Backing into your own driveway on a quiet street...why?

[Anonymous]

Not sure about your exact circumstances but I back in 90% of the time because it's easier to access the trunk when it's closer to my front door and then exit right next to to my door when I back in. It's just easier to leave. I am a work-first, play later person, so it's just a sensible habit (back in now, easily drive out later).

I legitimately do not understand the issue people have with backing in. You can back in or back out. Both take a little more time. It's literally the same. Getting mad in parking lots about waiting for people to back in is intellectually inconsistent because if you don't have to wait for someone to back in, you WILL have to wait for them to back out.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I truly don't get the hate on this board for backing into spaces. I can back in faster than I can back out, given the limited visibility when I'm backing out. Why wouldn't I use the method that is faster overall?

+1

Love how the people who can’t back in properly ascribe “lower class” characteristics to those who do.

I back in often and everywhere (hah!) because:
1) It’s easier in tighter spaces
2) It’s safer/easier to pull out when I’m leaving
3) If you have a larger car and know how to drive it, it really isn’t harder than pulling straight in/head first.

And that’s really it. And I do this in my tight, downtown garage. Most people do.

Did this when I drove a smaller car downtown too.

[Anonymous]

If the battery dies, it’s easier to get another car to jump it if the car is facing forward. Especially if they are on a slope - little chance of rolling the car out.

Also, if on a slope, facing forward, gives them better view and more control to get out slowly and not hit anyone, like my stupid neighbor who almost hit my dc who was walking to our house and she revved the engine backwards up at top reverse speed without stopping at the edge to check if there is anyone in the street.

[Anonymous]

I do my backing when it's the safest, and that's usually when I arrive home. How do I know how busy the road will be when I'm going to work?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:We live on a quiet, dead-end, residential street. We have two sets of neighbors who universally back their cars into their driveways, 100% of the time. One of the sets not only backs in, but also parks at the very bottom of the driveway, furthest from their front door. Its like they are worried about making a quick getaway or something! Yes, I know its "none of my business" but I'm so curious why they do this!! It is extremely easy to back out of the driveways on our street - no one is ever coming.

Anyone have a hypothetical guess why someone would do this?

why do you care?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I come home and park in the driveway when nobody is around. But when I leave in the morning, people are out walking their dogs etc. So recognizing that I’m going to have to back up at one of these times, and that my view is more restricted when I’m backing up, I do the harder backup when fewer people are around.

There is so much backup hate on this board, it’s weird.

I kind of hate the backing in to spaces too until but many of my neighbors do it because it is safer to pull out than back out on our street. Many people speed in my neighborhood and with a curve in the road nearby too many neighbors have almost been hit. Also people who have electric cars often have to back in to be able to charge them.

[Anonymous]

I do that in winter because then the sun hits my front windshield and it’s easier to scrape, or there’s enough sun to melt the light ice altogether. I also park close to the end of the driveway because I have a driveway that cuts across the front of my house, and I don’t want the car to be so close to the house because I prefer to look at a bit of open space when I look out my window.

All that said, it doesn’t matter to me one bit how other people park their cars. Just don’t block the sidewalk and we’re good.

[Anonymous]

Most of the people I witness backing in aren’t very good at it. It takes them multiple steps to get their cars into the spot. They make other cars wait while they figure it out.

I prefer pulling in headfirst. One turn in and when I back out, I turn out and then go.

Don’t get me started on the drivers who back into Costco spots.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Most of the people I witness backing in aren’t very good at it. It takes them multiple steps to get their cars into the spot. They make other cars wait while they figure it out.

I prefer pulling in headfirst. One turn in and when I back out, I turn out and then go.

Don’t get me started on the drivers who back into Costco spots.

This is the thing. Every time there's a thread on this, the back-in parkers show up and claim they are excellent drivers who can do it in one shot. Yet, we sit there and watch you doing this, and you're taking multiple attempts, clearly not capable of doing it efficiently or correctly, and wasting everyone's time. Maybe those of you posting here are the rare ones who can actually do it well, but observations suggest that you are very uncommon.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Most of the people I witness backing in aren’t very good at it. It takes them multiple steps to get their cars into the spot. They make other cars wait while they figure it out.

I prefer pulling in headfirst. One turn in and when I back out, I turn out and then go.

Don’t get me started on the drivers who back into Costco spots.

This is the thing. Every time there's a thread on this, the back-in parkers show up and claim they are excellent drivers who can do it in one shot. Yet, we sit there and watch you doing this, and you're taking multiple attempts, clearly not capable of doing it efficiently or correctly, and wasting everyone's time. Maybe those of you posting here are the rare ones who can actually do it well, but observations suggest that you are very uncommon.

Or someone sees someone taking more than one try and posts as if all people who back in have trouble.

As someone who regularly backs in in one try, I notice that many people who pull in park crooked and then have difficulty backing out or require those around them to have difficulty backing out. Almost everyone who backs in parks straight.

[Anonymous]

Plugging in my EV

[Anonymous]

Personal preference. Unless you want to mandate turn tables in every drive it should remain personal preference.

I prefer to back in. Same as in retail parking lots.

Foolish to find fault with either. PRO's and CON's to both but it is a 2 step process. Backing up is inevitable. The person that lives there knows best approach to use so deal with their right to do so. Both ways require timing to be least disruptive to the flow of traffic and pedestrians.

If you have a problem with that, enter a demolition derby and take your road rage out there. Feel free to use forward or reverse.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I come home and park in the driveway when nobody is around. But when I leave in the morning, people are out walking their dogs etc. So recognizing that I’m going to have to back up at one of these times, and that my view is more restricted when I’m backing up, I do the harder backup when fewer people are around.

There is so much backup hate on this board, it’s weird.

It is so much safer to back in, even on quiet streets there are sometimes other cats or pedestrians. I personally don't back in because I'm not great at it, but it is the safer way to go.

[Anonymous]

Who are all these backer-uppers with old cars that don't have back up cameras that make it so easy to back in in one shot?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Who are all these backer-uppers with old cars that don't have back up cameras that make it so easy to back in in one shot?

Just common folk who know how to drive. It is rather uncommon. The "know how to drive part".