Some years back I had an automatic, my wife had a manual: I left foot braked in the auto but had no problem changing when I drove my wife's car (having to change gear with the lever is a good reminder!)

I then had a manual car, but on business trips to the USA, it was easy to change back to left foot braking (and being on the 'wrong' side of the road) in the automatic hire cars one gets there.

I think that concentrating on your driving to the exclusion of conversation, fiddling with radios, music systems, etc is the key to avoiding confusion, at least until you have really imprinted the correct actions.

You can retrain your brain to do a lot of things differently but you then you may have to retrain it back if you needed to revert to previous mode of action.Slightly different concept but ...there was a chap in 1920`s New York if I remember the story correctly,who made himself some upside-down glasses which he wore for several weeks.Eventually his brain adjusted to everything being transposed and it became the norm.On removing the glasses,at first normal perspective seemed totally alien to him but eventually his brain readjusted.There must be a makings of a TV prog here?!

Years ago I experimented by hustling a motor through a twisty series of sharp corners(no traffic or blind bends) using left foot braking,car/kart racers were doing it to allow instant throttle/brake/car control without the lag associated with conventional approach.I realised that it`s like anything new,while you are learning it you are thinking of the process,it`s not an automatic action/reaction,therefore time is wasted not gained initially.

I expect there are a fair few car racers around nowadays who have always driven like this even on the road.If you have a vehicle with no foot-operated clutch,and you have quick reactions,are physically fit with a sharp non-addled brain then maybe it`d be fine,but for Mr Average like you&me to try and chop&change between the two different processes of thought could be a recipe for disaster

A racer wont be distracted by all the millions of extraneous sights/sounds/thoughts of an everyday tired,stressed-out commuter on crowded,greasy cambered/off-cambered,stop-go roads.Can we as Joe Public expect to out-drive a racer?

Having owned over 60 motorcycles of various makes&capacities as well as once working in the bike trade I often had to jump from a Jap/Ger/Italian etc bike with right-foot-braking onto a Brit left-foot-braking mount and you had to have your wits about you.Probably was ok for me as started out on Brit bikes and have always worked in trades where I had constantly changing situations so don`t have fixed mind-set.

Be interesting to hear from left-footed or ambidextrous drivers and a few racers too don`t you think?.

Strangly enough "training" oneself on differing machinery & equipment is quite remarkable, the human brain ( in most instances) being able to subconiscley ( Erm spelling) remember the different permutions of hand and foot controls required, as soon as one puts ones bum in the seat...... plently of drill & practise & repitition required there though.

I once drove a BX that jumped out of 5th, I developed the "knack" of sensing when this would happen ,( without ever figgering out how) clutching and popping her back into gear, all automatically, the occasional passenger looked a bit puzzled bytimes.