Parallel Parking - Steps

Steps

Two major types of parallel parking technique differ in whether they will use two or three positions of the steering wheel while backing. A skilled driver may be able to parallel park successfully by backing with the steering wheel turned all the way to the right (or left, in right-hand drive countries or when parking on the left side of a one-way street) and then immediately cranking the wheel all the way to the left (or right, in right-hand drive countries or when parking on the left side of a one-way street) at a critical point. For beginning drivers, those with larger cars or bad sight lines, this may risk collision with either the car in front of or behind the parking space, or it could also result in the car being parked too far away from the curb. Such drivers may find it easier to include an intermediate step, where after having achieved the ideal angle for backing up they back up with the wheels straight until the rear end of the car is far enough back to allow them to make their final reverse turn. While steering wheel positions in between full-right, straight, and full-left are possible to use, beginners may be able to gauge their progress more effectively by turning the wheel all the way to the right or left.

A 2009 Ruhr University Bochum study argued that a driver's gender may affect parking ability. According to the research, female drivers took an average of 20 seconds longer to park than male drivers, yet were still less likely than men to park accurately. However, this study was completed using an extremely small sample group - 65 people - such that the conclusion that women are inherently worse at parking or deficient in spatial reasoning is questionable.

In the early 21st century, car manufacturers are addressing this need by introducing automatic parking.