Nissan's Single Gas Pedal/Brake?

[Speedy]

Thrift Store Scott wrote: For me, the big question is "When do the brake lights come on?". Do they only light up if the "Holey Schmoley" pedal is pressed? In an ideal world drivers would follow at a safe distance and pay enough attention to the car in front of them to notice if it is slowing down even if that car's brake lights never light up, but unfortunately the world we live in is far from perfect and I can foresee a lot of Leafs (Leaves?) getting rear-ended by semi-attentive drivers because they slowed down with nary a flash of brake light.

The first generation Volts did not turn on the brake lights when slowing in L (regen) but the second generation do turn on the brake lights when you use the steering mounted paddles to slow. I have a first gen Volt and keep my eye on following vehicles when I slow in L. I have never had anyone even come close to colliding with me. Nor have I applied the brake pedal simply to turn on the brake lights as a warning. Most of the time I only step on the brake pedal to hold the car at a stop because below five miles per hour there is no regen applied, thus my brake lights are only on when I am nearly at a stop. Of course, when a light turns red right in front of me, I brake using the pedal.

People can see that a traffic light is red or that they are approaching a stop sign even if my Volt is between them and the traffic control. This also applies in bumper to bumper traffic. My VW TDI slows almost as much as my Volt when I downshift and it shows no brake lights. Big trucks do not turn on brake lights when engine braking takes place and, when bobtailing (no trailer), they can slow very quickly. In our area, it is rare that I don't have a turn lane when I am going to turn into a parking lot, etc. so I seldom have a case where I am the only vehicle that is going to slow quickly.

Edit: ztirffritz beat me to it.