Parking Pawl Poll

[Intuit]

What gear do you *typically* use as your parking pawl?

 

[FJ16]

Neutral + Handbrake... it's just what I've always done.

 

[haste]

1st gear and handbrake all the time

 

[FocusedSlayer]

1st gear and handbrake all the time

Same here 😊

 

[green_henry]

I only park it in 1st if I'm on an incline; otherwise, it stays in neutral

 

[Sprinkle_Star]

if the front is pointing uphill, I pop it into R
if not, then im always using 1st

 

[maestromaestro]

Houston = 1st gear, no parking brake

 

[averyislost]

Neutral + Handbrake if no hills

 

[Erick_V]

3rd and handbrake. Sounds weird but requires no lateral movement. Shut the car off, push forward and handbrake

 

[Intuit]

@Erick_V - So far you and I are the only oddballs. I use reverse. But I do rest on the hand brake, rather than the transmission and engine. I used to turn the wheels into the curb but haven't parked on any *really* steep hills lately.

If someone selects "No Gear" (a.k.a. Neutral) the hand brake is implied. Though it's possible to use external means, such as a wheel chock. Prior car I'd witnessed the set handbrake snapping from taught to full-release because I'd unwittingly set it on the edge of a tooth. Over the decades and due to worn out teeth on the rear brake adjusters the hand brake gradually lost its ability to hold the vehicle on steeper and less steeper hills. Engine compression, (though 100% health even for its advanced mileage), was incapable of holding the vehicle on steep hills. (this is not unusual - and there's video of vehicles compression-walking up/down hills) It was during that time that I kept a wheel chock in the car and would put it on a wheel after hopping out. (and hoping no one would mess with it. Most of the time I'd just park around the corner, rather than on a steep hill.

 

[Remi]

I live in Miami which is notoriously flat, so I usually just use the handbrake.

But I grew up in the northeast where hills are common, there I was used to using first gear and turning my wheels towards the curb.

 

[kivnul]

1st gear only unless on a steep hill then I’ll add the handbrake. I don’t use reverse for some reason even tho I back in to park half the time.

 

[Dpro]

If parking facing uphill on a hill its always handbrake usually first or third and front wheels rotated to the left against curb. On downhill always the same except wheels rotated to right into curb( Its actually a parking law) This will keep a car from compression walking down a hill if someone forgets to the put their handbrake on.

 

[Intuit]

On really steep hills, even mid/high curbs aren't good enough hold a vehicle. I was sure to test that before parking it around the corner; off the hill.

 

[Dpro]

On really steep hills, even mid/high curbs aren't good enough hold a vehicle. I was sure to test that before parking it around the corner; off the hill.

I think this all depends on how high the curbs are, some cities put in high curbs others don’t. Lol

 

[beehous]

When I park at home (flat) it depends on what I used pulling into the driveway lol. Sometimes it's reverse, sometimes it's first, but I always use handbrake as well. In my old 09 focus, the handbrake wasn't all that strong and i woke up to the car at the bottom of my old driveway once. Ever since I have it in 1st or R.

 

[DoomsdayMelody]

If parking facing uphill on a hill its always handbrake usually first or third and front wheels rotated to the left against curb. On downhill always the same except wheels rotated to right into curb( Its actually a parking law) This will keep a car from compression walking down a hill if someone forgets to the put their handbrake on.

Why third? Aren’t you giving up the gearing advantage that gravity has to overcome by using a numerically smaller gear ratio?


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[Dpro]

Why third? Aren’t you giving up the hearing advantage that gravity has to overcome by using a numerically smaller gear ratio?


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True that was not thinking about it when I typed it. I do usually 1st or 2nd.

 

[Clint Beastwood]

I use first or reverse when parking, with ebrake. On hills, I usually use a little plastic wheel chock thingy from amazon. Having owned lots of old Italian and other unreliable cars over the years, I have 5-10 of the little plastic wheel chocks in the garage that I toss 2 of on top of the spare tire in each car. Makes roadside jacking (lol) feel safer, and parking on hills.. well if you own an Italian car from the 60’s you know that trusting the ebrake to hold a car is foolish. They’re dirt cheap and make roadside repairs a lot safer. I also have a bunch of tiny air compressors (the size of a sandwich) in each car.

 

[Pablo Pistoffo]

reverse, because Saab habits die hard, and it is lower than first in many cars