Chanpory Rith
Mar 6, 2007
I just passed my driving written test and now have a permit to learn how to drive. Yes, that’s right, I’m a 26 year-old metropolitan boy who’s still afraid of asphalt. Fortunately, Fearless Driver, a local San Francisco driving school, promises to ease this fear. They even have a nice little tutorial for everyone’s dreaded driving woe: parallel parking.
Use your indicator to signal a right turn*. Stop to the side of the front car (the car you are parking behind), so that the cars are about even and about an arm’s length apart (20-26â€?).
While looking over your right shoulder, start backing slowly, then start turning the wheel to the right. Aim toward the right rear corner of the space.
When your front seat is in line with the rear bumper of the front car, stop and turn the steering wheel one revolution to the left to straighten the tires. Continue backing at this angle until your right front fender just clears the left rear fender of the front car. (At this point, your left rear bumper will be in line with the left front bumper of the back car.)
Quickly turn the steering wheel to the left and finish reversing into the parking spot. Looking over your left shoulder during this part of the maneuver may help you align with the rear car — or use your rear view mirror.
To straighten out, turn the steering wheel one revolution to the right before pulling forward.
Easy enough, right? It’s just simple geometry and angles. Since I haven’t had my first driving lesson yet, I can’t test this. Has anyone tried this method? Could it be that easy, or should I expect agony?
Update: July 2, 2007 I just passed my driving test today, and now have a license to drive! Yay!
47 Comments
Josh P
1:04 pm
Ahhhhhh! I cringe just thinking about parallel parking. My wife is a master at it but I just end up hitting the curb about 90 times before actually getting in to a spot. Man…how I loathe parallel parking.
fdr
1:52 pm
Yah, that’s a pretty good descriptor. The best way to master PP is practice, especially in tight spots with real cars (as opposed on a course with little orange cones and flags). This is how I learned to park a Volvo station wagon into a slot 1” longer than a Volvo station wagon, and my mad parallel parking skillz still impress all my friends and neighbors.
The biggest tip for me in learning to parallel park was this: If you screw up, the best way to fix it is to pull all the way out and start again. Practice the right technique enough, and your body will soon learn all the right moves for your particular car.
Good luck on the road!
MikeP
4:41 pm
Yep, that’s exactly right, and I echo fdr - you’ll just get yourself in worse (and probably destroy your hubcaps on the curb) if you don’t just do it all again.
Best to practise with some garbage cans in a parking lot or something first though, not on a busy street. :)
Rafael Madeira
9:07 pm
“While looking over your right shoulder, start backing slowly”
This is actually a bad practice. Well, maybe not if you’re still learning and needs to gain confidence, but the best thing is to guide yourself by the rearview mirrors; all three of them. My instructor wouldn’t even let me go home if I didn’t suppress my urge to look over my shoulder.
This is because, in the real world, you must be aware of your surroundings, all the time. You never know what might be happening in front of you, maybe even in the car you paralleled with, and might come as a surprise when you look back to your front again.
He basically taught me all those tips, but by guiding myself by some key points on the mirrors instead of vague instructions based on feeling and spatial perception. Some people are really bad with that, and having them focus and measure stuff on a bi dimensional plane (the mirror) is much more effective. And safe.
Rishabh R. Dassani
5:59 am
its easy; just gotta get a hang of it and it’ll be a walk in the park for you.
Mark
7:38 am
I think it is much easier to look for a spot that is on the opposite side of the street from which you are driving. When you see a spot stomp on the gas and aim for the rear tire of the car in front of the space. When you are about 5 feet away from the car slam in the emergency brake and cut you wheel to the left. If done correctly you should slide right into the spot.
Jerrard
9:27 am
I think your method works well if there are cars in the front and the back to estimate. Other indicators will probably need to be used if it is just a single car park slot. To me, I guess nothing beats good old method of experience.
Brian
2:01 pm
They won’t teach you this in drivers school I bet but for your own safety and confidence go to an empty parking lot and practice driving around in reverse. Take a couple of plastic garbage cans or pails to set up as obsticles to drive around. Do not worry about what the neighbors think, this is for your safety and safety of others when you do get out on the road. Spend enough time or times until you feel one with the car going backwards. Then go and parctice parallel parking. You will be successful much quicker and I agree it is just practice practice.Beat of luck
Bernard Farrell
7:38 pm
That’s really the way it works. It’s much easier to do with a car than a van or minibus.
And practice is everything. If you get the angles wrong you really have to start over.
Speaking as someone who grew up in Ireland and visits there from time to time, it’s really hard going from driving on one side to driving on the other.
Parallel parking sort of has to be relearnt a bit each time I go from one side of the car to the other.
Chanpory
7:45 pm
Thanks for all the extra tips, guys! Especially, the one about not looking over your shoulder as you back up. I’m still a bit nervous about getting behind the wheel. But the time has come release myself from the limitations of public transportation and cabs.
Shivanand
2:47 am
I drive in India, which by itself is a nightmare. The thing with parallel parking is your ability to judge, where you rear-end is and whether you have done enough to clear the rear-end of the car in front. Once you learn to judge this, it should be a walk in the (car)park. :)
Wolftag
8:25 pm
It also helps if you don’t care about the car you’re driving. :)
Alexa
8:33 pm
I just want to say that when I’m discouraged about my driving incompetence/fears (I actually got my license 2 years ago now, when I was 21, but I still rarely drive), it inspires me to know that a fellow, successful, San Franciscan designer has gotten by without for a good while!
That said, I’m cheering you on in your pursuit. Maybe now you can inspire me to actually work on my driving skills.
Steve
3:29 pm
That description really nailed it. The key is the middle step of keeping the wheels straight. Most folks go straight from hard right to hard left, with ensuing problems.
Damian
11:56 pm
This is excellent description! Especially point NUMBER 3. that is the most important thing about PP.
Bry
4:22 am
Thanks for the informative description. I gained a new insight on Step 3. I usually turn the steering wheel from hard right to hard left.
ClubEG6
3:26 pm
Yeah, that is the best way to do it for sure. I learned this trick about 8 years ago and still use it every time that I have to parallel park.
Nabeel
5:29 pm
According to my friends, I am a master parallel parker. Well .. one tip is that you have to have some sense of geometry and angles. It’s very simple .. turn steering wheel left and then right .. it’s a game of angles, seriously. Math can solve anything :)
Nabeel http://nabeelzeeshan.blogspot.com
Midwest Mike
4:19 pm
When I first heard about this method and keeping the wheels straight at one point (step 3) I thought I found what I was missing in my parking skills. But now I disagree with the third step. Just think the reverse steps and how you pull out of the parking space. When pulling out there is no point that you have the wheels straight, so why would you when you back in?
jeff s
11:11 pm
thanks man im 25 and taking my test tomorrow, i tried the parallel parking only 3 times and did well so here goes nothing, looks like we had the same fear. i always lied about it because i was embarrased. thanks man, glad to know i wasent alone.
Cat
8:19 am
Well it sounds right to me. I’m 24 and just about to get my license. I’ve always hated driving.. loathed it. One of my ex boyfriends got me into 3 accidents and I became too scared to drive.
Today is my road test though, so its one of those ‘suck it up and just do it’ sort of things. lol.
I practiced quite a bit.. with three different cars as well, so hopefully I can do this right! I’ve heard that there is usually just the instructors car, no car behind them for you to park in. We’ll see.
So how did it go for you?
Andrea
2:34 pm
This is the only way I’ve been taught to parallel park and I think this is the perfect. Keep practicing to achieve perfection. I’m now able to complete the maneuver in just one simple motion: going back :)
Jon
9:37 am
I live in Queens and parallel parking is always an adventure. Sometimes I slide right in, other times not so much. I’ll give this approach a try and see if I have better luck.
Jane
11:20 am
Hello Rafael Madeira,
Was interested in how you were taught to parallel park using mirrors…might you be able to give us some instruction on how it’s done? Seems like a good way to go!
Tahrey
4:07 pm
(without reading the other comments yet :)
I’m confused - they don’t teach you this by default? This method is exactly how my driving instructor showed me to reverse (parallel) park in the UK, and how I was expected to do it on my test. Very easy to get your car into incredibly tight spots with a bit of practice, maybe one or two extra shuffles to straighten up in the worst ones (where you end up with a few inches spare at each end, just enough to allow for you coming in/out diagonally). It’s much more effective putting the rear end where you want it then sliding the front almost horizontally this way than trying to do it forwards (and I suspect the reason why fork-lift trucks have the steering wheels at the “back”).
Tahrey
4:13 pm
Also I forgot to say - i’m not just basing that on the fact you’re going in backwards, but the exact positioning/spacing too… line the back end of the other car up with yours thru the rear window so you start turning at just the right time, start straightening it up as you pass the rear end in your seat, etc :) The whole operation looks basically identical. Not that it was intuitive until I was shown it, but I’m surprised that something similar wouldn’t be taught worldwide as it’s a simple matter of geometry and allowing for the size/peculiar dimensions of your vehicle vs the surrounding ones and the gap in question. It’s worked fine for a variety of hatchbacks, a volvo station wagon and - with adjustments for lining it up using the mirrors - a tiny, rear-window-less daihatsu city van so far (bliss to park even though it had poor rear vis… it was only about 8ft long and had a turning circle london taxi drivers can only dream about)
Tahrey
4:23 pm
Rafael: I’m surprised about this. I was taught to never rely on my mirrors alone for critical judgement of what was behind (whether parking, overtaking, or changing lanes/merging) as there would be blind spots, and a quick over the shoulder glance could be as life-saving in a car as it could on a bike. The trick is more to not over-concentrate on on viewpoint but keep turning back to look around you to keep a good overview of all directions. Man is not built as a grazing animal with 360 degree awareness but a hunter with a better 180 degree stereoscopic vision instead, so to get a grasp of everything around you, you need to keep looking. Mirrors are a good way to avoid continually looking behind every few seconds, but when it comes to a crucial choice, sometimes you have to turn your head.
Mark: Hehehe, I wish I could master that (stunt-style tailslide parking) well enough to not scratch paint, it would make things so much easier and more stylish :D
re: keeping the wheel straight at a certain point… crucialness of this depends on the length/wheelbase of your vehicle and the spot you’re trying to get into (both in terms of available length and width, if it’s on a narrow road). It may be necessary to maintain a straight line for a yard or two simply to get the clearance in order to swing back in. You have to adapt what you do to every vehicle you drive and parking spot you find, really, rather than sticking with religious blindness to one prescribed method.
beth
9:23 pm
I agree that it’s good to look behind you - not instead of using your mirrors, but in addition. My mom gave me some advice for parallel parking on the left side (say, on a one-way street): when you look over your shoulder, don’t try to look to the left. Look to the right as usual.
I took my driver’s test in Pennsylvania, and I have a warning about that: if you’ve practiced with real cars, be aware that the practice parking space they give you is wider than a real car! That means that, in steps 3 and 4, you’ll be covering a lot more distance than you normally would. I actually find real-life parking spaces easier than the extra-large space they give you on the test.
Definitely practice this (the tip to practice driving backwards is also a good one). You need to get a feel for how big your car is. Most people, when backing up, will have a couple feet behind them when they think they’re only inches away from the other car. Practice backing up, slowly and gently, to soft or undamageable objects.
Having a friend direct you as you park is also helpful - not to tell you where to go, but to tell you where you ARE. (“Keep backing up, you’ve got six more feet … OK, you’re a little too close to the curb…”) As a bonus, you’ll be less likely to hit anything because the friend can warn you if you get too close.
Gabe
10:06 am
I also find that PP in the Road Test is much harder than actual parking spots in the real world.
In real parking spots, you can actually see the cars in front of and behind you, but on the test you can barely see the friggin’ cones and flags.
As far as passing the test, obviously you don’t wanna hit the cones, but if you have the angles right, that shouldn’t be too much of a worry anyway. What’s important is that you show them you understand the basic idea and know how to manuever the car for adjustments, etc. If the car’s not 100% parallel to the curb when you’re finished, they tend to still pass you.
samy
10:08 am
Im 18 and i got my LP in Jan I have a month to go for my license how can i paralell park?
Bob
5:48 pm
Thank you, I passed the Parallel parking first time doing it on the driving part of the test, but then the guy had to be gay, and say that I failed coming to a complete stop at a stop sign.
Thank you so much for the advice though. That really helped me out.
Mark Harrison
10:55 am
Here in the UK it’s an automatic FAIL if you ONLY use your mirrors.
The examiner isn’t just looking to check you got in the spot - they are looking to make sure that you are maintaining all-round observation, through a variety of methods to rule out the “child in blind spot” problem.
It’s a good conceptual diagram, but nothing like practice to actually make it work.
Congratulations on passing, BTW :-)
Bren
8:33 pm
I love to parallel park with my truck. Specially when there is traffic, I do it so well I can’t help but to smile. I do have to admit, if I’m listening to the radio I have to lower is to concentrate..lol. I still love it.
Bob
4:32 pm
This is very, very simple. I completed the parallel parking on my first time, but I failed to come to a complete stop. So I failed parallel parking about 3 times, and its cause I forgot 1 step above. Thank you.
Angela
8:57 am
I guess its not as hard as it seems…this gives me hope for when i go get my license this month.
Eli
1:21 pm
Thanks a bunch. This helped me alot when I was parrell parking, now I just hope never to parrell park ever again! haha.
fear parallel parking
8:01 am
as stupid as this may sound, how do i kno when the wheels are straight?
BillinDetroit
10:08 pm
PP is easy. Paying for the deductible is hard.
;-)
Just practice … it’ll be fine. I can get a vehicle in some mighty tight spots, but usually I’ve enough experience to just pass on the stupid ones. There is no sense spending 15 minutes parking to save a three-minute walk.
Crowtrapper
1:07 am
All good stuff - only thing I would say is, you should be a bit closer to the adjacent car (when you start to reverse in) than an arm’s length -I would say half an arm. I’ve driven trucks, buses, cars and motorbikes for over 40 years and rarely use headturning for reversing - it is much better if you get used to using mirrors. But here in Australia, unless you turn your head you will fail the test. How do these driving examiners imagine truck drivers can get by with mirrors alone?
I really like the idea of practicing by driving in reverse, too. So keep practicing. I’m with Bren, it feels SO good when you get it right. And if you have to drive in some places like Spain or Italy, where parking has to be in spaces only fractionally bigger than your car … well you’ll be glad you have developed these skills.
Stephen W
11:34 am
Thanks for the tip! I’m 22 and have yet to get my driver’s license as well. I’m still having loads of trouble parking, like parallel parking and backing around a corner. I just can’t seem to judge how much to turn my wheel and end up over-compensating.
Richard
12:55 pm
That one works very well, I have been given the same advice during my driving lessons.
Some of the hints depend on your car though, e.g. when I reverse into a parking space it’s easier to stop next to the car in front of the parking space. Then put in reverse, turn the wheel fully to the right and reverse until the front wheels of your car are alligned with the rear wheels of the car in front of your parking spot. Then, turn the steering wheel all the way to the left and continue to reverse. Depending on the size of the parking space you might have to nudge the car a bit forward again as to stand straight :) .
Franc
8:54 pm
Glad you got your license and perhaps you are on your way to parallel parking bliss by now! I think it’s interesting in the tutorial above that only parking on the right side of the street is discussed. I don’t know about San Fran, but here in Seattle, there’s plenty of one ways to park on, and therefore, you have the option of parallel parking on the left side of the street. It takes a bit of the same skill on the opposite side.
Ashley
10:17 am
I have not had to parallel park since my drivers test.That was 4 years ago(I was 18). I just bought a house and it’s street parking. I HATE IT!!. I have to practice now. I’m always sticking out at the rear end because i’m too afraid to get too close to things. I have poor depth perception I always think I’m closer than I am. It sucks.
Suckmydick
8:22 pm
Parallel parking is gay, cars are gay, chairs are gay, tv’s are gay, my brother is gay, printers are gay, citrus drop cans are gay. A lot of things are gay especially anyone that posts a comment on this website except for me of course because well, I’m just that freakin’ awesome. Bow down before me……… mmmmmmmmmmmmmmuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh
BadonkiBerg
9:56 pm
I did everything perfect on my driving test in Minnesota just two days ago, and I had parallel parking down perfectly. However, since there are no cars to park between there are Poles, and if you hit one more than a foot you fail. I have no depth perception with poles for some reason so I accidentally hit a pole more than a foot and automatically failed.
Paulizconfused
10:27 am
My test is today im soooo scared i cant parrallel park meepp.. : [
Blah Blah Blah
10:53 pm
Look at the illustration for Step 3 up there ^^^…Its gonna hit the side of the car in front no matter what. Very bad drawing there. There should be no such thing as parallel parking. Its complicated and most people never do it again after their driver’s test so whats the point?