People who back into parking spots: Why?
People who back into parking spots: Why?
To me, it seems objectively easier to pull into a parking space forward and then back out of the space when you are ready to leave. You don't have to line up with the lines while driving backwards, and it's easier to keep from hitting other cars as well. So why back in? To me, the only advantage I can think of is that you can get out quicker, technically.
Edit: I do not need driving instruction, just wondered why. The reasoning.
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Because you know what the situation is when you park, but you don't know what the situation will be when you leave.
I like this answer, and had not considered it. Good insight. I knew people would have specific situations like certain parking areas or certain street parking, but I really wanted "general" answers, and this is a good one. Thanks.
My grandfather had two habits drilled into him in the Army: never put your hands in your pockets so they’re always ready for action, and always park your vehicle so it’s ready to go.
This means he always backed in, and always parked as close to the exit as possible. And he did post-drive checks to ensure fluids, lights, brakes etc. were as they should be and the vehicle was ready for immediate use.
And he wasn’t even a getaway driver after the war.
And he wasn’t even a getaway driver after the war.
That you knew about
Yep I’m all about setting myself up for success. And backing into parking spaces does that. Also it’s drilled into my head from the oilfield that you will always back in because it’s safer.
Also cause its cool as fuck
It's actually kind of inconvenient to be behind someone doing this. It takes longer than pulling in and sometimes it's unexpected. Like I thought this one guy was turning but he was just lining up to back into a spot. He got mad when I pulled up behind him lol
sounds like your jealous of how cool they were
Takes about the same amount of time as someone backing out when leaving, so it’s balanced out eventually. It’s a little unexpected but I don’t put my car anywhere I’m not 100% sure is safe, and backwards parking isn’t particularly rare, so I’m never really taken aback that much
In what situation is it better to have your steerable wheels coming out of the parking space first? This orientation gives the car less agility when trying to navigate tight spaces when backing out.
If you're talking about a dangerous situation that requires evasive maneuvers, it sounds like you're LARPing.
Its more of a visibility thing. Backing out, your vehicle has to be three quarters of the way into traffic before you can really see.
You can just pull out of the spot and go, no need to change direction etc.
In a tight car park I have almost got stuck once because there wasn't enough room for me to back out and get my nose out from between the cars on either side to move forward
Apart from the visibility argument. With this kind of parking spot you have to leave the spot in the other direction than you came in. So you'll only get the enhanced agility for one of the moves.
Would you rather have more agility when getting into the tight parking spot or when leaving onto a larger street?
I've been driving for 30 years and honestly I can't think of a single time that I felt that backing in was an advantage in regard to maneuverability. The visibility of oncoming traffic aspect does make sense though. Now that rear view cameras are a legal requirement though, IMHO it makes even less sense to back in.
Other people may disagree and that's fine, but I am a bit surprised at the -20 vote on my previous comment.
It's not about maneuverability in either direction for me, it is about visibility. Things change quickly with traffic when pulling out of a parking spot. Therefore, I like having the drivers seat closer to the traffic reducing visibility obstructions on either side. When backing in, it is much less likely for something to move so I can simply memorize the positions of things before even starting to back up.
Admittedly, with a good backup camera this becomes less important. But my car is too old for backup cameras. I bike most days anyway so I am probably not replacing my car any time soon.