Nissan has revealed a so-called Eco Pedal accelerator designed to discourage drivers from putting their foot down too hard and driving in a fuel-wasting fashion. This new system calculates the most fuel efficient rate of acceleration and pushes the gas pedal back against the driver’s lead foot.
The Eco Pedal gives a sense of pushing back against the driver’s foot to prompt them into accelerating more gently, and works in conjunction with an indicator in the dashboard to advise on the optimum gear ratio for fuel-efficiency. Nissan is taking a three-pronged approach to reducing carbon dioxide emissions, comprising improvements in vehicle technologies, driving behavior and traffic conditions.
Nissan reckons that the pedal can improve fuel efficiency by 5-10%, and plans to fit it in production cars from next year. It didn’t specify which models would be equipped with the new technology.
