so I took a prospective driver for a test drive today and he surprised me by...

Was he riding the brakes? How was his braking distance? While I understand the discomfort factor (I only use my left foot for clutching myself), if the driver is safe doing it his way and he's a good guy hire him.

 

It's very common among young and lazy drivers of cars. My kids used to drive like that until I, um, "corrected" their bad behavior. They have a tendency to ride the brakes and with air brakes, applying just a wee bit too much pressure can have a jarring effect.

 

Pretty simple to rig one up or mount a mirror that you can see on the passenger side.

 

He's either going to jam on the brakes more easily than say using the right foot, or he certainly is going to ride'em. And don't forget, his right foot may still be on the fuel as well when this happens. I think the only time using the left foot on the brakes, is when drive's thru a deep puddle to keep the brakes drier than say not slightly pressing on them.

What will he do on ice? I think the reaction time/usage of the right foot is better in panic situation's, ice, etc.

This is a habit you will not correct. He has shown that this is normal for him.

I'd pass on him. He is going to burn out the brakes over time.

 

i would think that would only be a habit of a driver who has only drove automatics, if you have any standard truck i would re-test him in a standard. all in all though if everything else is good with the driver background mvr and he showed good driving skills other than his foot work i wouldn't keep that from hieing him. there are a lot of drivers that do far worse things. a company i used to drive for asked me to take a prospective driver for a test drive one time and he scared me so bad that i drove him back to the yard.

telling him not to do that anymore wont do anything. i would still tell him but fact is as soon as you assign him a truck and he leaves he will just fall back to his habits without a second thought about it. unless you are going to periodically ride with him or mount a camera pointing at his feet.

 

Braking w/ the left foot is not only a poor driving habit but can also lead to an accident. If the left foot is even near the brake and the vehicle is rear ended or the driver is tossed from say a pothole he can jam on the fuel because his other foot is still over the accelerator. The only time I use a 2 footed application is when power braking off steep slick off road conditions.

 

Not a good practice, however I have seen this method of driving in the past. I too have done orientation rides and found drivers doing this, but in a 18 speed. This is all bush driving in extreme conditions hauling pulp, but nevertheless it is a bad habit. It's not the brakes wearing out that bothers me, its being on the brake period. In extreme conditions like we haul in there is no room for this method of driving.

 

i left foot braked a bit when i was pulling smooth bore tank, sometimes when having to make a firm but not panic stop to keep a little break pressure on when downshifting to try to keep the surge from shoving you around between gears. sometimes i would use the left foot or heal toe it while bumping the rpms for a downshift. now having said that i don't think left foot breaking is proper and never do it with a non moving load.