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I always park "way out in the back 40" when parking in any sort of parking lot. In fact, I do not park in any lot where other cars will park next to me unless I can find that "special" space where I can either hang one side of the car out into the aisle or into the "stripey" zones. By doing this, I have greatly minimized my "door ding" expenses over the past 30 years or so.
One time many years ago, I parked in the farthest space in a Walmart lot. No car within 20 spaces of me.. unfortunately the lot was downhill. A shopping cart found my car. Sometimes things just don’t work out.
When we owned the SL450. I was at Lowe's. I parked way off all by myself. I came out and there was a car parked next to me all the way out in the boonies. Coincidentally, the person behind me as I walked was the owner of the other car. I told him I parked all the way out there to keep dings off my door. He said he was careful and parked by me because he knew I would not hit his car and he was safe there. LOL.
Hi Keith, I do the same but the wife doesn't understand and doesn't stop complaing so i decided is to drop the wife at the entrance and then pick her up from the entrance this way she won't have to walk any long distance. I thought she would appreciate but then she complained about the waiting time. Women 😂
Nah, they could park one spot away or in any of the other 200 empty spots, but right next to me, way in the far end of the lot is just looking for trouble.
I [usually] do the same thing! Although sometimes depending on the neighborhood I might try to park closer - remember our vehicles are high target for theft as well, especially these days.
I have noticed sometimes people try to crowd you anyway, like a growing sugar crystal lol. But sometimes another person with a car they clearly care for will park at a companionable but respectful distance, and it can be a kind of kinship.
I once came out from an Ikea to find a nicely kept XE10 Lexus IS300 with a manual parked a couple spots away from me. As I was loading up a young girl (the owner) came up and was loading, and I greeted her and we complimented each others' cars and ended up talking for a good 30 minutes. We exchanged information and I ended up connecting her with an acquaintance who got her a summer internship. We still stay in sporadic touch.
Goes to show, our passion is a social one. There's a lot to be said for carrying yourself with grace and pleasantness, no matter what you drive.
Back when my W201 was new (around 1988), one of the car-preservation techniques suggested by my local chapter of MB Club of America was to park next to other MB autos, if possible. They claimed that the average MB driver would appreciate another MB, and be careful around it.
These days, from what I see around here, I'm not so sure. . .
Hi Keith, I do the same but the wife doesn't understand and doesn't stop complaing so i decided is to drop the wife at the entrance and then pick her up from the entrance this way she won't have to walk any long distance. I thought she would appreciate but then she complained about the waiting time. Women 😂
Time to “train” that wife of yours and make her appreciate the fact that you keep your cars nice, save
money by not having to fix parking lot dings and keeping the resale value up by having a nice car.
I trained mine years ago, ………… , the extra walk is good!!!!!! You should try it.
Time to “train” that wife of yours and make her appreciate the fact that you keep your cars nice, save
money by not having to fix parking lot dings and keeping the resale value up by having a nice car.
I trained mine years ago, ………… , the extra walk is good!!!!!! You should try it.
I always look for the spaces like the one 3 spots north (or up) from where you're at. Now your car is only exposed on one side and I make sure its the passenger side that's exposed. If I do get a door ding at least this way I wont have to look at it every time I get in and out of my car. I'll gladly walk.
Great idea for a thread. Very descriptive and clever title.
I am a big fan of parking in the boonies. I could use a little exercise, and miss a few meals.
I generally try to back in to a corner spot.
Sometimes I can find parking spots closed off on both sides, and those are worth their weight in gold, if you could figure out how much a parking spot weighs.
A little pet peeve of mine is paid parking. They always come accompanied by the no responsibility sign. That is great work, if you can get it.
Another little pet peeve of mine is the expensive car, who parks in the front row, but takes up 3 parking spots.
Talk about wanting to have your cake and eat it. They want everyone else’s cake too.
I am not a big fan of those who park in handicapped spaces, and obviously not handicapped.
On the other hand, is it me, or is it the case that half the parking spots are now designated as handicapped.
If we ever get to the place where all the spots are handicapped, we are right back to square 1 now, aren’t we?
Just get PPF and have some peace of mind. It used to drive me insane initially, until I installed PPF on the front to protect against rock chips and on all doors to protect against dings. Now that is the first thing I schedule whenever I get a new car, then I can park in peace...
I used to only park out on the edges and long ago, I would take up two spots at an angle. That's no longer acceptable it seems so I park strategically based on current parking lot conditions. Typically that's next to an island and I hug the curb to maximize space on the other side, I don't park next to clunkers, and often look for that shade spot. I once parked nearly a quarter mile away (on my motorcycle) from the entrance of an Amazon wearhouse (long story) just to park in the only shade spot. The building is easily over half a mile long. If there isn't an ideal spot closer, it's out to Siberia I go. If there is a nice car out there, I may park next to them as I know they don't want to hit my car either. And we are both acting as a blocker for the other in case a rogue cart or other object comes that way.
I have noticed that many stores are designing their parking lots better these days. At the Publix I shop at, the spots are angled and plenty wide enough even for a large SUV to fit without encroaching on the spots beside it. In those lots I'm more inclined to park in a regular spot, but it all depends on the current conditions. If an edge spot is available, I always choose that. If it's crowded, I park further out and in a place a shopping cart will have obstacles before it can hit my car. It's a jungle out there.
