Back In Parking (rental, truck, Audi, head)

[Lillie767]

Originally Posted by Hemlock140

I almost always back in park, especially in our driveway. When parking it's easy to see that no one is behind or in front of me, so I can easily back in without fear of running into anyone. If I parked straight in, then you have to back out when leaving, and you cannot see what might be coming and run into you. It's just far safer.

this!

[DenverBrian]

When you back in to park, you're backing into a known space, with zero chance of a car coming across.

When you back out to exit, you have an unknown risk of one or more cars driving through the space you're trying to back into.

This really isn't rocket science.

[Mike from back east]

Backing out of a parking spot is increasingly problematic due to the inability to see what's coming along because of all the high-sided vehicles in adjoining spots blocking the ability to see approaching vehicles. This is especially a problem for cars where the driver sits too low to see over the tops of higher-sided vehicles next to them. It used to be that one could see over the trunks of standard coupes and sedans, but those days are gone, the vast majority of family vehicles are SUVs with high sides all the way back to the bumper.

To make matters worse, a lot of the high-sided pickups and SUVs have tinted glass that further restricts the view.

My current RAV4 SUV has a back up camera to see straight behind me; my next car will have side-view cameras to see what's approaching on both sides (people AND vehicles) as well as behind me.

I tend to park way out from the supermarket in a spot where two end-to-end spots are empty so I can drive through one vacant spot and end up in the second spot facing out which is the same as having parked back-in.

[Therblig]

Okay. Question answered. As with so many 'social' things, I don't know if this has now become prevalent in prior places I've lived, so it may not be unique to Denver/FR/CO. A note from a friend (in Canada) indicates that it's become something of a movement, with elaborate justifications written up at length.

I concede the advantages noted above (and elsewhere) but will retain the impression that it has become all but religiously followed even when the circumstances favor or dictate nose-in parking. I don't mind (or even notice) the folks who can back in quickly and efficiently; I do note and smirkify at the ones who expend exceptional time and trouble and inconvenience to back in when it's the equivalent of pulling on panty hose in a back seat. Every tool to its purpose, and there's a time to use the hammer and not the screwdriver to pound in a nail.

My neighbors will continue to confound me; I can't see any advantage or purpose to their dogged back-in parking (none of the above excuses apply), especially when it's to the point of specifically and only reversing a car at night... to adjust the feng shui, I guess?

[modest]

I took a defensive driving course, and back in parking is what they advised. They pointed to local studies, as well as some other national studies, which found a strong correlation with a reduction in accidents versus parking forward. Apparently having unobstructed views when pulling out versus backing out matters a lot.

The rest is up to you.

[annie_himself]

Its much easier to back in, and drive out. And its much safer. People who back in are better people, a study I just did confirms it.

[downtownnola]

This thread is very interesting! I've many times noticed folks back in parking and have often wondered why (I have never done this), but thinking about it from some of the perspectives provided helps me to understand the safety benefits.

The more you know

[BarryK123]

I've seen some buildings with signs in their parking lot that say, "no back-in parking." The reason is carbon monoxide getting into the buildings when the parking lot abuts the building.

[pikabike]

This is not likely the main reason most backers back in to park, but it makes tremendous sense when someone needs to park a pickup truck into a short slot: If the part of the truck bed rear of the rear axle is longer than the grill is fore of the front axle, the truck can fit better into that short slot. For instance, there might be a concrete wheel block which, if the truck is backed in, lets the rear overhang safely go past that wheel block. In contrast, if the truck is parked nose-in, the truck’s rear overhang juts out past the end of the parking slot.

All pickup trucks have more bed in back of the rear axle than they do nose in front of the front axle.

Also, backing a truck up very close to a wall means that nobody can force open your rear topper window or tailgate—there’s no room to do that! A former BF once parked this way because the lock on his topper was broken and we had expensive gear inside it.

Other kinds of vehicles vary more in this respect.

BTW, some people back in because they have a thing about being able to blast out of work right on the dot. I had a coworker who would actually go outside again a little while after arriving at work (never early), repark her car back-in to have it ready to bolt when she left for home (never late). She was a cheater in many ways. People did notice her odd parking habit and knew exactly why she did it. She would also look outside to see if someone parked a few feet closer to the door had left for lunch. Then she would go out just to back her car into that closer spot.

[Therblig]

Originally Posted by pikabike

This is not likely the main reason most backers back in to park, but it makes tremendous sense when someone needs to park a pickup truck into a short slot: If the part of the truck bed rear of the rear axle is longer than the grill is fore of the front axle, the truck can fit better into that short slot. For instance, there might be a concrete wheel block which, if the truck is backed in, lets the rear overhang safely go past that wheel block. In contrast, if the truck is parked nose-in, the truck’s rear overhang juts out past the end of the parking slot.

All pickup trucks have more bed in back of the rear axle than they do nose in front of the front axle.

This makes a certain amount of sense, and having spent about ten years driving a station wagon with a longer rear overhang than most pickups, I find no fault in the logic.

Except for the vast number of drivers I see squeezy-backing an F-250 into a tiny slot in a completely flat grocery store lot, where the overhang issue makes no difference.

I'm just going to put the whole thing in the pile of "a little learning is a dangerous thing."