Can you parallel park?

[Tap]

Can you parallel park a car/truck?

[rebbyribs]

Yes, but I don't like it!  My 3yo is really sweet and tells me, "You're good at parking!" as I'm adjusting.  It's not too hard on flat spots, but some of the hills in San Francisco are really tricky.  

[Elfknitter.#]

Learning in a vehicle with no power steering made all the difference.

[Jean in Newcastle]

Yes.  

[fraidycat]

Yes, but NOT on the "wrong" side - if parallel parking is available on both sides of a one-way street, I can only park on the right hand side.

 

I picked the third option. I prefer room to do the parking if/when I have to do it.

[Laura Corin]

Yes - it's an essential skill in the UK, as much of the parking is on-street.  However, I rarely get in in one go: I usually have to wiggle a bit.  It's on the driving test here, but I think my wiggles would probably fail me.

[Beaniemom]

I never had to learn as it wasn't on my driving test. DH gives me endless grief about it but now I have a car with a backup camera and sensors. I can parallel park if I must but I do try to avoid it.

[Crimson Wife]

I hate parallel parking and generally prefer to walk a bit farther if it means I only have 1 car to park ahead or behind.

[Guest]

I drive an enormous suburban and an enormous van. Parallel parking is possible, but with that turning radius it's difficult. Even my husband who is an excellent parker and has the geometry down to a science in his car finds mine very difficult to park.

[albeto.]

I drive an enormous suburban and an enormous van. Parallel parking is possible, but with that turning radius it's difficult. Even my husband who is an excellent parker and has the geometry down to a science in his car finds mine very difficult to park.

 

That's exactly what I tell my kids! I tell them there's the perfect equation they *have* to follow. If they do that equation right, they can park any car. If they don't, it won't work, no matter how much you think it might. It has to be exact. 

 

I've driven a suburban many years. My crowning glory was parallel parking on Constitution Ave in Washington DC with small kids in the car without benefit of a break in the traffic. I took a deep breath, applied that equation, and I felt like the friggin' Nadia Comăneci of the Parallel Parking world. I stuck that baby with a perfect ten. And I know it because there was a city bus waiting for me to get into the space so it could continue on its way. The driver, seasoned and looking like he needed a cup of coffee in the next half hour, just looked at me through the window as he passed, and gave me a subtle, low-key thumbs-up. I still tell that story to my kids today, more than ten years later. Of course they roll their eyes, but one day they'll know: When a professional city bus driver gives you a thumbs up for a perfect parallel parking job on a busy street in his city, you know you've made it. lol!

[Liz CA]

Yes. In Europe they test student drivers on this before you get your license.

[Melissa in Australia]

YEs I can do it but I Don't. Here you have to be able to do it before you can get your license. But I have been driving a large van for years that don't even fit in most parking spots. So I don't reverse park. instead I will drive around for ages until I find a drive in parking spot or two spots empty together. I do not mind walking a few blocks to get to the shops I want

 

[Rosie_0801]

I can, but I don't feel comfortable doing it since I upgraded from a nice, medium sized sedan to this station wagon. 

[Grover]

yes, no problem, people mover driver. 

 

Sometimes I need to straighten up and have another go, but 95% of the time it's all good

 

[Pawz4me]

There's really no good choice for me.

 

I can do it competently enough.  Back in the dark ages when I got my license we had to do it to pass.  But I always avoided it as much as possible.

 

However, I've found that having a car with a back up camera makes it much, much easier.  I recently had to meet my brother in an area where parallel parking is all that's available.  He watched me park in a super tight spot and praised me on my superb skill. Being such an honest person, I had to confess how much easier it is for me with the camera's assistance. ;)

[bensonduck]

I did not have to learn for my drivers test, but I lived in Boston as a young adult - I had to acquire that skill pretty fast. Parallel parking in and out of snowdrifts is a bit...different.

 

I have since moved to the DC area and still need to do it a few times a week. The backup camera does help a lot.

[xixstar]

Just yesterday I went for a parallel parking spot on my left side (which I am much worse at) just for the challenge and gave up after I could tell my first approach was wrong.

 

I can do it but much prefer the right side and will skip it if given the option if the space is tight. But if in the car versus my van, I have no issue doing so usually.

[tm919]

Yes, but I don't like it!  My 3yo is really sweet and tells me, "You're good at parking!" as I'm adjusting.  It's not too hard on flat spots, but some of the hills in San Francisco are really tricky.  

Hehe, I can do it in some spots but not others-- I said Maybe. Some spots just don't seem friendly to minivans.

 

My kids cheer me on from the back... "Go, Mommy, Go! Go Mommy Go! You CAN DO IT!!!" It's cute but discouraging too -- is it so obvious to a 4 yo and 5 yo that I need help!?

[No More Perfect]

Yes, I can usually do it on the first or second try in my 15-passenger van.

[DawnM]

I used to be REALLY good at it.  I had a boat of a car in college, lived in Seattle, and could park on a steep hill with inches to spare on each side.  People DID comment how impressed they were, etc...then I moved to LA and again, had tight spaces and a new car and could still do it well.

 

But I can't do it now, and I think part of it is the car.  I can't get a good feel for the car if the back end goes up, like most cars do these days.  I am just too short to see over it well.

 

My newest car even has a back up camera!  But it bugs me because it only sees straight behind, not to the sides.

[Zinnia]

I drove a Suburban for 9 years.  I got good at parallel parking with it.  Last spring, we downsized to a mini van, and I can parallel park that thing anywhere.  It feels so much smaller than the Suburban did. 

[Night Elf]

Nope! When I got my drivers license, I failed to park correctly. The person conducting the test told me he was going to pass me anyway if I promised to never parallel park anywhere ever. Deal!

 

And to make things even worse, I missed one of my first husband's solo recitals in college because the only parking places were parallel. So I just went home and came back and picked him up when he was done.

[creekland]

I used to be able to.  However the BT I have affects my vision and without depth perception being spot on, there's no way I could get into a regular spot so I don't even try.  I put down that I still can (and do) if there is only one car to the front or back.  I might be able to do an oversized spot, but I'm not sure.

 

Steps/stairs can now be a challenge too (not in a car!) if I don't pay extra attention.  The end of July I had a kinda nasty fall when hubby stopped abruptly to chat right before some cement steps...  Things like that remind me not to challenge other stuff (like parallel parking) hoping it will work out.  I don't need the frustration if it doesn't work (or the "fix it" bills)!  Things change as we age.  Such is life.

[Carrie12345]

I almost never needed to once I passed my test, but I had to start last year. I did okay in my old van. Now I'm a champ with my backup camera.

[Ausmumof3]

You have to to get your license here with no more than the min manoeuvres. I am not telling how many attempts it took before I learned! I have never used it since.

[RebeccaS]

I had to learn it to get my license.  I was pretty good at it then.  I haven't done it in decades because it's not necessary where I live.  I have done it a handful of times and it went ok, but I'm not confident unless it's clear and I have a large space to park in.  

[Jenny in Florida]

Yes, I'm of the "if you can't park it, don't drive it" school of thought. If the space is very tight or visibility is limited or both, I might not pull smoothly into the space on the first try, but I can get there with a few adjustments.

 

(I do make allowances for my husband, who drives a teeny car but also has back problems that make it difficult for him to twist around to really see what he's doing. He "can" parallel park when he needs to do so, but he will work very hard to avoid it, and it sometimes takes him some extra maneuvering to get it right.)

[regentrude]

Sure. I am from Europe and lived in a city. If you can't parallel park in a tight spot, sometimes maneuvering by touch, there's no use having a car there.

 

I am a bit out of practice, though, because parking spots in the US are huge, and even parking on the street near campus, people leave large gaps between cars. So, if it's tight, I may have to maneuver back and forth a few times until I am well in my spot.

[regentrude]

Just yesterday I went for a parallel parking spot on my left side (which I am much worse at) just for the challenge and gave up after I could tell my first approach was wrong.

 

I can do it but much prefer the right side and will skip it if given the option if the space is tight. But if in the car versus my van, I have no issue doing so usually.

 

I don't like parking on the left side of the street if it's a tight spot.

When I lived in England for a year, that's what I had to do, though. Took a while to get used to it.

 

[Word Nerd]

I did it successfully for driver's ed and can do it if I have no other choice, but it stresses me out so I avoid whenever possible.

[Closeacademy]

I was able to do it for my driving test and haven't done it since.  But then I will take all sorts of alternate routes to avoid left-handed turns without a turn-light.

[PIE!]

I was fortunate to have an awesome driver's ed teacher who showed us how. It really is just following a formula. Works every time. I've impressed many passengers with my skills.

 

ETA: I don't think I've ever been in a situation where I need to parallel park on the left, so I don't know if that would be harder. I imagine it might take some getting used to.

[poppy]

This is a basic driving skill. Like doing a 3 point turn. You really shouldn't drive if you can't maneuver your car!

[Ravin]

No. I passed or in drivers ed and have been avoiding parallel parking between two cars ever since.

[Lisbeth]

I am severely directionally challenged.  I do well to just remember right and left and which direction for my usual places.  Doing the parallel parking thing is a no-go. I can back into parking spaces though, in general.

[Ravin]

This is a basic driving skill. Like doing a 3 point turn. You really shouldn't drive if you can't maneuver your car!

Three point turns are comparatively easy.

 

I have no depth perception. Parallel parking is easy to avoid in the places I've lived with a car.

[Wheres Toto]

I can with our current car because it has a backup camera.  I have a little bit of a depth perception problem so I don't like to in other vehicles but I can with one extra spot to work with.  It's extremely rare that I have to parallel park where I live and travel most. 

[AHASRADA]

Nope. It was technically part of my driving test (26 years ago!), but my parking was tested on a quiet residential street with a car in front of the space, but not behind, so I passed.

 

I may have parallel parked a handful of times in my youth, if the space was large and I was in a pinch, but not for a couple of decades, certainly not since kids. For most of my life it hasn't been necessary.

 

8 years ago we moved to a suburb of a major metro area. There is no parallel parking in my town, but if I need to go into the city for something, I either take the bus, ride with someone else, or plan to park and pay for underground or lot parking. That's it. I would never even consider parallel parking. It's just one skill I don't have, and wouldn't attempt, period. I prefer to know and accept my limits than to risk damaging property.

 

ETA: I am legally blind in my left eye, so I do believe that has something to do with my depth perception.

[Junie]

I voted no.  I had to parallel park to get my driver's license, but that was in a parking lot between cones.  I don't often go anywhere that requires parallel parking.  If I do, I end up driving around and around and around...

[Katy]

I voted other.  I magically have been able to do it when I needed to, but it's not instinctive and still makes me nervous.

[jelbe5]

I lived in Chicago at one point so I had to learn to parallel park.

 

However, I have a confession to make. While I can still parallel park a car I have never parallel parked my 15 passenger van!

[JFSinIL]

yup, it was a big part of being a driver in Southern California (grew up there).  Now, my kids in Illinois (n/w suburbs, not in Chicago) claim that they have NOT had to learn to parallel park, nor that it came up on the driver's test.

I think it depends where you live.  Folks in San Francisco need to know not only how to parallel park but also how to safely park on steep hills, for example.

[SproutMamaK]

I can parallel park a car any time, any where. With my minivan, I get picky. If the spot is small, it's a no go. I need that extra space to maneuvre. Visibility isn't so much of an issue, but space? Not gonna risk it.

[Guest]

Yes! My husband taught me. The man could get a medal for parallel parking if such a thing existed. I swear he needs about a quarter inch clearance on either side and he just whips right in there like NBD.

[Word Nerd]

This is a basic driving skill. Like doing a 3 point turn. You really shouldn't drive if you can't maneuver your car!

So even though I'm almost never in a situation where I need to parallel park or have any reason to work on that skill, I shouldn't drive at all? That's hooey.

[Farrar]

An essential skill for city living.

 

I don't think it should be on driving tests though.

[catz]

I live urban with a mini van.  Parallel parking is most definitely my super power!  :lol:

 

ETA - I totally have depth perception issues.  I am near sighted in one eye and far in the other.  Our newest vehicle does have a backup camera, but none of our previous ones did.  It's just a skill I need to be good at where we live.

 

I think it should be on driver's tests. 

[gingersmom]

When I was 16 I was the worst driver but would win a gold in the parallel parking Olympics.

[kewb]

I can parallel park any car in any spot. The mini van requires an oversized spot. I have never mastered parking it in a questionable spot like I can with the car.

[kiana]

Yes, but I will walk a *long* way to avoid it. I hate doing it. Even though I *know* I'm competent now, I have these horrible images of backing my car into another car.