It is no secret that large vehicles handle differently than normal size vehicles. However, when trying to park in a spot or parking lot intended for more regular-size vehicles, you will need to take extra care with your large vehicle or truck. The last thing you want is to accidentally damage the other parked cars. The good news is that some parking principles can help prevent this from happening.
Steps
Method 1 of 3: Getting Large Vehicles Into a Parking Spot
Step 1. Check your rearview mirrors before parking
Improperly adjusted mirrors could result in you losing perspective while parking. This can impair your ability to estimate the distance between your vehicle and obstacles. You need as clear and complete a view as possible of the area around your vehicle.
- Even if you are more confident in your parking abilities, you should always double-check your blind spots to make sure that when backing up, you are not hitting children, pedestrians, or moving objects such as strollers and shopping carts.
- Larger vehicles may have an additional mirror mounted on the vehicle frame to improve visibility. Casual drivers of large vehicles can easily forget about these extra mirrors. Check them regularly when parking.
Step 2. Give yourself enough space
The more room you have to enter the parking spot, the more room you have to maneuver and make adjustments when parking. You could give yourself more space by parking in an empty part of a parking lot, or you could also choose a spot that is surrounded by smaller, more compact vehicles.
The smaller vehicles on either side of your large truck will take up less space in their own spots, giving you more room when parking
Step 3. Park slowly and brake early
The heavier weight of a large vehicle will require you to stop sooner than you would with a normal car, especially if you are hauling a heavy load. Taking your time when parking a large vehicle can avoid costly mistakes, such as damaging the cars around you or hitting a parking barrier.
Step 4. Go into open spaces
This is perhaps the easiest way if you are less confident in your ability to park large vehicles. Pick a spot in the parking area that is clear of other cars. Turn the rudder in the direction you intend to turn to enter space.
- You may notice that the front end extends over the lines of the parking space and occupies the space next to it. This is due to the fact that larger vehicles require a wider radius to turn.
- You may have to fit your vehicle into the space after entering the parking spot. Put your vehicle in reverse, check your mirrors and blind spots, and back up.
- When backing into the parking space after re-exiting, adjust the tiller to straighten your vehicle as you re-enter the space.
Step 5. Avoid turning too much or not enough
The length of the vehicle will require you to take more space to turn and straighten the vehicle to make it fit evenly into the parking space. Turning as you normally would with a regular car can lead to over or under twisting, potentially crashing into other vehicles. To avoid this, you must do the following:
- Maneuver the vehicle as far from the parking spot as possible. The more room you have to get closer, the easier it will be to straighten the rear end and get into the parking spot.
- Turn the wheel fully in the direction of where you are going to park. The front end of the truck should go in as straight as possible.
- Constantly check your mirrors when entering the parking space. The side of your vehicle may still be straightening out and you will need to be very vigilant to make sure you don't hit or scratch other vehicles.
Step 6. Straighten the vehicle with a three-point turn
The more aligned the rear end is with where you are trying to park, the fewer turns you will have to make and the parking itself will be easier. A three-point turn is the procedure where you turn as far in one direction as possible, put the vehicle in reverse to straighten the front end, and then finish the turn by continuing it. You can use this turn when parking in the following ways:
- Bringing the front end close to one of the vehicles that are next to the place where you are going to park.
- Putting the vehicle in reverse and straightening it to align it as much as possible with the parking spot. Make sure to check your mirrors and blind spots so you don't hit a pedestrian or car parked behind you.
Step 7. Enter the parking spot evenly from the three-point turn
Now that your car is more aligned with the location, you may only need to make slight adjustments to the path as you enter the parking space. Executing this move in tight spaces is a valuable skill when driving a large vehicle, so you may want to practice it. Read the article How to make a three point turn for more information.
Method 2 of 3: Backing Large Vehicles in a Parking Spot
Step 1. Identify your maneuver in reverse
There are four main types of reversing maneuvers you might encounter when driving large vehicles: straight, incline, dock, and parallel parking. Any of these can be identified by the following characteristics:
- Straight spots are generally located on a grid and form a perpendicular (L-shaped) angle to the traffic path through which vehicles have to pass to continue into or out of the parking area.
- Sloped spaces are generally located on a sloped grid. These are at an angle diagonal to the passage of traffic that vehicles use to enter or exit the parking area.
- Cargo bed spaces are almost always for semi-trailers. These require you to back straight through a narrow passage and then turn sharply to maneuver the truck so that it meets a loading or unloading platform, which is usually at right angles (L-shaped) to the passage.
- Parallel parking spaces are on the side of the road with either traffic, obstacles, or empty spaces before or after the parking spot. These require you to park your vehicle in reverse and can be particularly challenging. New drivers may want to avoid them if possible.
Step 2. Understand the mechanics of going into reverse
This will be slightly different for semi-trailers or vehicles with a trailer compared to normal large trucks that have a bed attached to the cab. While large flatbed trucks will turn similarly to smaller vehicles you are used to driving, these trucks will require quite a bit of extra space to complete the turn. Semi-trailers or vehicles with trailers will turn backward in the direction opposite to the direction in which you turn the tiller.
- Learning to park a semi-trailer or a vehicle with a trailer in reverse takes time and practice. You should consider finding an empty parking area and performing reverse maneuvers to get a feel for how the trailer reacts to turns.
- If you are preparing for a driving test or expect to have to park your large vehicle in reverse in a parking spot, you should buy some traffic cones at your local hardware store or put some obstacles, like a cheap folding chair, in an area empty parking lot. This way, you can practice your ability to avoid obstacles and guide the trailer or the rear end of the truck around them.
Step 3. Get past the parking spot
You need to get to the parking spot several inches further to make sure the turn is neither too sharp to hit the vehicles parked in the adjoining spot nor too wide to hit the vehicles parked on the other end. The more distance there is between the large vehicle and parked cars, the more distance you will have to straighten the rear end before approaching them. This extra space can be the difference between scratching another car and sliding into the parking space without incident.
- Lower your mirrors on both the driver's side and the passenger side. You need as clear a view of the mirrors as possible. Do this especially if it rains, as the drops can negatively impact your perspective or obstruct your view.
- Ask any passenger in the truck to get out of the vehicle. Even the best-behaved passengers can be obstacles when looking at your mirrors when backing up. A clear line of sight will help prevent potential damage to your vehicle or others.
Step 4. Check your mirrors and take a walk
Mirrors should give you a general sense of the dimensions of the area you will be parking in. However, they can sometimes distort the distance or miss important items such as thin metal signs, poles, etc. Take note of your surroundings in the mirrors and get out of the vehicle. Later:
- You will buy your evaluation by foot of the parking area with your view from the mirrors. Take note of any inconsistencies, hard-to-see obstacles, or obstacles that you may have overlooked.
- Evaluate the size of the parking space. If you think it might not be the right size or if you are afraid of your ability to park, it is probably best to find another spot.
- Adjust your mirrors when you return to the vehicle. Now that you have a more complete idea of the area in which you will park, you can adjust the mirrors to give you a better perspective of the area around you that you will be turning into. Mirrors will normally be positioned for driving in straight traffic, so adjusting them for a better view of the parking lot can be immensely helpful.
Step 5. Take a wide turn with the cockpit
For trucks with attached platforms, but especially for semi-trailers or vehicles with a trailer, you should make a wide turn with the front end away from the parking spot by turning the tiller in the direction of the parking spot. This will allow the rear end of the vehicle to turn sharply in the direction of the space you are trying to park in. Once the rear end is positioned diagonally toward the parking spot, straighten it by making a quarter turn or less with the tiller away from the parking spot.
- The more space there is between you and already parked vehicles or obstacles surrounding the area where you intend to park, the more time you have to align the rear end with the parking spot. This will give you more room to make small adjustments and guide the rear end into the parking spot.
- Except for the initial sharp turn toward the parking spot, which initiated the tight turn from the rear end of the truck into the parking spot, you should only make slight adjustments when backing up. Large settings will likely result in turning too much or not enough. If you feel that your angle of approach is too far, you should go out and start over.
- You must be very alert to the front and rear ends of your vehicle during these maneuvers. By making the wide turn with the cab and placing the rear end at an angle to the parking spot, it's easy to run into parked cars on the other side of where you're trying to park.
Step 6. Straighten the cabin
Once the rear end is aligned with the parking spot, the cab is probably still at an angle to it. Allow the rear end to drift a few more inches toward the parking spot, then turn the tiller in the direction that you made the first sharp turn (that is, in the direction of the parking spot). This should start to straighten the cab without changing the angle of the rear end. Use gentle rudder corrections for this point as over-turning could result in the angle of the trailer or rear end changing significantly.
- Some spots are too narrow or too steep to enter in reverse gear in one go. Even experienced drivers of large vehicles sometimes need several attempts before their vehicle is in the correct position when backing up from a parking spot.
- Adjust the vehicle as necessary. You may have to pull out of the parking spot, straighten the vehicle one more time, and get back into reverse evenly. When exiting, be careful that the rear end is not too close or too far from the vehicles around you.
Method 3 of 3: Parking Large Vehicles Safely
Step 1. Use the designated large vehicle parking lot
Many main road establishments, especially designated truck stops and rest stops, will have dedicated parking spaces for large vehicles, such as semi-trailers or moving trucks. Be alert to places like these as this type of parking will make your job much easier.
- Some semi-trailers can take up to four times the space occupied by a normal-size car.
- You may want to plan your route well in advance so that you know where you can easily park along the way. For example, if you live in the US, here are some popular websites that provide detailed resources on road information:
- http://www.truckstops.com/
- http://www.cdljobs.com/resources/trip-planning
- http://longhauler-usa.com/
Step 2. Know the legal expectations for large vehicles
Because the large vehicle can block the view of smaller vehicles and can sometimes create a dangerous blind spot on the road, there are laws to prevent this from happening. These laws will vary depending on the country but, in general, you should never:
- parking on a road that has a speed limit of more than 48 km / h (30 mph) unless the vehicle is disabled;
- parking on a road that blocks the view of the street from the vehicular access roads of the houses and from other streets;
- park with the vehicle facing away from traffic.
Step 3. Signal emergency stops shortly after they occur
When you are forced to pull over to the side of the road due to mechanical or other problems, you should place emergency warning devices no more than 10 minutes after stopping. Different types of vias will require different positions for these devices. For instance:
- On or near a one-way street or lane highway, you will need to position warning devices 10, 100, and 200 feet (3, 30, and 60 m) behind your vehicle.
- On a two-way street with traffic moving in either direction or on a single lane road, you should place warning devices 3 m (10 ft) in front of and behind the front and rear corners of your vehicle and 30 m (100 feet) in front of and behind your vehicle.
- On curves and hills that obstruct the view of your warning devices, you will need to position the device further back so that it can be seen clearly before the obstruction in view.
Step 4. Conduct a physical review of potential parking spots
Smaller parking lots and residential areas are built with smaller vehicles in mind. The best way to estimate the space of these places is to get out of the vehicle and get a clear view of your surroundings.
If possible, you should employ a spotter, who can give you directions as you safely enter the parking space
Step 5. Always use the parking brake
Larger vehicles are much heavier than the average sedan. If your vehicle were to experience critical brake failure, its weight would make it even more dangerous to others if it started rolling. You can easily prevent this by always using the parking brake as an additional safety measure.