How to stop at the control line for reversing into the garage in Subject 2?
3 Answers
Drive forward in first gear with the steering wheel straight. When the front hood is about to touch the front line, turn the steering wheel all the way to the right. When the car body is about to level, straighten the steering wheel to align the body. Align the car body straight, keeping about 2 meters from the side line. Stop when the wheels reach the front control line. The stopping point can be determined by the window or your shoulder. While reversing straight, look at the left mirror. When the car handle is about two fingers' width from the corner of the line, turn the steering wheel half a turn to the left. Look at the right mirror. When the corner of the line rises to the upper edge of the mirror and is about to disappear, turn the steering wheel all the way to the right. When the car body is parallel to the garage line, straighten the steering wheel to align the body. Stop when the lower edge of the left mirror touches the garage side line, and you will be perfectly parked in the garage.
Right after I passed Subject 2, the instructor specifically emphasized the stopping technique at the control line. The key is to keep the car body parallel to the edge line of the garage, and the front bumper must press on the control line. When you see the garage corner appear in the rearview mirror, you should start slowing down, and aligning the steering wheel with the third dashed line position is the safest. During practice, I found that speed is crucial—just a tad too fast and you might cross the line. It's recommended to use the half-clutch technique to creep slowly, with your right foot ready to brake at any moment. After stopping, first shift to neutral and pull the handbrake; otherwise, the system might fail to detect the parking action. Remember, this position affects the subsequent reversing angle into the garage—if you stop off-center, you'll have to start the whole process over.
Last time when accompanying my friend for driving practice, we studied stopping at the control line over a dozen times. Mainly focusing on two reference points: stop when the lower edge of the left rearview mirror covers the yellow solid line, or observe when the front edge of the hood just touches the control line. I prefer to release the accelerator one meter in advance to let the car coast, while turning my head to align the left window corner with the edge of the parking space. Never force a stop if the car isn't straight; making small steering adjustments is more important than reversing directly in. Remember to fully depress the clutch at the moment of stopping to prevent the car from rolling back, ensuring the test device registers it as valid.
