The reason why some cars have 4 pedals
- If you’re used to two or three pedals in your footwell – a fourth might take you by surprise
- There are several reasons why that pedal might be there
- Let’s take a closer look
Published on Jul 26, 2024 at 11:23 AM (UTC-4)
by Amelia Jean Hershman-Jones
Last updated on Jul 29, 2024 at 12:33 AM (UTC-4)
Edited by
Tom Wood
If you’re used to a two – or even three-pedal car – you might be surprised to see some cars boasting four pedals in the driver’s footwell.
Having four pedals seems to have been a real trend in cars built before the 1950s.
Let’s take a closer look.
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Four pedals
Like everything else in life – automotive trends come and go.
The fourth pedal in the footwell seems to be no different.
Few of us will have driven a car with four pedals – so let’s break it down.
From left to right, you have your clutch pedal, brake pedal, accelerator pedal, and starter pedal.
Related
Why was the starter pedal needed?
“Before the 1950s it was common to have a mechanical linkage that was more than just a switch rather than using a solenoid relay.
In fact, it moved the starter gear to engage the teeth on the flywheel and close the contact to the starter motor,” explains car enthusiast Steve Heard on Quora.
There was commonly a fifth foot-operated high/low beam switch too.
Complicated.
According to fellow contributor to the thread, Denis O’Sullivan, the ‘pedal actuated starter’ on this image of a 1941 Chevrolet, is the rightmost pedal.
Jonathan Johnson added that more recently, cars with ‘traditional manual transmission’ will have an accelerator, brake, and clutch as well as an emergency or parking brake (other cars had a hand level for this function).
The manual car is making way for the automatic in America
Many manual transmission cars have three pedals with a footrest on the left, Daniel Wallander added.
However with only two pickup trucks with manual transmission left in America – these are also rarer than ever in the US.
Given how baffling automatic drivers have found manual cars, it’s hard to imagine this trend will be reversing anytime soon.
America seems to be leading this switch to automatic with Europe sticking to their manual cars.
In fact, these thieves in Seattle, US, were so baffled by their manual loot that they had to leave it in the parking lot and abandon their crime.
The amount of manual cars sold each year in the US is on the decline – but did see a small uptick – or up-stick, if you will – between 2021 and 2023, going from less than 1 percent of all cars sold to 1.7 percent.
With a dual English and French degree and NCTJ diploma, Amelia began her career doing award-winning writing and editing for titles and brands spanning Women's Health, the Telegraph, Boots, and Vitality. Amelia joined the SB Media family in September of 2023, bringing her expertise in SEO and reader takeaway. As Lead Editor, her superpower is translating technical jargon about the mechanical workings of a supercar into a shareable story.
