Comments by "bruzote" (@bruzote) on "TFLclassics"
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I took custody of my father's Town Car when his driving was too dangerous (and he needed to be put into assisted living). There are several big problems with this car.
1. The car can be DANGEROUS. I would not give this car to anyone I love without a strong review of this problem.
I have driven many cars in my life. This is the ONLY car in which I have had repeated problems of my right foot actually pushing the gas pedal while I was trying to brake, regardless of my footwear! Sometimes during braking my foot was only pushing the gas, not even touching the brake. Other times I have been pushing both pedals. (They are close enough to each other for this to happen.)
I have approached traffic stops, busy roads, and sharp curves and found myself accelerating instead of slowing down! I have tried the pedal adjustment feature and it didn't matter what the setting was. I suspect the issue is mostly due the location of the pedals. They might not be as far right as on other vehicles. They might be too close to each other. Or, it might be the way the right leg or right heel is not supported and this lead to the foot falling to the right. However, I have driven other cars that lack a convenient side support for the leg and I don't recall having this repeated problem with any of them. (Maybe I am forgetting a rental or two, but it would still be unusual.)
After this experience with the Town Car, I understand how some people hit the gas instead of the brake. If they are experiencing a problem similar to mine, they are not confused drivers. They are simply finding that the mechanics of hitting the brake doesn't allow a relaxed approach to just angling one's foot to the left and pushing the brake pedal. What one is expecting and what one gets can be two different things. Now I wonder if many people driving into store windows from parking lots are simply driving cars whose pedals require rather intentional use. Much of driving is nearly unconscious habit and feel. If a car behaves out of normal range during half-conscious operations, it could lead to obvious problems. Are most people hitting the gas unintentionally used to driving other cars?
2. The pedals are very sensitive. You barely touch the brake and you're flying forward against your seat belt. You barely touch the gas and all eight cylinders are roaring. For me, this problem is made worse by my other car having soft pedals! =:-D Regardless, other cars I have driven were rarely this sensitive. Adjusting the pedals doesn't help, by the way. The pedal position is not causing the sensitivity.
3. The car lacks rear traction. The gas is VERY sensitive (as I mentioned earlier), but the transmission and power transfer are just tuned badly for the available power compared to the rear weight of the vehicle. I can spin tires *unintentionally*. This is a problem you can't do much about, because the pedals are so sensitive you can't easily depress the accelerator until you get the start you want. It's like an on/off switch. Parked or peeling out. Oh, the tires are fine btw. Tread is good, pressure is 35 psi. So, they are not hard as a rock and slick.
4. I hate the driver's seat. It always feels like I am slipping out due to the angle of the lumbar area pushing me forward. I have a bad lower back and sometimes I enjoy extra lumbar support. This is different. The seat just drives me nuts. I can't tilt it back enough, retract it enough, whatever. Every combination of this seat's setting leaves me feeling pushed off the front edge. It drives me nuts and has me fidgeting frequently. This then drives my wife nuts.
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