How to Parallel Parking

Parallel parking is a difficult skill, but you’ll soon master it with practice. Before you start, you need to find a space a few inches longer than the car. Make sure the parking spot is legal and turn on your turn signals while driving to the front of the space. Shift to reverse gear and slow the car into a parking space. At the same time, turn the steering wheel all the way toward the gap until the car is at a 45-degree angle. Continue turning the steering wheel in the opposite direction so that the vehicle is parallel to the curb. Shift into 1st gear and run forward to get the car into the middle of the gap.

Table of Contents

Choose a parking space

Find a suitable space. The gap must be wide enough for the vehicle to enter without hitting the adjacent vehicles. Once you’ve mastered this skill, you can park in tighter spaces, but you should start with spaces two meters longer than the car. That space needs to be at least one meter longer than your car.

If you have never parked your car in parallel, you should bring the plastic cone to the parking lot to practice parallel parking with the plastic cones.

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Make sure the space is safe and legal to park. Look for signs about parking regulations in the area. You must not park in front of fire hydrants or areas where you must not get in the way. Pay attention to parking time limits.

Check to make sure nothing protrudes from the top and bottom of the vehicles you plan to park next, like a tow hook. If something sticks out, make sure there’s enough space left to fit the car in.
Notice the height of the curb next to the parking space. If the curb is very high, you must be careful to avoid reversing into it.

Turn on the turn signals and put the car in the prepared position. Check the rearview mirror to make sure no one is close behind. Gently press the brake to signal to others that you are slowing down. Turn on the turn signal and run to the side of the vehicle in front of the parking space. Your vehicle should be located 60 cm from the vehicle in front. ^{[1] X Research Source}

If another vehicle is approaching from behind, you must stop and continue to turn on the signal. If necessary, pull down the window and signal for them to come around.
The narrower the parking space, the closer the distance between your vehicle and the vehicle in front should be. For example, you need to position your vehicle 30 cm away from the vehicle in front if the gap is only about one meter longer than the vehicle.

Drive the car into the parking space

Consider asking someone else for help. If space is tight and you don’t have much parallel parking experience, you should ask someone standing outside to guide you to get the car into position. If there are passengers on the bus, ask them to get off the bus for directions.

Ask them to signal the distance between your vehicle and the vehicle you are approaching, by raising their hands to indicate the distance. This is more accurate than verbal instructions.
You should turn the side mirror down so you can see the curb. Although this is not necessary, it is useful.

Start backing up. Put the car in reverse gear. Make sure there are no vehicles behind the vehicle. Look over your shoulder to check parking. When the back of your seat is level with the rear of the vehicle next to you, turn the steering wheel quickly and evenly toward the parking lever until the vehicle is at a 45-degree angle when in place. ^{[2] X Research Source}

If you want the rear of the car to go in any direction, turn the steering wheel in that direction.
Avoid maneuvering the front end of the vehicle into a parking space too early as you may hit the vehicle in front.

Ibrahim Onerli

Driving Instructor

Ibrahim Onerli is a member and manager of Revpution Driving Schop, a driving school in New York City with a mission to make the world a better place through teaching safe driving. Ibrahim trains and manages a team of over 8 driving instructors, specializing in defensive driving and manual transmission.

Ibrahim Onerli
Driving Instructor

See parallel parking as a three-point process. Back up until the front tail light is in the middle of your car’s rear door, then turn the steering wheel to the right . Continue backing up until the front tail light reaches the first point of your front door, then straighten the steering wheel . Now look in the mirror and you will see a 45-degree angle appearing like a triangle. Follow the triangle until it disappears, then turn the steering wheel to the left to reverse into a parking spot. From that position, you just need to straighten the wheel, put the car in place and pull the handbrake.

Locating the car in the parking space

Adjust the vehicle to the center of the gap. After your vehicle is successfully parked, you may need to re-align it so that it is parallel to the curb and between the two vehicles in front and behind. If you still have plenty of space behind you, continue backing up until you almost touch the vehicle behind. Shift forward and turn the steering wheel slightly toward the curb when driving forward. ^{[3] X Research Sources}

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Adjust the vehicle in tight locations. When parking space is tight, it is more difficult to adjust the vehicle position, and the front of the vehicle may have to be farther from the curb than the desired distance. To fix this, you continue to drive the car forward and backward, trying to move the front of the car towards the curb. Each time, you will turn the steering wheel all the way to the curb before approaching, and return the steering wheel when backing up. ^{[4] X Research Sources}^{[5] X Research Sources}

Repeat if needed. The front of the car will move inwards every time you turn the steering wheel all the way to the curb and steer the car forward.
If the front end of the vehicle is too far from the curb for a normal-sized parking space, it is easier to drive out to make it easier to start over.

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Start from scratch as needed. If you don’t succeed the first time, don’t worry. Turn on the signal lights and control the vehicle to return to the position next to the vehicle in front to start again.

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Open the car door carefully. Before getting off, especially when your vehicle is parked on the side of the road, you should check to make sure there are no oncoming vehicles. You must always watch out for cyclists, parallel parking positions often pose a risk to them because you could open the door to the bike lane.

For the curb side, be careful not to let the door touch the curb or roadside items.
If the door cannot be fully opened while the passenger is in the vehicle, keep this in mind when you return to the vehicle. The door can be fully opened when the car is empty, but it will slam into the curb after the passenger gets in and the car collapses.

Advice

Parallel parking is easier with the help of a rear-mounted camera. If your car doesn’t have a rear camera installed, you should install one.

Warning

Always turn the steering wheel while the vehicle is moving, even if it’s just a little up or down. This prevents the wheel rotating parts from being subjected to a lot of stress.
If your vehicle has wheel hub covers, especially if you have “poor quality” tires, you should avoid driving too close to the curb.
Turning the steering wheel at an extreme angle for longer than a few seconds can adversely affect the electrically controlled steering system.
If you are unsure then you should act safe. Don’t risk your points and then hit the vehicle in front or behind. If traffic conditions permit, you should apply the parking brake and get off the vehicle to see if there is enough parking space.

Steps

Choose a parking space

Drive the car into the parking space

Locating the car in the parking space

Advice

Warning

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