Friday Hulk: are car spaces too small?

[HULK_I6T]

Another hard week at work, time to wind down with the best way you know... a hulk thread.

Are car spaces too small? Not talking about private garages but communal parking areas, shops, workplaces, entertainment precincts? Creating an environment where cars will inevitably be damaged.

Its almost certain that if you park your car in shopping centres or other entertainment precincts your car will get damage... maybe not today or tomorrow but it will happen.

I contend that carspots are too small, jamming in as many cars as possible creating an environment for damage to occur, absolutely no margin for error. If you open your car fully (to load your car with kids or shopping etc) you will almost certainly strike the next car.

Is it the responsibility of the driver to ensure their doors dont go flying open onto other cars, that they dont back into other cars, hit other cars with a trolley, rest your shopping on other cars, consider a car park as a wrecking yard where you can remove parts from other cars etc etc..but you cant control the mindset, ill intention and recklessness of other people. This situation made worse by the likely cost of repairs. Most people who cause damage to others will try and flee the scene to avoid paying any compensation.

I contend that car spots are just too small... we know people are rough as guts in shopping centres, we cant stop that..but those small spots just ensure the damage happens, zero margin for error..management of these venues should take responsibility to ensure customers cars are not damaged..not create environments where its certain to happen.

For instance, How can you blame young kids for swinging open doors onto other cars? They dont know any better... the other cars are parked too close and not the fault of the person parking their car either.

Yes other drivers should be more careful and take responsibility for their own property and others.... but the car spaces are too small!!

Anyone with a decent car is mad to leave it in a communal carpark. I wont visit places with highly congested car parks.. i like to park well away from other cars in car parks, park next to polls or even hog two spots.

What can be done to ensure the minimum spec size car spot is adequate?...larger? Im sure insurance companies would support this..

[1TUFFUTE]

I'll either park in the disabled parks which are plenty wide......or suffer a longer walk and just park across two spaces where there's plenty of empty spaces at the other end of the car park.
Most people won't own up if they ding your car so it's not worth it. Spaces are deffinately too small. They Have been forever but they want as many customers as possible and that's all they worry about.

One of my favourite pastimes (more interesting then enjoyable) is watching people trying to reverse park along a street. It seems soo difficult, even in small cars.
Either way your stuffed because car park damage is normally not enough to warrant your insurance excess! If possible, ride a bike ;)

[SSD-85]

Very rarely is a parking space too small unless you happen to own an F Truck. But if you don't then the most likely scenarios are;

- Your parking skills suck, or
- The douche in the adjacent bays parking sucks

But I live in backwards QLD. So I cant speak for parking dimensions in other states....

[LoudPipes]

Originally Posted by 1TUFFUTE

I'll either park in the disabled parks which are plenty wide......

Sadly the extra width required for the disable is not available to most people.

I've just started to use them as my wife now has a permit after her recent stroke.

Up until then I’d park as far from everyone as possible and cross my fingers for luck.

The bays are plenty wide enough if everyone took care when opening their doors.

Unfortunately the inevitable will eventually happen.

[1TUFFUTE]

Originally Posted by LoudPipes

Sadly the extra width required for the disable is not available to most people.

I've just started to use them as my wife now has a permit after her recent stroke.

Up until then I’d park as far from everyone as possible and cross my fingers for luck.

The bays are plenty wide enough if everyone took care when opening their doors.

Unfortunately the inevitable will eventually happen.

With my issue...if the permit parks are taken(I have a permit)....I can't open the door enough to get out in a regular parking space. But yes I'm a minority and yes, if everyone parked correctly in their space there should be enough space that damage is rarity.
Crossing fingers for luck helps too ;)

[mik]

some are a bit tight , and some shopping centre car parks suck, meadowfair (broady under cover car park comes to mind.
but even when theres ample space, 50 percent of the drivers cant park/drive in /drive out or realise they just backed into my car :(,
meh....... perhaps computer driven cars will be a good thing ??

[Ben73]

Currently in Los Angeles and all spaces are too small and no one can park straight. Luckily I'm only in a hire car, which by the way has a number of marks all over it and only 12,000 miles on it. Looking at cars around me in car parks they all seem to have some sort of damage and every car is filthy, so I guess they don't care too much about their cars.
The driving is amazing. Such chaos but it seams to work when everyone accepts it and gets on with life instead of stopping in the middle of the road to abuse someone like people do in Australia.

Parking spaces in Australia are big enough for the average car. I usually have very little problems with the Ranger. Smaller cars have even less problems. Only problem is Ranger is either the length or a bit longer than the space. But usually that's ok and doesn't cause problems.

[LoudPipes]

Originally Posted by Ben73

Currently in Los Angeles ............

Such chaos but it seams to work when everyone accepts it and gets on with life instead of stopping in the middle of the road to abuse someone like people do in Australia.

Road rage in LA has decreased in proportion with the guns in the glove box getting bigger.

[burnz]

that's why American cars have large glove boxes, to fit there 20 calibre eastwood's in..

[Lunch]

First time ive found a hulk thread completely useless, its like popping my ford forums cherry

[Ford17]

There's also the issue of the deep concrete kerbs car parks insist on building into their entries and exits.

The multitude of black marks which accumulate on these things suggest many a wheel has been scraped and likely damaged, while cars negotiate the way through.

I go through these obstacles super slow, even if it annoys those in line behind me.

[PHawk]

I say yes, parking spaces are way too small, mind you a 300 is like trying to park a country :o)

[xisled]

I have found that nearly all spaces I have parked will fit my GT, shopping centers, super market car parks, where ever I park. I will park anywhere there is a free spot. Life is to short to worry about stuff like that.

In the 7 years I have owned the GT, it has never been hit.

On another note, someone that I used to be friends with, if he seen someone taking up two spots or parked in a funny way so others couldn't park next to them. He would key the car. I don't agree with that and that is why I am not friends with him.

[jmack]

i dont mind the walk so i normally park as far away as i can from the entrance where no ones wants to park until i ####ing put my car there .spaces everywhere and some douche has to park beside you.and no they are not normally cars of the same calibre thinking they will be safe next to mine but usually run of the mill shopping trolleys.size of car parks arent my problem its the suspension killing,filling rattling things they call speed humps which they to do something about

[jmack]

On another note, someone that I used to be friends with, if he seen someone taking up two spots or parked in a funny way so others couldn't park next to them. He would key the car. I don't agree with that and that is why I am not friends with him.[/QUOTE]

id love to to catch him doing that .i bet he would enjoy sucking a purified big mac through a straw for the rest of his life

[superyob]

Yes!! Emphatically so!! Somewhere between the the 80s and now, car park spaces have become smaller. There is no way this would have worked in the days when Falcon and Kingswood were the predominant vehicles. I can squeeze into modern carparks in my ZD but only because of very light power steering. Even then, it can be difficult to open the doors fully...

[superyob]

Originally Posted by HULK_I6T

Another hard week at work, time to wind down with the best way you know... a hulk thread.

Are car spaces too small? Not talking about private garages but communal parking areas, shops, workplaces, entertainment precincts? Creating an environment where cars will inevitably be damaged.

Its almost certain that if you park your car in shopping centres or other entertainment precincts your car will get damage... maybe not today or tomorrow but it will happen.

I contend that carspots are too small, jamming in as many cars as possible creating an environment for damage to occur, absolutely no margin for error. If you open your car fully (to load your car with kids or shopping etc) you will almost certainly strike the next car.

Is it the responsibility of the driver to ensure their doors dont go flying open onto other cars, that they dont back into other cars, hit other cars with a trolley, rest your shopping on other cars, consider a car park as a wrecking yard where you can remove parts from other cars etc etc..but you cant control the mindset, ill intention and recklessness of other people. This situation made worse by the likely cost of repairs. Most people who cause damage to others will try and flee the scene to avoid paying any compensation.

I contend that car spots are just too small... we know people are rough as guts in shopping centres, we cant stop that..but those small spots just ensure the damage happens, zero margin for error..management of these venues should take responsibility to ensure customers cars are not damaged..not create environments where its certain to happen.

For instance, How can you blame young kids for swinging open doors onto other cars? They dont know any better... the other cars are parked too close and not the fault of the person parking their car either.

Yes other drivers should be more careful and take responsibility for their own property and others.... but the car spaces are too small!!

Anyone with a decent car is mad to leave it in a communal carpark. I wont visit places with highly congested car parks.. i like to park well away from other cars in car parks, park next to polls or even hog two spots.

What can be done to ensure the minimum spec size car spot is adequate?...larger? Im sure insurance companies would support this..

I would contend that the situation (in bold) is compounded by the culture of entitlement evident in today's welfare society. Many do not have to work for what they have and thus show no respect for the property of other people. Hence car doors will always cause damage in tight spots...

[mechanic]

Definitely, just try the new Bunnings in Cairns.
Not just the car park spaces, getting the Falcon ute in and out of the place is not easy as the radius of the curves is very small plus there's garden edges with a sharp drop off on all sides.
Forcing us into the rice rockets one millimeter at a time.

[Whitey-AMG]

Tight spot or not, if I see kiddy seats in the back, I leave and seek out another spot. Car parks are a war zone and your door skins are flack jackets.

[Adamz Ghia]

Some places the parks themselves are fine, but the distance between the rows of parks are narrow as, barely enough room for two cars to pass and hard as hell to reverse out of. Hence the reason I always reverse park.

My pet hate is people who park dead on the line. I had use of an ex taxi for a while and my hobby was if I saw that I'd park next to them with my taxi dead on the line of my park next to them. Was always fun watching go them have to crawl over from the passenger side.

I'm tolerant of mistakes on the road, no one is perfect and sometimes when quick decisions have to be made we bugger up. But to not spend 20 seconds to correct a bad park is plain dumb.

[CoupeKing]

The less car-parking space they give us....the bigger the store they get $$$$$

[MAD]

I actually had a thought (Brain fart) the other day that perhaps we (car community) should invent a 'safety car' (Think safety house) sticker so you can identify who is safe to park next to.


I think the "throw the hands up in the air and give up" attitude is all wrong.
You can't blame the shopping centre for other people's actions.

They have definitely gotten smaller though. IMO

[Peter B - CV8]

Yes - car spots are getting smaller (but then so is the average car size).

[Charliewool]

There are Australian standards for parking spaces...
http://www.google.com.au/url?sa=t&rc...CdupY36tn_gULw

[HULK_I6T]

Originally Posted by MAD

I actually had a thought (Brain fart) the other day that perhaps we (car community) should invent a 'safety car' (Think safety house) sticker so you can identify who is safe to park next to.


I think the "throw the hands up in the air and give up" attitude is all wrong.
You can't blame the shopping centre for other people's actions.

They have definitely gotten smaller though. IMO

we have never seen eye to eye on most topics but I have to agree with your safety car sticker idea.

Only car enthusiasts would know what the sticker meant..

essentially you would have to pledge the following...

that if you park next to me, I will guarantee....

1. my car doors will not come into contact with your car
2. I will not rest my shopping on your car
3. I will not remove parts from your car
4. If I see anyone damage your car in any way, I will take the number plate and report it
5. I expect the same courtesy from other drivers.
6. Anyone that drives my car must adbide by these rules.

[Ross 1]

If I'm designing or landscaping a commercial property or units we have to adhere to the specs in Charliewool's post. 5.4m x 2.5m min.

[vztrt]

Originally Posted by Peter B - CV8

Yes - car spots are getting smaller (but then so is the average car size).

You mean the record amount of SUV's and jacked up 4x4 utes are smaller the the Falcon/Commodores of days gone?

[HULK_I6T]

Originally Posted by Ross 1

If I'm designing or landscaping a commercial property or units we have to adhere to the specs in Charliewool's post. 5.4m x 2.5m min.

these are insufficient.. A large SUV with kids swinging doors everywhere will collect the next car, even if everyone parked perfectly in the middle of each spot (which they never do).. Or at Bunnings, someone has some large equipment thay are trying to ram in their car, open the doors and whack..

I saw a lady the other day in a people mover, slide her car ride along the next car, scraped the whole car.. pushing the next car over, she simply went back and forth a few times until she could get out of her car, she left the car there and went shopping!!! didnt even try and run off.. The owner of the next car dont have to be colombo to work out where all the damage come from, the next car is still there!!!

Sure a shopping centre might get a few less spots in by making carspots generous, but to take care of their patrons and repeat business... its well worth it.

I simply do not park in certain carparks anymore..

[Big_Daz]

Well, i'll be stuffed.. a hulk thread that doesn't make me want to bang my head on a desk....

I live in Brisbane and have found that carparks here aren't too bad.. though the ones at my workplace are bloody small.. My Mazda barely fits and if someone parks beside you its a bugger to get in/out.. And that's with parking bang in the middle of the space... Have also found that the carparks in Sydney are small compared to the ones up here in Sunny Qld...

[MAD]

Originally Posted by HULK_I6T

we have never seen eye to eye on most topics but I have to agree with your safety car sticker idea.

Only car enthusiasts would know what the sticker meant..

essentially you would have to pledge the following...

that if you park next to me, I will guarantee....

1. my car doors will not come into contact with your car
2. I will not rest my shopping on your car
3. I will not remove parts from your car
4. If I see anyone damage your car in any way, I will take the number plate and report it
5. I expect the same courtesy from other drivers.
6. Anyone that drives my car must adbide by these rules.

I'm full of great ideas.



This sticker would be about the owner of the car pledging to protect other's cars.
#5 is irrelevant.

Replace it with:
5. If something does happen, I will leave my details and pay for repairs.