The annoying single-pedal system. The official authorities have finally stepped in to regulate it.

Great news! The single-pedal mode is finally going to be improved.

Not long ago, the mandatory national standard "Technical Requirements and Test Methods for Passenger Vehicle Braking Systems" (GB 21670 - 2025), formulated under the organization of the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, was officially released.

The new regulations cover many aspects, including the controversial regenerative braking.

One of the regulations clearly states that in the default working state, the braking effect achieved only by releasing the accelerator pedal should not decelerate the vehicle to a stop.

That is to say, in the default state, the action of stopping the vehicle must involve the brake pedal, which is equivalent to banning the single-pedal mode under the default working conditions.

Actually, last year, the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology publicly solicited opinions on five mandatory national standards, including "Technical Requirements and Test Methods for Passenger Vehicle Braking Systems". One of the requirements was that "the braking effect achieved by releasing the accelerator pedal in the forward gear should not decelerate the vehicle to a stop". At that time, this document was only in the stage of soliciting opinions.

Now, the matter is finally settled.

01

Will the single-pedal mode disappear?

The introduction of this new national standard is the first revision and update of the standard since the 2008 version. Most of the standards will be implemented from January 1, 2026, but the standards related to the "single-pedal mode" will be implemented on January 1, 2027.

Although the single-pedal mode still has a buffer period of nearly two years, based on the principle of "policy pre - implementation", it is very likely that car manufacturers will make corresponding adjustments this year to meet the new national standards in advance.

Next, let's take a look at the detailed requirements put forward by the new national standard for the electric regenerative system, which is the common regenerative braking system in new energy vehicles at present.

It should be noted that there are two basic concepts of electric regenerative braking in this new national standard, namely Type A and Type B. Type A electric regenerative braking does not belong to the service braking system and can only be activated by releasing the accelerator pedal or in the neutral position, which is energy recovery.

Type B electric regenerative braking belongs to the service braking system and is activated by the brake pedal, also known as braking energy recovery.

The essence of the single-pedal mode is regenerative braking. Different from the conventional regenerative braking, it has a stronger option and can stop the car directly without stepping on the brake pedal.

The regulations require that "in the default working state, the braking effect achieved only by releasing the accelerator pedal should not decelerate the vehicle to a stop".

Actually, it is not difficult to see that the single-pedal mode is not completely banned, but restricted under the default working conditions.

That is to say, there is still a chance for the single-pedal mode to be retained. Under the new standard, the state gives the choice to the users.

For the regenerative braking under the default working conditions, more detailed definitions are made. The regulations state that: "If the electric regenerative braking system has more than one working state, it should re - enter the default working state or the working state set according to the specific driver's requirements after each power - on. The braking deceleration in the default working state should not exceed 3m/s²."

If you want to set the single-pedal mode, you need to find the method to set the vehicle's working state through the user manual or electronic data records provided by the vehicle manufacturer, and set the vehicle to strong regenerative braking. At this time, just like before, the vehicle will automatically decelerate until it stops after releasing the accelerator pedal.

Moreover, once set, there is no need to set it repeatedly. In addition, there is a detail that when the user adjusts the default working state by themselves, the vehicle should use an "optical signal clearly visible during the day" to continuously remind the driver.

02

Tesla taking the blame

The controversy over the single-pedal mode has a long history, and people's attitudes towards it are polarized. Some people think it is great, while others think this mode should not exist.

The polarized views are related to the obvious advantages and disadvantages of the single-pedal mode.

The biggest function of regenerative braking is to recover more kinetic energy, making the range achievement rate higher. In addition, this mode is similar to "electric braking", which will greatly extend the service life of mechanical braking components, such as brake discs and brake pads.

The disadvantages are also obvious. It changes the core driving logic established by people from learning to drive a car, that is, "step on the accelerator to accelerate and step on the brake to decelerate". When this tampered driving logic is applied to the most core and important acceleration and deceleration control of a car, the potential safety risks are obvious.

Many people got to know the "single-pedal mode" through Tesla, but the single-pedal mode was not first invented by Tesla.

As early as before Tesla, the first-generation BMW i3 in 2013 already had the function of using regenerative braking to decelerate the vehicle to a stop by releasing the accelerator pedal.

Later, the single-pedal mode appeared in products such as the Nissan Leaf and Chevrolet Bolt. It was only because of Tesla's high popularity that the single-pedal mode really entered the market.

For a long time in the past, various so - called "vehicle out - of - control" news emerged one after another. Frequent accidents made Tesla's "single-pedal mode" the target of public criticism, and also made the single-pedal mode start to be associated with Tesla.

In 2024, a new energy vehicle brand conducted a user survey. 32% of the car owners had mistakenly used the accelerator pedal as the brake pedal in an emergency, and 15% of them had accidents because of this.

The simulation test from the Automotive Safety Laboratory of Tsinghua University also shows that the reaction time of drivers who use the single-pedal mode for a long time to step on the brake pedal in an emergency is prolonged by an average of 0.3 seconds. Calculated at a speed of 100km/h, this is equivalent to an additional 8.3 - meter braking distance.

In 2023, Tesla recalled almost all the models sold in the Chinese market in the past four years. The reason for the recall was quite clear. It did not allow drivers to choose the regenerative braking strategy; at the same time, it might not provide enough reminders for the situation where the driver stepped on the accelerator pedal deeply for a long time. The combination of the above factors might increase the probability of stepping on the accelerator pedal by mistake for a long time, increase the risk of collision, and pose a safety hazard.

"Step on the brake to decelerate and step on the accelerator to accelerate." The single-pedal mode has blurred this most basic driving habit, which is the most fatal. Fortunately, with the introduction of the new national standard, this mode is coming to an end.

03

New requirement for mandatory installation of ABS

In addition to restricting the single-pedal mode to a certain extent, there is another great piece of news in the new national standard:

Vehicles in the (medium - high) regenerative braking state will finally turn on the brake lights.

I believe everyone has experienced a similar situation on the road. The car in front starts to decelerate without warning, and we can only judge whether the vehicle in front is decelerating by ourselves, which is very likely to cause safety risks.

The new national standard clearly stipulates that when the deceleration of the regenerative braking system is greater than 1.3m/s², the vehicle must turn on the brake lights to remind the following vehicles and other traffic participants, thus reducing the risk of rear - end collisions and other traffic accidents.

Moreover, once the braking signal is sent out, as long as the deceleration demand persists, the signal should continue to be sent out. For the models that have already obtained type approval, the new standard will be implemented on January 1, 2027.

Previously, there was no mandatory requirement to turn on the brake lights for the braking effect caused by regenerative braking. Taking the Tesla Model 3 as an example, the deceleration in its strong regenerative braking mode can reach 1.5m/s², but there was no mandatory requirement to turn on the brake lights before.

The test data shows that the reaction time of the following vehicle's driver can be shortened by 0.2 seconds after seeing the brake lights of the preceding vehicle turn on, and the risk of rear - end collision is reduced by 41%. After the implementation of the new regulations, such safety hazards will be effectively curbed.

If restricting the single - pedal mode is for the safety of the driver inside the vehicle, the requirement of turning on the brake lights in the new regulations obviously focuses on the safety of the following vehicles.

Of course, the braking signal is not turned on in all deceleration conditions. For example, when part of the service braking system is activated by selective braking or a function whose main purpose is not to decelerate the vehicle (such as slightly actuating the friction brake to clean the brake disc), the above - mentioned braking signal should not be sent out. Also, when the deceleration is only caused by engine braking, air/rolling resistance and/or road gradient, no braking signal should be generated.

The trigger limit of the emergency braking signal is also refined. When the deceleration is greater than or equal to 6 m/s², the emergency braking signal can be triggered. When the vehicle's deceleration returns to < 2.5 m/s², the emergency braking signal should be cancelled.

The new regulations not only include these two modifications, but also include ABS (Anti - lock Braking System) in the mandatory installation category for passenger vehicles for the first time, requiring all newly applied - for certified models to be equipped with this system.

In 2024, although the ABS installation rate of Chinese passenger vehicles has reached 92%, there are still 8% of entry - level models (mainly models below 80,000 yuan) that are not equipped with it.

With the continuous strengthening of safety requirements this time, I wonder if the low - speed electric vehicles will be required to be equipped with ABS next.

This article is from the WeChat public account "SuperEV - Lab" (ID: SuperEV - Lab), author: Wang Lei, editor: Qin Zhangyong. It is published by 36Kr with authorization.