MALAYSIANS love a good driving debate, and a viral post on Threads showing a nephew casually piloting his automatic car with one foot on the accelerator and one on the brake has set off exactly that.
With over 2,000 comments pouring in, opinions have been flying in every direction about whether two-footed driving is perfectly normal or a road disaster waiting to happen.
Is braking with your left foot in an automatic car actually dangerous?
Verdict:
TRUE
Driving an automatic car using both feet is not a traffic offence under Malaysian law, but it is widely considered unsafe and is not recommended by driving instructors, according to a fact-check by MyCheck.my.
The debate was sparked by a Threads post by user @aisyahhyahaya81, who shared a video of her nephew driving an automatic car with his left foot on the brake and his right foot on the accelerator, asking for public opinion on the practice.
"Is it normal to drive an automatic car with two feet like this? I have already advised my nephew but he says he has been driving this way for a long time and insists that if he changes now, he will be more likely to get into an accident," she wrote.
MyCheck.my checked the Road Transport Department's (JPJ) official portal and found that among the 547 categories of road offences listed, driving an automatic car with two feet is not cited as a violation.
However, the absence of a law against it does not make it safe.
Norani Yaakub, a driving instructor with more than 20 years of experience at six driving institutes including Westport Driving Academy Sdn Bhd in Ijok, Selangor, said the standard driving syllabus recommends using only the right foot for both the accelerator and brake pedals.
"In the teaching syllabus, there is no such thing as driving an automatic car using two feet. It is not an offence enshrined in road traffic laws, but as instructors we do not recommend students to do so.
"Such a driving technique can be considered dangerous. An automatic car is more suitably driven using only the right foot," she said.
A driving instructor known as Cikgu Mira BITARA on TikTok, who is attached to Institut Memandu Bitara in Terengganu, agreed.
"The strength of the left foot when pressing the brake will cause sudden braking, which is dangerous. Use one foot. It is dangerous to use two feet," she said.
The core problem with two-footed driving is the risk of pressing both pedals simultaneously without realising it, which can cause the driver to lose control of the vehicle or prevent it from stopping altogether.
It also causes the brake lights to illuminate frequently even when the vehicle is moving normally, confusing drivers behind who cannot tell whether the car is actually braking or not.
Several netizens who commented on the original post made this very point.
"People like this, the driver behind will get annoyed. The brake lights keep flashing on and off even though the road ahead is clear," one netizen wrote.
Repeated unnecessary braking also accelerates wear on brake pads, as every application of the brake causes the pads to grind against the rotor, generating friction and heat that wears them down over time.
The recommended technique is to keep the left foot resting on the footrest, which also provides support and allows the driver to brace during emergency braking, while the right foot controls both pedals, allowing for a natural and immediate transition from accelerator to brake when needed.
3. https://www.jpj.gov.my/wp-
4. https://samove.raa.com.au/
7. https://ms.okmadintl.com/
