Just wanted to get some tips from the experts as to how to gauge distance from the front of the vehicle while in the driver's seat...since the hood is pretty much "out of sight' (my previous cars had some hood to gauge with) ie, some imaginary marker on the windshield sides, etc/ Also any help for gauging the distance for the back.. Will this be "a trial & error"? Thanks Ben
Yes There have been other threads for this so look around. One thing I would suggest is to learn to cue off things other than the corners of the car since you can't see them. Relative position of other cars for example. If you are parking in a lot and the person in front or behind hasn't parked badly, line up with their car, use the cars beside you to gauge distance in - if your steering wheel is in line with theirs, you have a good idea that you are not too far forward or back. Same thing with parallel parking. Gauge the distance between the parking meter (for example) and the cars in front and behind your space, then relate that to the passenger window, A & B pillars, etc. Remember that if you can still see something, you aren't just about to hit it
a good rule of thumb i use is to look at the car next to me and pull in until my door is even with theirs. other than that, the side mirrors are excellent for judging distance when backing in.
I agree with Dave -- I did a fair amount of parallel parking this weekend with a rental Prius, and the side mirrors were a huge help (no passenger side mirror on my current car, an '87 Civic.) Suggestions from other threads include having one of those convex "fish-eye" mirrors attached to one or both side mirrors; and the idea Bob Allen and Bob Andersen came up with, of attaching a fake antenna to your front license plate. (See the link for a photo.)
fake antenna? of for point of reference?? hmm, that does sound plausible as long as it doesnt bother my vision or whistle when driving. you could always get one of those "curb scrapers" mounted on the front license plate and have it extend out wards instead of down so it can let you know when you are about to hit something...of course... then again...it might not work in a diff angle.
I think those would be a great benefit to me; but it would also make me feel as if I had reached my 80s...
LOL... wasnt going to mention that part but...my other suggestion was a piece of glass like the ones used in bifocles mounted to the hood orament... hehehe
or FLER (pronounced "Fleer" for forward looking electronic radar) like the cops use for looking for people at night... its said to be adjustable for nearly any type of object including programing in things like cars that have been parked for 30 mins or less.... obviously that wouldnt work for the Prius as its "heat" signature is totally different.... so now we have revealed another reason to buy a Prius!!
Not always an advantage. I was watching a traffic policewoman booking cars parked in a loading area. She was touching the front of each car, and if it was cold writing a parking ticket. When she got to mine She felt it was cold and was about to start doing a ticket for me. I pointed out I had only been in the shop opposite and was well withing the time limit, but she would not accept that as the engine was cold, so I had been there too long. I then pointed out that in the MR2 Roadster (spyder) the engine is at the back and she should tray there. She nearly burnt herself on the engine cover She wasnt impressed, but I didnt get a ticket. So a cool motor isnt always an advantage.
ummm... isnt the point of this forum to encourage people to buy Priuses? arent we here to help dispell the misinformation that seems to be pervasive throughout the media? but then again... maybe the above should be a comment not on the drawbacks of buying a Prius but of the amount of money we pay police officers to go out and harrass otherwise law abiding citizens...
California Highway Patrol (CHP) teaches officers to judge front and rear distance compared to another vehicle thus: In traffic, or parking, you should be able to see the tires of the vehicle in front of you (or behind you). This distance is approximately equal to one car length. This will help keep you from being rear-ended and forced into another vehicle. Parking for Prii - side center points, and using a small antenna in front (to indicate the front of the vehicle).
My Prius mpg average is going up. I find that the highway actually helps my mileage--strange...first 1000 miles avg. was 52.1 per trip computer--now at 7600 miles its 52.5 and I am now driving the car normally not really trying to be economical.
