Is the Right Side of an Automatic Transmission the Brake or the Accelerator?

[Luis]

In an automatic transmission, the right side is the accelerator, and the left side of the accelerator is the brake, both controlled by the right foot. During normal driving in an automatic car, the left foot should rest naturally in the left space, while the right foot controls the accelerator and brake. However, there is one situation where both feet are needed simultaneously: during steep hill starts, the left foot can be used to control the brake to prevent the car from rolling backward. An automatic transmission generally refers to the car's automatic gear-shifting mechanism, where the control system of the automatic transmission selects the appropriate gear based on the engine's speed and load, replacing the driver's subjective judgment and manual gear-shifting operations.