Can you parallel park?

Can you parallel park?

  • Yes, it's easy

    Votes: 58 66.7%

  • No, I avoid

    Votes: 5 5.7%

  • I try, sort of get it right-ish

    Votes: 21 24.1%

  • Other, I don't care as long as I can get in and out.

    Votes: 3 3.4%
  • Total voters
    87
neoprema said:
So, i had this debate the other day with friends.

I can parallel park EXTREMELY well. Literally first-time into most parking bays 95% of the time. My brain just works it out easily.

But parking straight.. into a straight bay especially in reverse I cannot get the car to be straight lol. Its always at an angle. I don't understand it, it should be much easier lol...
Click to expand...
I don't think I've ever reversed into a bay. Prefer driving in head first. No issue parallel parking either.
 
FiestaST said:
Now phrase the question if one one can parallel park without all the modern fancy car tech like high res cameras, self parking, parking sensors etc
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I was taught a method to parallel park, by checking your driver side mirror, lock steering wheel, see far side headlight of car behind you, reverse in, lock steering other way and finish off parking into the spot. The mirror / headlight trick makes a huge difference.
 
saor said:
I don't think I've ever reversed into a bay. Prefer driving in head first. No issue parallel parking either.
Click to expand...
Same here, why block your boot if you are going shopping. You aren't squeezing a trolley between 2 cars to get to the back of your car.
 
I drive an entry level ranger with only rear PDC, and I live in Stellenbosch, the town full of very small parking spaces. So I can reverse park, parallel park etc without even giving it a second thought.
 
Yes, but some cars parallel park better than others. It isn't the size. The better the car's turning circle, the quicker the parallel park.

There are people who still struggle to do this, even with camera assistance.
 
Depends on the situation. 90% of the time it's fine. Sometimes you get some very small bays barely as long as the car. Then it's a bit of a struggle.
 
saor said:
I don't think I've ever reversed into a bay. Prefer driving in head first. No issue parallel parking either.
Click to expand...
I should prob do that more often. just sometimes every else has so i just go with the flow lol.
 
The parking bays around my kids' school are mainly parallel.

I am a self-proclaimed professional, and we have a Caddy Maxi, so not exactly a small car.

In fact, it's a pet game of mine, when I drive up to the school and someone abandons their pathetic attempt to parallel, I proudly show them how it's done and get my big-ass car right in there.
 
quite tricky to get right, parking sensors/cameras make it easy, but what if you dont have those?
then you struggle a lot, as I always did, practice makes perfect I guess,
 
Have parallel parked an H1 a few times for example, also managed a Ford Figo with about two handspans both sides once, that one I was a bit confused when I got out and was like, how'd I manage that one in three turns. Happy the dude in front of me left by the time I got back. This was all without reverse assistance / distance beeps.

Recently used modern cars with reverse camera, feel like it makes it both easier and more difficult, find it easier if first time driving that car as don't have full feel of dimensions, but you don't get the "feel" of size of car as quick, though after third time I generally ignore outside of check nothing behind (e.g. something you can't see looking out the back window as too low). Here I drive on the right side of the road, and always day rentals, so lots of different cars. Modern tech stuff makes it easier due to alignment as well, just slower.

Generally if RWD, you can always learn to parallel park right by properly aligning your side mirrors, check that the back left/right tire (depending on road side) is past the car, lock your wheel left/right while letting slow clutch until you see pavement in your right/left mirror and then quick lock wheel other direction. Just a matter of what speed, you get a feel for it. The left/right is depending what side of road you drive on.

Those who don't park in CBD in South Africa, would guess most don't really know how to parallel park as no need.
 
Jet-Fighter7700 said:
quite tricky to get right, parking sensors/cameras make it easy, but what if you dont have those?
then you struggle a lot, as I always did, practice makes perfect I guess,
Click to expand...
It's actually pretty easy to parallel park without the aid of modern tech.. that's what mirrors are for and people have been doing it for decades without modern tech..
 
WAslayer said:
It's actually pretty easy to parallel park without the aid of modern tech.. that's what mirrors are for and people have been doing it for decades without modern tech..
Click to expand...
it supposedly is, unfortunately I always struggled with it,
I think its the depth perception, as its sometimes hard to judge how far something is from the back of the bumper.
 
neoprema said:
So, i had this debate the other day with friends.

I can parallel park EXTREMELY well. Literally first-time into most parking bays 95% of the time. My brain just works it out easily.

But parking straight.. into a straight bay especially in reverse I cannot get the car to be straight lol. Its always at an angle. I don't understand it, it should be much easier lol...
Click to expand...

Ha ha ha ha, have the exact same problem reversing straight into a parking it just never ends up where I expected it to be.

But reverse into it while turning...no problem.
 
I've actually found the cameras are exactly the problem and I actively force myself to do it entirely manually with the mirrors and then just use the cameras/parking sensors for the final distance to stop as deep into the parking space as possible.
 
FiestaST said:
Now phrase the question if one one can parallel park without all the modern fancy car tech like high res cameras, self parking, parking sensors etc
Click to expand...

my van is huge and doesnt have all off this so sometimes i need to 1st see if i can fit

if tight it makes it difficult

but wife has a small car can do it with eyes closed

but i also prefer reverse parking - Alley docking
 
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