my sanity every time I attempt to take my car up a hill.
—st3f, Sep 09 2003
   

       I "Floor it" on a regular basis, just because it's fun. I'll often power shift from first to second, run it to redline, then calmly shift directly to 5th at highway speed. People tell me it's not great for the tranny or engine, but I've been doing it for 115 thousand miles, I've only replaced the clutch once, and the engine still runs like new.
—Freefall, Sep 09 2003
   

       Alternatively, the giant mechanical arms could flap forwards and backwards like they're swimming through the air. (more propulsion that way)
—RayfordSteele, Sep 09 2003
   

       I can imagine some fool trying to "demonstrate" this feature... check this out *wrooom* erm...
—proto13, Apr 09 2004
   


 

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