The WORST drivers, which cars do they drive?

[DT Ralge]

I very closely missed having to do a parallel park on my test, the car I was supposed to be parking behind drove off

I've never been good at it.

 

I always try to park in quiet places in car parks. My partner's car is a 2 door, and the doors are slightly longer than a 3 or 5 door car. We will invariably get someone parking too close and not be able to get back in.

 

A few posts on here merely confirm my long-held view/prejudice that bay and parallel parking is one very poorly taught subject at L-test.

Why? In my experience I was never taught (in the early stages of my training) to reverse bay park or to park between two parked cars.

I conclude that many others weren't, so how can they be expected to pass on real-life methods (I.e. ones that don't use stickers or eminently variable door handle positions or whatever ...) that they don't know themselves?

[L00b]

I very closely missed having to do a parallel park on my test, the car I was supposed to be parking behind drove off

I was taught, re-taught and over-taught, all of bay, parallel and "épi" (wheat grain? like bay parking, but with slots at an 45 degree angle). Front and reverse for the bay-styles, always reverse for the parallel parking, using the rear windscreen midpoint as a marker <etc>. And tested on both bay and parallel (reverse in both instances). In an AX 1.0L.

 

Then my first 'car' was one of these, i.e. Pug 504 innards (with no power steering), the turning radius of a small planet, the acceleration of a sloth and, with the aerodynamics of a dresser, an engineered-by-design 85 km/h speed limiter. You soon learn most of what "life on the road" has to teach young drivers in their first few formative months and years of solo driving. Particularly distance estimation, momentum preservation and use of wing mirrors. Parking that thing was fun, ooooo yes

Edited July 18, 2016 by L00b

[Justin Smith]

That's not data though. I want to see data sets. Sample sizes. Standard deviations. That sort of stuff.

 

Anything else is just confirmation bias ridden, baloney.

 

Er, no it`s not.

The only flaw is the exact proportion of German cars on the road. I reckon about 20% judging by my own research. But I reckon it could be +/- 5%.

However, as Fred the fitter (who I used to work with when I was a hire Depot manager years ago) used to say, "we`re not working t` thou Lad". It`s accurate enough to know that drivers of German cars are significantly more likely than average to drive aggressively (which is my definition of dangerous / bad driving).

 

---------- Post added 19-07-2016 at 10:00 ----------

 

I have some dash cam footage of 3 drivers of pimped out bmws who were trying to recreate fast and furious 112 or were on their way to a "driving like dangerous bellends" convention. I'd be more surprised if they didn't crash into someone on their journey.

 

But it's hardly conclusive. I drive a bmw and I've don't drive like an idiot.

 

Not all drivers of BMWs are t*****s, far from it. Just a higher proportion than average, that`s all I`m saying.

[Isabelle]

I was taught, re-taught and over-taught, all of bay, parallel and "épi" (wheat grain? like bay parking, but with slots at an 45 degree angle). Front and reverse for the bay-styles, always reverse for the parallel parking, using the rear windscreen midpoint as a marker <etc>. And tested on both bay and parallel (reverse in both instances). In an AX 1.0L.

 

Then my first 'car' was one of these, i.e. Pug 504 innards (with no power steering), the turning radius of a small planet, the acceleration of a sloth and, with the aerodynamics of a dresser, an engineered-by-design 85 km/h speed limiter. You soon learn most of what "life on the road" has to teach young drivers in their first few formative months and years of solo driving. Particularly distance estimation, momentum preservation and use of wing mirrors. Parking that thing was fun, ooooo yes

 

I always found it difficult to reverse using certain points on the car, as my instructor tried to teach me. After I passed my test reverse parking just seemed to click, the same methods don't work for everyone.

I'm pretty good at reverse bay parking now, I find it much easier than driving straight into a space. I'm not confident with parallel parking, but I can do it if I have to.

[DT Ralge]

I always found it difficult to reverse using certain points on the car, as my instructor tried to teach me. After I passed my test reverse parking just seemed to click, the same methods don't work for everyone.

I'm pretty good at reverse bay parking now, I find it much easier than driving straight into a space. I'm not confident with parallel parking, but I can do it if I have to.

 

For bay parking, the 90 degree method is unnecessarily difficult. Instead, pull up alongside the gap, close to it and and the bumpers of the cars you plan to park between. Put your body in the middle of the gap you plan to reverse into. (You have bagged the space and others can pass you). Drive forward slowly and turn quickly away from the space, slow car, in order to open up your vision (over shoulder/in door mirror(s). Reverse into space having steered to opposite lock, taking steering off to suit the gap/space (even up space either side with vision in both door mirrors).

Mantra from professional driver trainers (company fleets report that 50-60% of vehicle damage is incurred whilst manoeuvring): get the difficult and dangerous bit in any manoeuvre out of the way on arrival I.e. the reversing element and take advantage from the fact that reversing in, driving out is a far more efficient use of space than driving in, reversing out.

Parallel parking between two vehicles on left: get to the steering point. Slow vehicle in reverse, steer quickly to full lock. Front end out to a point where you pick up the middle of the number plate/the middle of the car behind you in your offside door mirror. Take all the steering off and carry on reversing - do no more steering at this point. (This angle means that you will hit the kerb before you hit the car behind you.) Steer front end in (quickly).

Try it!

Edited July 19, 2016 by DT Ralge

[Isabelle]

For bay parking, the 90 degree method is unnecessarily difficult. Instead, pull up alongside the gap, close to it and and the bumpers of the cars you plan to park between. Put your body in the middle of the gap you plan to reverse into. (You have bagged the space and others can pass you). Drive forward slowly and turn quickly away from the space, slow car, in order to open up your vision (over shoulder/in door mirror(s). Reverse into space having steered to opposite lock, taking steering off to suit the gap/space (even up space either side with vision in both door mirrors).

Mantra from professional driver trainers (company fleets report that 50-60% of vehicle damage is incurred whilst manoeuvring): get the difficult and dangerous bit in any manoeuvre out of the way on arrival I.e. the reversing element and take advantage from the fact that reversing in, driving out is a far more efficient use of space than driving in, reversing out.

Parallel parking between two vehicles on left: get to the steering point. Slow vehicle in reverse, steer quickly to full lock. Front end out to a point where you pick up the middle of the number plate/the middle of the car behind you in your offside door mirror. Take all the steering off and carry on reversing - do no more steering at this point. (This angle means that you will hit the kerb before you hit the car behind you.) Steer front end in (quickly).

Try it!

 

They are thinking of instating a 'reverse parking only' policy at my workplace, I'm assuming due to safety. I'm usually good at parking, I used to reverse park my OH's work van all the time. I've not driven the new car much so its taking me some time to get used to its size.

The parallel parking I try to avoid, I tend to be too cautious and not go in far enough on the first movement, meaning I end up miles from the kerb when straightened up

[DT Ralge]

They are thinking of instating a 'reverse parking only' policy at my workplace, I'm assuming due to safety. I'm usually good at parking, I used to reverse park my OH's work van all the time. I've not driven the new car much so its taking me some time to get used to its size.

The parallel parking I try to avoid, I tend to be too cautious and not go in far enough on the first movement, meaning I end up miles from the kerb when straightened up

 

Have a go at PP using my method. Get the angle correct, straighten up and don't introduce any more steering (to get the front end in) until quite late - your view of the distance to and from the kerb is reasonably easy to judge and gets easier if you stick to the method and introduce fewer variables - slow car, quick steering is easily replicated.

 

The introduction of a reverse parking policy in company settings is a trickle rather than a flood. When I arrive at a company for training and note that such a policy is in place, I think, "well, that's a start!"

Edited July 20, 2016 by DT Ralge

[Cyclone]

More and more modern cars are coming with auto park features, perhaps it will be a skill that is simply not needed in a decade.

[DT Ralge]

More and more modern cars are coming with auto park features, perhaps it will be a skill that is simply not needed in a decade.

 

That could indeed be the case. Thankfully, I'm hoping to have retired within the next decade.

There will be drivers, though, who will hark back to the good old days and choose to override or not use the self-parking technology.

[Cyclone]

With the cameras and sensors that should at least become safer as well. You might get it wrong, but the car will beep at you before you hit the bollard or other car.