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October 21, 2005

Strange But True!

Q. What's the hippest, techiest device on your car?

A. Throttle-by-wire is one candidate, already on the Mustang GT and many others, which surprises people because here the gas pedal connects only to a sensor and spring that makes it feel like an old-style throttle cable, but it isn't, says Stanford professor of mechanical engineering J. Christian Gerdes. Instead, the sensor communicates the driver's commands to a small motor that opens the throttle electronically WITH NO MECHANICAL LINK. Throttle-by-wire today is becoming the standard. "Most people don't realize that the pedal they are pushing on isn't mechanically doing anything!"


 
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