Skip to main content ↑ ↓
Topic: Footwell room (Read 1532 times) previous topic - next topic

Footwell room

I have big feet (wear size 15's) and have noticed that there's not enough room between the right edge of my brake pedal and the right wall of the footwell.  I say this because when my foot is on the gas pedal and I try to lift my foot off of it to apply the brake pedal, my foot gets hung up on the right side of the brake pedal if I'm not careful.  Anyone else have this problem? 

I'm considering doing mods to the brake pedal, so I'll have more room.  Maybe if I cut back the metal foot pad on my automatic tranny-style brake pedal, so that the rubber brake pedal liner from a 5 speed car would fit, I'd be better off.  Any ideas?
William

Footwell room

Reply #1 –
I wear 14's and always thought it was cramped down there too...but I just got used to it over time and don't notice it as much any more when driving.
'88 'bird, 10.9:1 306 w/TFS top end, forged rods/pistons, T-5 swap & bunch of other stuff, 1-family owned, had it since ‘98, 5.0tbrd88 on Instagram and YouTube

Footwell room

Reply #2 –
I also wear size 14 shoes, try taking off the pad on the pedal, if theres enough room , get some aftermarket covers that clamp over the pedal, but install it as far to the left as possible. I did that to my cougar and theres enough room for my feet.. i figured its better than cuttin up my pedals.. but that sounds good too!!!
[/IMG]
Just enjoyin the ride!!!!

Footwell room

Reply #3 –
Quote from: massCougarxr7;247917
I also wear size 14 shoes, try taking off the pad on the pedal, if theres enough room , get some aftermarket covers that clamp over the pedal, but install it as far to the left as possible. I did that to my cougar and theres enough room for my feet.. i figured its better than cuttin up my pedals.. but that sounds good too!!!


An aftermarket pedal cover is definitely worth looking into.  I too would rather not have to cut the pedal, but whatever it takes to maximize the comfort of the car for me, I'll do.  I love everything else about the car.  It's got plenty of leg room for me, I love the seats being so adjustable.  I bought a Bird instead of a Stang, not only because I didn't want a "me too" car, but because I also wanted something more comfortable than a Stang.  If I can solve this problem, I'll be good to go!
William

Footwell room

Reply #4 –
One thing I'm thinking about is this.  The brake pedal from a 5-speed car should be about the size of a clutch pedal.  I'm thinking I could cut down my wider, auto tranny-sized brake pedal to the size of a manual tranny brake pedal and install a manual tranny brake pedal cover on it.  That way, the pedal would still be safe, since it would still have a rubber pedal cover on it.  It would also give me a lot more room.  Win, win situation that way.
William

Footwell room

Reply #5 –
Yeah, that should work. The brake pedal is the same size as the clutch pedal.
Matt
1984 Thunderbird - 89 302 HO, GT40 heads w/ Trick Flow springs, E303 cam, Edelbrock Performer 289 intake and 600 cfm 4bbl, Mustang headers, Jegs o/r H pipe, Dynomax lers, Mustang AOD and shifter, Mustang 8.8 w/ 3.73s, 3G alternator, Mustang front and rear sway bars, KYB SN-95 front struts and shocks, and 11" front brakes.

1988 Mustang GT - GT40 heads, Explorer intake, 70mm throttle body, 70mm MAF, Crane 1.7 rrs, E303 cam, Kirban Kwik shifter w/ Pro 5.0 deluxe handle, aluminum clutch quadrant and firewall adjuster, o/r h pipe, Dynomax lers, 3G alternator, aluminum radiator, and 3.27 gears.
 
1986 Cougar 5.0, 1989 Mark VII LSC 5 speed, 1980 Mercury Zephyr 4 door (sold)

Footwell room

Reply #6 –
I wear 14 wides or 15 regulars. Its something I got used to. I generally only use the tips of my toes and let my leg hang off to the right side alittle bit. But my other cars a neon, and I drive all types of trucks at work. Ever try fitting in a 90's chevy truck when your over 6 foot? There's no good way to do it. Even with the seat all the way back my knee becomes part of the dash and my right leg will bump it from drive to neutral whenever there's a bump.
Quote from: jcassity
I honestly dont think you could exceed the cost of a new car buy installing new *stock* parts everywhere in your coug our tbird. Its just plain impossible. You could revamp the entire drivetrain/engine/suspenstion and still come out ahead.
Hooligans! 
1988 Crown Vic wagon. 120K California car. Wifes grocery getter. (junked)
1987 Ford Thunderbird LX. 5.0. s.o., sn-95 t-5 and an f-150 clutch. Driven daily and going strong.
1986 cougar.
lilsammywasapunkrocker@yahoo.com

Footwell room

Reply #7 –
Cut the brake pedal off,and then add a little metal to the brake pedal lever so you can move the brake pedal over a couple of inches,yet leaving the lever itself in the same location.
'88 Sport--T-5,MGW shifter,Trick Flow R intake,Ed Curtis cam,Trick Flow heads,Scorpion rockers,75mm Accufab t-body,3G,mini starter,Taurus fan,BBK long tube headers,O/R H-Pipe, Flowamaster Super 44's, deep and deeper Cobra R wheels, Mass Air and 24's,8.8 with 3.73's,140 mph speedo,Mach 1 chin spoiler,SN-95 springs,CHE control arms,aluminum drive shaft and a lot more..

Footwell room

Reply #8 –
Quote
One thing I'm thinking about is this. The brake pedal from a 5-speed car should be about the size of a clutch pedal. I'm thinking I could cut down my wider, auto tranny-sized brake pedal to the size of a manual tranny brake pedal and install a manual tranny brake pedal cover on it. That way, the pedal would still be safe, since it would still have a rubber pedal cover on it. It would also give me a lot more room. Win, win situation that way.

That's exactly what I did about 5 years ago...worked perfectly:



I had to cut down one side and the bottom, both of them about 1/8". Used a reinforced cutoff wheel on the Dremel to do that. Then I used an air sander to round off the corners. The Mustang pedal cover fit perfectly on the first try. It's definitely the best solution without having to change pedals over to a manual setup.

By the way...if you think the driver's side is bad...the passenger side footwell is even more restrictive. ;)

Footwell room

Reply #9 –
The only problem i have now is im 0ver 6" tall and when i get out of my 88 i always find myself grabbing the edge of the windshield to pull myself out...I have to stop doing that cause i dont want all that velvety  geeting worn away...
[/IMG]
Just enjoyin the ride!!!!

Footwell room

Reply #10 –
Oh and Eric do you ever drive that car?? Your steering wheel is immaculate!!
[/IMG]
Just enjoyin the ride!!!!

Footwell room

Reply #11 –
Quote from: vinnietbird;247962
Cut the brake pedal off,and then add a little metal to the brake pedal lever so you can move the brake pedal over a couple of inches,yet leaving the lever itself in the same location.

That to me sounds like the best way to do it, but, I'd have to pull the pedal assembly out of the car.  Being a big guy, I hate working up under the dash.  How easy, or hard is it to remove the pedal assemblies on these cars?  The less time I'd have to spend under the dash to get that assembly out, the better.

Doing it this way would allow me to keep the brake pedal stock-width.
William

Footwell room

Reply #12 –
Quote from: EricCoolCats;247963
That's exactly what I did about 5 years ago...worked perfectly:



I had to cut down one side and the bottom, both of them about 1/8". Used a reinforced cutoff wheel on the Dremel to do that. Then I used an air sander to round off the corners. The Mustang pedal cover fit perfectly on the first try. It's definitely the best solution without having to change pedals over to a manual setup.

By the way...if you think the driver's side is bad...the passenger side footwell is even more restrictive. ;)


Maybe I'm misunderstanding what you're saying Eric, but if you only cut off 1/8" off the side of the pedal, you didn't really gain much room.  I could see where 1/8" extra clearance would maybe make a difference for a guy who was barely catching the pedal, but I'm going to need to add about an inch of room on mine. 

By the way, your car is absolutely sick!!  How do you keep it so clean?  Everything on that car is tricked out!!!!!  :D
William

Footwell room

Reply #13 –
LOL Thanks. I have to touch it up every year from fingernail scratches, key scratches, etc. but yeah, I do drive the car although it's not as much as I used to.

I'm 6'0" and all upper body, so it's difficult to get in and out of any of my cars, but it's worse on the convertible because the top of the A-pillar has a tendency to smack me in the forehead. Which could actually explain a few things. So now I make sure the steering wheel is locked, and push off on that to get out of the car. It's not a pretty picture but it works. ;)

Quote
Maybe I'm misunderstanding what you're saying Eric, but if you only cut off 1/8" off the side of the pedal, you didn't really gain much room. I could see where 1/8" extra clearance would maybe make a difference for a guy who was barely catching the pedal, but I'm going to need to add about an inch of room on mine.

How to explain this...if you compare a 5-speed brake pedal with an automatic one, the 5-speed pad is the same exact size as the metal underneath the automatic pad. So that's why you'd have to trim it down slightly to fit. You can definitely shift it to the left, which is what I did, but to get your clearance then yes, you'd have to bolt on another piece of metal and shift it over more. I'm kind of doing this over the winter, but with the emergency brake pedal, as I've found a matching cover for that now. Have to fab up some metal and bolt it on, but it has to be shifted to the right to clear the kick panel. It should work in both situations.

Well..

Reply #14 –
After researching how much of a pain in the butt pedal removal is in these cars, I'm gonna have to see if my pedal could be welded back to the pedal arm without being removed.  A lot of welding blankets would have to be used, if this is a viable option.  I'm going to talk to a top-notch welding shop I've dealt with for years.  If it can't be done safely, they'll be honest with me and let me know.
William