So I'm about a month into ownership and have been pretty anal about parking. It seems no matter what though some idiot is floating around out there. What are your parking practices like?

About two weeks ago I was at a restaurant for lunch. I parked over in front of a closed down retail store with a larger empty parking lot and walked (yay s2000 = manual cardio). I come out to find a couple of vehicles parked around me and right off the bat notice a nickle sized paint chip and three cracks in my rear bumper. The SUV behind me didn't have any damage or paint on it, so I don't think it was it. Likely some idiot who hit me then moved.

We left the restaurant and proceeded to go to Barnes and Noble which was in a mall/shopping center. I parked ALL the way at the bottom of the parking lot. There were no cars anywhere around and parking spaces as far as the eye can see. I come out and guess what, there is an idiot in an SUV parked right beside me. Parking spaces abound. I was furious to the point I wanted to do something foolish (just to teach them a lesson), however found no damage on my car so refrained from outlandish acts. Had there been a ding in my door I can't say the same would have happened. (keep in mind I was already in rage mode from the idiot hitting my rear just before that)

 

Lol, same happens to me. I will park my car out towards the back where no one is, I will come back out and have 3 people parked around me. Just the way it is. Best thing to do is find a median or a curb and HUG it. Better yet, if you can find one of those spots with a curb on both sides then your set.

 

I try to park in an end spot, horizontal spaces, or distant.

true about thinking you are isolated and finding yourself at the center of a new group.

-jazzman

 

Where there are only 1 or 0 spots available to park next to me.

 

#1 I try to park at the end of a row where there is a curb on one side, eliminates the possibility of damage at least on the curbed side. I also
try to have the non-curbed side be the drivers side, making it easier to check for damage since I get in the car on that side anyway.

#2 Park as far away from the main clusters of cars as possible. 1 thing to remember on this, be careful if the vacant area is downhill from
the main area, especially in a mall with grocery carts rolling around! I made that mistake and had a cart roll into the door of my S.

#3 If neither of those are an option, try to park between two nicer cars hoping that they will be more careful getting in and out.

#4 STAY AWAY FROM MINIVANS! Kids don't care about what they slam into when they get out.

 

Sometimes I'll take two spaces...and of course deep and away from the general parking area

 

Taking 2 spaces is pretty much asking for attention. I also find a spot w/ a curb and hug the curb. That leaves tons of room on the other side to help prevent any damage from careless people.

A friend who also does this came out to find that an SUV had parked right next to him when there were dozens of empty spots that were closer to the store. The SUV actually parked as far away from his car while still being within the lines of his own space. My friend figured it was someone who wanted to help "protect" his car by making sure that no morons could get that spot. I wish more people were like that. He basically had a curb/island on one side, then about 3.5-4 ft of space, and then the SUV.

 

I remember seeing some statistics about this a few years ago. As expected, parking away from other cars (farther from building entrance) greatly reduces the chance of door dings, but it vastly increases your odds of getting hit by a moving car.

 

i always park at the end. and if possible ill find the last spot, that also has the yellow stripes on the other side of it (hope you guys know what im talking about) and park with about 2 feet of my car into the yellow stripes. that way even if they do get next to you, hopefully they stay in their lane, and they can open their door as wide as they want without harming your baby.

 

At work I park towards the back of the rear parking lot and leave at least one space between me and any other car that might happent to park back there. For the most part this section is also where other sports car drivers who care about their car park, but somehow there is usually an idiot in an SUV or truck that doesn't notice the pattern and parks right in the midst of our cars. The downside is that across the fence from the parking lot is a baseball field, so every time they are practicing I have to decide if I would rather take my chances parking in the front of the parking lot with the people who don't care about their cars may damage my car, or park in the back where a foul ball may damage my car. In the end I just have to use my best judgement on where to park and remind myself that I have comprehensive insurance if something does happen.