Tips on parking? (1 Viewer)

[#23]

Could anyone share their tips on how to park a car say in a parking spot (ie not reverse parking), but more like parking into a parking spot at a local train station or local shopping mall. I've been driving a camry and am finding it impossible to get into one of those parking spots in one go, like once i turn into one of the parking spots (only because ive turned maybe too late), i will have to reverse abit back in order to completely fit into the parking spot without hitting any cars. With a smaller car, ive parked it in striaght in one go without having to reverse back or anything but with this car im finding it impossible.

Does anyone have any tips/diagrams on how i should park (ie when i should start turning and all) in one of those parking spots both coming in a front direction and coming in backwards into one of those shopping mall parking spots.

PS. Sorry if this doesn't make sense. And by the way, Im not trying to ask for tips for this kind of parking in the following link http://www.dpi.wa.gov.au/licensing/learnerdrivers/images/lic_page26.jpg

Thank you very much.

 

[Serius]

drive up to the spot, swing wide, the means if the spot is on your right, drive a bit further forward than you need to, if its on your left swing right then back in, judge the distance and drive in like a glove.
Your turning action should be smooth to form a fat arc, not straight and then turning when you are perpendicular with the spot.

If it isnt nice [and often it wont be, specially in those dingy little carparks] reverse back a bit to center your car and straighten up then drive back in.

Drive slow the whole time, and you will have a smaller turning circle. hope this helped

 

[Gavvvvvin]

Hmmm my driving instructor used to say to start turning when your mirror is in line with the parking spot.

 

[Zozo6969]

Im confused. In ur post it says parking at a shopping mall or train station, but then in ur picture it is of parallel parking. which do u want, parallel parking or carpark parking.

if its carpark parking, never drive it in, always reverse, its so much easier. the same for parallel parking, dont drive in, reverse in.

 

[Jiga]

^

LOL Reversing is easier... that must be why everyone LOVES to reverse park etc!!! (Note : I do both, but honestly driving straight in is easier... provided you actually can drive a car properly and know its dimensions)

As for the thread starter, well Camrys are a really biatch to park, their turning circle is disgraceful.... my mums small sedan can turn in half the space, even when I drive my friends commodore I notice that it can chuck a uey in way smaller streets than mine. In my Camry I always hate parking as its got such a crap turning circle, in my mums car its piss easy. N e way, this isnt an excuse, you just need to get to the far side of your potential spot as possible... and then turn in, I personally go as far possible to the car in front of my bonnet as needed when moving in because I have a good idea of how close I can get, and in a crappy turning circle camry you need to squeave every inch. Id say the main issue for people parking is not knowing the dimensions of their car, they will think they are about to hit the car they are parking next to when in fact there is like 2m+ between their bonnet and the other car... so practice makes perfect, try a couple, I would even advise you to get out a couple of times and see how much room you have, so that you see that despite looking like your close to the other car you still have a decent amont of room, this will help you to start judging distances better.

 

[Serius]

a thing me and a few other people i found out later did to practise parking was to pull a couple of bins onto the street, place them a car length distance apart and revese park in pretending they were cars [if u bump them it doesnt matter then cause they are only bins]
actually i think some1 else on this site used to do something similiar. When i was too young for my L's i also used to practise in my driveway with the clutch.

So if its perpendicular parking you have trouble with, haul your bins into your driveway, pretend they are other cars and 'drive in' easy

 

[lengy]

It was hit and miss for me when I learn to park and I don't mean literally. Eventually I got pissed at my dad for telling me how to park and it didn't work for me. I raged and sped the car fast down the street came back and reversed straight away and got it. I repeated and got it again. I don't know how but it finally clicked. Basically you have to reverse in at an angle to the kerb then when you are far enough you swing it parallel to it. You need to know the parameters of the car. Even today my sister was surprised I got the car to fit between another slower car on the same road, mind you it was a fairly large road that could fit two cars but most drivers drive right in the middle but good drivers keep to each side. Those two lanes could fit four if they really wanted. Anyways learn the car's parameters. It's like Han Solo with the Millenium Falcon. It's not like it's easy to fly that thing considering how huge that spaceship's arse is and the fact that they are off to one side. Your car is an extension of your body.

 

[Nashie]

Practice is the key, but the car is important, I spent my whole year of Ls driving a commodore and then did my Ps test in my sis' vectra (cheating the system in canberra) and I managed to hit the gutter twice in a smaller car in the reverse park, even though in the commodore I can park easy as anything! A bit of confidence is needed also, often you will see others stop and reverse when they could have gotten in easily!

 

[CieL]

Like so many people have said.. you got to learn the dimensions of your car..

When I first got my Accord Euro [an upgrade from a corolla], I realised I could not fit the car into the garage unless I parked it within an inch from the wall..

So all those days going out and coming home, I learnt how close things looked, and really were in reality..

Maybe you actually do have enough room in front of your car to go in at once.. Usually when I go headfirst into a parking space, my mum cringes cos I get so close she thinks I'll hit the car beside me.. The bonnet is pretty decieving.. You think you're so close, but you'd probably have a metre in between..

 

[Scanorama]

There is really no tip on how to park, I guess the only tip is when you park, don't go too fast. In case you hit something, you won't damage your car too much.

Practice is the only way to your solution.

 

[Azamakumar]

Hmmm my driving instructor used to say to start turning when your mirror is in line with the parking spot.

and you paid him why?

 

[CieL]

Well, can YOU come up with something better?

Fkn troll, I swear.