Why do people back into parking spaces?

[gatorch0mp]

This can be an embarrasing pull-through situation as you are leaving someplace trying to be clever... especially if you're on a hot first date

[Arito]

I always back in. It's just as fast as going forward, easier to get out and the car is parked more 'neatly' if I back in. Don't know why I wouldn't back in.

[dukemagic]

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Virtually anyone who drives for a living is immediately taught to always back in. When I worked for Budget, company policy was to ALWAYS back in. When my brother drove for the post office he was also told to always back in.

The reason is that it is MUCH safer. A tremendous number of accidents are caused by people backing into things. Yes, you can still hit something backing into the spot, however people are generally paying a lot more attention when they're parking than when they're pulling out. And if you hit something backing into a spot, it's generally a lot less serious than if you hit something backing out.

Of course, when you DO drive for a living you get really, really good at backing into spots and you can do it at least as quickly as most people who pull in front first. Which always impresses the hell out of everybody.

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QFT. I was a valet for a few summers, and we were required to back all cars in. It's much easier to get into tight spots when backing in, it's quicker pulling out, and once you get good at it, you can park backing in just as quickly as you can park pulling forward. I remember the first day of work, where I was being trained, and the valet training me reversed into a pretty tight spot at what seemed like 50 MPH. I just thought "Holy [censored], how'd he do that so fast?" Now, I can do it just as quickly.

Now, in the situation the OP described, where the lady takes a minute to back in and clearly can't do it properly, then yeah, that's frustrating and stupid.

edit: I generally pull in forward just due to convention, but there are still many situations where I back in.

[scorcher863]

I have squeaky brakes. So when i go to school i back in, so i dont have to use them to switch directions when leaving. Generally there will be more people from my class at the end of class because were all leaving at the same time.

So for me it's to prevent embarrasment.

just another random reason

[Leaky Eye]

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1. it's easier to back into a spot than it is to drive forward.

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um?

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He means your vehicle maneuvers better in reverse. I park an SUV in a tightly packed garage and I can back in in one move every time. The same isn't true of pulling in forward.

Plus its much safer to pull forward into traffic than to back into it when leaving.

[Howard Beale]

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Brag: I can parallel park w/o looking over my shoulder by just using the mirrors.

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I've never looked over my shoulder to parallel park, but I thought this was completely standard.

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I believe that driving instructors teach that you should look over your shoulder. And here's this from DMV.orgwhich I didn't even know existed until this topic came up:

Put your vehicle in reverse. Check the driver-side mirror to make sure the street behind you is clear of traffic before you begin to back up. Then look over your other shoulder at the space to assess the gap. Turn the steering wheel hard right. You are about to execute the first part of the S-turn.

[Yeti]

i dont know why but whenever i see someone staring straight ahead when reversing they look kinda dumb.

[Leaky Eye]

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i dont know why but whenever i see someone staring straight ahead when reversing they look kinda dumb.

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This tilts me so hard. It might have something to do with someone smashing into me in reverse earlier this year.

[Elevens]

On a related topic, I don't understand why more people don't back into their driveways, too.

[tuq]

Elevens,

Wow I haven't seen you in ages. I miss Elevens, underrated IMO.

When I most recently lived in a house we had a double garage and I backed in every night when I got home. It made for a super easy exit on my way to the gym in the morning. Plus I could hug one side of the garage so my roommate and I, who pulled in forward, could have a large amount of space between the vehicles for us to easily maneuver. Not to mention if I was coming home from Costco, etc., I'd be backed up right next to the door for easy unloading.