Nissan's "ECO Pedal"

[LTVibe]

Quote:
The Japanese carmaker on Monday announced its new "ECO Pedal" system, which makes the gas pedal press upward when it senses motorists are speeding up too quickly.

ECO Pedal

Not sure this is a good idea. While I'm all in favor of changing driving habits to improve fuel efficiency, I don't think many people would like their vehicles acting like "back seat drivers".

 

[oilyriser]

I'd like a system like this, if I drove a car with a very light gas pedal, that tends to respond to every bump in the road as well as my foot.

 

[LTVibe]

At least Nissan is wise enough to provide an on-off switch for this system, knowing some drivers would be uncomfortable with an "active" gas pedal.

 

[bretfraz]

Someone on another forum had a great response to this.

"I already have a similar device....... my wife"

 

[Ryan]

Its probably an $8,000 option.

 

[Aldaris]

I think its a legitimate problem. New cars nowadays have VERY touchy accelerator pedals. Even on a four banger, you get the illusion of power by pressing the throttle 1/6 of the way and getting instant response and acceleration, causing a lot of people to do jackrabbit starts and get poor mileage.

 

[brianl703]

So, make cars that don't have touchy accelerator pedals. Problem solved.

 

[Aldaris]

Originally Posted By: brianl703
So, make cars that don't have touchy accelerator pedals. Problem solved.

Then the cars will appear sluggish to Joe Sixpack and Sally Soccer Mom and they'll opt for the model with the touchy accelerator.

 

[Anduril]

I've driven two vehicles with "stiff" pedals, one of which seemed to suit me well, and the other which made driving difficult at times. The wife's Cavalier has a very stiff gas pedal, while mine does not - must have been one of those slight between-year changes they made. Hers is stiff all the way through the range of no throttle to full throttle, so on a bumpy highway or whatever it pretty much acts as its own cruise control (the car doesn't have it). It doesn't require a lot of foot pressure to keep it where it's at, and bumps in the road or random foot movements won't cause you to spontaneously vary your speed.

The other one I had was on my old Thunderbird, and I hated it. It was only stiff when you first pressed it, then it behaved like a normal pedal. Starting off smoothly from a stop was a bit of an art form - sometimes I'd press too hard and be nearly floored by the time the pedal moved at all. With a big V8 behind it, it was quite a surprise.

 

[artificialist]

Since most cars have throttle by wire, what would be wrong with using it to have multiple sensitivity settings?

 

[mikered30]

What would happen in an emergency situation, you know the one when you step on the gas hard? Would it press back?

 

[LTVibe]

Much better explanation of the ECO pedal than my original post... http://www.nissan-global.com/EN/NEWS/2008/_STORY/080804-02-e.html

 

[BrianWC]

Yeah, I don't know what would be wrong with just an econ button like some cars have/had. My 9-5 has a sport mode button which increases throttle sensitivity and raises shift point as well as a winter mode button which starts the car off in 3rd...

Why not just one more button?

 

[brianl703]

Originally Posted By: Aldaris

Then the cars will appear sluggish to Joe Sixpack and Sally Soccer Mom and they'll opt for the model with the touchy accelerator.


It's because both of those types think that pushing the "go pedal" too far will "hurt" the engine.

 

[The_Jeff]

I like a car where you get most of your power at 1/2 pedal then the bottom half effects a kickdown or two of the auto trans.

As far as test drive mode, just program the car so it has a touchy accellerator for the first 2000 miles then have it go numb over a period of a week.

 

[oilyriser]

Torque is a function of throttle opening and engine speed. At low speeds, 90% of maximum torque happens at a much smaller throttle opening than at high engine speed. This might make the gas pedal seem more sensitive when starting off. The thing that the throttle cable wraps around at the throttle body (word escapes me) can be made in different profiles, giving a different gas pedal sensitivity at different positions. A large initial radius gives a slow opening, and as the cable pulls out, the radius can be decrease. Maybe that part can be swapped if you don't like the stock response.

 

[Gary Allan]

Originally Posted By: artificialist
Since most cars have throttle by wire, what would be wrong with using it to have multiple sensitivity settings?


A coworker had a Lexus that you needed to press a couple of buttons to "really floor it". It would accelerate like a slug regardless of pedal position in this mode. Doing some body language with the buttons on the shifter (I think that's what he said) put it into performance mode.

 

[BrianWC]

I'm telling ya, that's how a 9-5 is. Automatics have a little white "S" for Sport mode on the shifter. Many of us affectionately refer to it as the "silly button." Without it, driving a 9-5 auto feels about like driving a Corolla....