What Points to Watch for Parallel Parking?
3 Answers
Parallel parking mainly focuses on 2 points and 1 line. The upper left corner of the parallel parking space is point A, and the lower right corner is point C. This refers to the scenario where the car is facing forward, the parallel parking space is on the right side of the vehicle, and the rear of the car aligns with the upper boundary line of the parking space, with the car body about 30-50 centimeters away from the left dashed line of the parking space. There are two key aspects to pay attention to during parallel parking: 1. Adjust both side mirrors: The left mirror should be lowered as much as possible to see the left rear wheel, while the right mirror should be adjusted to just see the side of the car body. 2. Adjust the interior rearview mirror: It should be adjusted so that you can see the middle of the rear windshield when you look up.
I still remember the three-point positioning method taught by my driving instructor when I was getting my driver's license: First, drive the car parallel to the car in front, keeping a distance of about half a meter. Shift into reverse gear and look at the right rearview mirror. When the taillight of the car in front disappears from the mirror, turn the steering wheel fully to the right. Then, focus on the left rearview mirror, and as soon as you see the entire front of the car behind appear, quickly straighten the wheel. Finally, look at the right front door handle—when it touches the curb, turn the wheel fully to the left, and once the car is aligned, stop. This method works exceptionally well in standard parking spaces, and I passed my test relying on it. Practicing more to build muscle memory is even more important; after dozens of tries, you can do it with your eyes closed. If the rearview mirror is blurry due to rain or fog, rolling down the window to check the curb is more reliable.
When parking, I focus on two key points: the rearview mirrors and the door handles. After aligning with the car in front, I start reversing. When the taillights of the front car just disappear in the right rearview mirror, I turn the steering wheel all the way to the right. Then, I watch the left rearview mirror until the car behind is fully visible before straightening the wheel. At this point, I look down at the position of the right front door handle—when it touches the curb, I turn the steering wheel all the way to the left to move in. Once the car body is parallel, I stop. I find that the door handle is easier to judge distance with than the rearview mirror, especially in dim lighting at night. When parking on narrow roads in the neighborhood, I also check the distance between the rear tires and the curb. It's best to combine the guidelines from the reversing camera with actual reference points to control the distance from all sides effectively.
