Gas pedal controls

Here’s a new post category I’ve dubbed “Here’s a thought”. These are posts that originated as an idea, which I found fun to think about and research.

So… Here’s a thought, what if the gas pedal of your car worked differently? I drive a Tesla Model Y since I started my career as a freelance IT consultant. One of the mechanics I had to get used to at first, was the engine braking when releasing the gas pedal. It’s a mechanism that is actually integral for battery regeneration and thus allowing for more mileage. But I found it more finnicky to work than classic Diesel cars to maintain the same speed.

Depressing the pedal further, gives more gas. Releasing the pedal actively brakes. It’s hard to find the middle ground and find the correct position to leave your gas pedal for the speed you want to drive. Why not use cruise control¹ to dictate the speed limit, you ask? I find, the adaptive cruise control implementation by Tesla to brake far too often compared to my previous cars. I don’t know whether this is due to Belgian roads not being as straight-forward (quite literally with all the twists and turns) than in America or Canada. But it just boils down to a less than ideal experience. So I prefer to control the gas myself for a more smooth driving experience.

Given the way gas pedals work in electric cars, it might be worth considering to have a fixed speed setting midway through. Like a physical click the gas pedal stays in about halfway through. If you want to make the car go faster you depress the pedal to get more speed. Releasing the pedal between the bottom position and the half-way point does not make the car brake, you only use it to increase the speed of the car. If you release the pedal beyond the half-way point, the car does brake and allows you to come to a halt.

Here’s a crude picture of what that might look like: