Parallel Parking
Parallel parking with the 1-2-1 method: the reference points for each turn of the wheel, how to use your left mirror and reversing camera, and what the examiner looks for.
6
Steps
Hard
Difficulty
1-2-1
Steering Method
2
Car Lengths Max
Watch the Method
Step-by-Step Guide
Pull Up Behind, Then Move Off Alongside
On the test the examiner first asks you to pull up on the left, well before a parked car. They then point it out and ask you to drive up alongside and reverse in behind it. Move off at an angle with mirrors, right blind spot and a signal if it helps, then stop alongside the parked car, about a metre out and level with it or slightly ahead.
Observe and Select Reverse
Select reverse, then look all around: both mirrors, both blind spots and out of the rear window. If anyone is coming, wait for them to pass.
Reverse to Your First Turn Point
Creep back in a straight line until the back of your car is level with the back of the parked car. Some instructors use your back wheels level with its back bumper instead.
ONE Turn Left
Turn the steering wheel one full turn to the left and keep creeping back. Hold it until the car is at about 40 to 45 degrees to the kerb: the kerb shows in your left mirror and your front is clear of the parked car.
TWO Turns Right
Turn the wheel two full turns to the right. The first turn brings the wheels straight, the second swings the front of the car in towards the kerb while the back keeps coming in.
ONE Turn Left to Straighten
As the car comes parallel to the kerb, turn the wheel one turn back to the left so the wheels are straight. Finish close to the kerb without touching it, and within about two car lengths of the parked car. Secure the car.
Observation Checklist
Common Mistakes & How to Fix Them
Going too fast
Keep the speed below walking pace using clutch control (manual) or gentle brake (automatic). Slow speed gives you time to steer and to look.
Forgetting observations
Check all mirrors and blind spots before each steering change, and keep looking all around while the car moves. Observation is one of the two things the examiner marks.
Ending up too far from the kerb
Usually from going two turns right too early. If you end up a long way out, pull forward a little and go back in once, calmly.
Hitting the kerb
Usually from holding one turn left too long. Watch the kerb in your left mirror; as soon as it shows and you are at about 40 to 45 degrees, go two turns right.
Starting too far from the reference car
Position yourself no more than about a metre away from the parked car. Too far makes the angle much harder to judge.
Mounting the kerb
If your rear wheel touches or mounts the kerb, stop immediately, pull forward, and reposition. Mounting the kerb can be a serious fault.
Using Your Left Mirror
Your left door mirror tells you when to go from one turn left to two turns right, and when you are parallel.
Tilt it down first
If your car allows it, tilt the left door mirror down a little before you start, so you can see the kerb and your back wheel. Many cars do this automatically in reverse. Put it back before you drive off.
Watch the kerb appear
As you swing in on one turn left, the kerb comes into the left mirror. That, with the car at about 40 to 45 degrees, is when you go two turns right.
Read the gap
If the kerb is closing in fast, you are coming in steeply; ease the steering. When the kerb runs parallel to the car in the mirror, you are parallel.
Mirrors are not enough on their own
DVSA lists relying on mirrors alone as a fault. Glance in the mirror, then look all around, then back to the mirror.
Reversing Cameras and Parking Sensors
If your car has them, they help. They do not replace looking around.
You can use them on your test
GOV.UK lists parking sensors and cameras among the features you can use during the test. Self-parking cannot be used and must be switched off.
Use them as an aid
DVSA’s advice is to use reversing cameras and parking sensors as a helpful aid while continuing to check all around.
Know what the lines mean
Most cameras show guide lines for the width of the car and how far back you are. Learn your car’s lines in practice, not on test day.
A camera cannot see the sides
It shows what is directly behind you, not a car, cyclist or pedestrian coming from the side. Keep looking all around.
Sources: GOV.UK, Using your own car for your test and DVSA Ready to Pass.
What the Examiner Looks For
From the guidance DVSA publishes for its examiners. You will be asked to pull up before a parked car on the left, then park behind it.
Within about two car lengths
DVSA expects you to finish within about two car lengths of the vehicle in front and parallel to the pavement.
Close, but not touching
Touching or driving over the pavement is a fault. Get reasonably close to the kerb without touching it.
Observation
Effective all-round observation throughout, and proper care for other road users while you reverse.
Control
Slow and smooth. Having to reposition the car a lot, because of poor control, is a fault.
Sources: DVSA, Carrying out driving tests: examiner guidance and Understanding your driving test result.
Test Day Tips
Take your time
There's no time limit on manoeuvres. Slow and controlled beats fast and sloppy every time.
Talk yourself through it
Mentally (or quietly out loud) narrate each step. This keeps you focused and helps avoid skipping observations.
Don't panic if it goes wrong
A sensible correction is fine: stop, look all around, pull forward a little and go back in. Just avoid repositioning a lot.
Watch for traffic
If a car approaches while you're mid-manoeuvre, stop and wait, then look all around again before you carry on.
Use your reference points
Your instructor will have taught you specific reference points. Trust them. They're based on your seating position and the car you're using.
Count the turns
Say it to yourself: one left, two right, one left. Turning the wheel the right number of times matters more than speed.
Parallel Parking FAQs
It describes the steering: one turn of the wheel left, then two turns right, then one turn left. Reverse until the back of your car is level with the back of the parked car, turn one left until you are at about 40 to 45 degrees and the kerb shows in your left mirror, turn two right to swing the front in, then one left to straighten as you come parallel.
Reasonably close without touching it. DVSA lists touching or driving over the pavement as a fault. Many instructors aim for about 30 cm, roughly a foot.
Within about two car lengths of it, and parallel to the kerb. That is what DVSA expects. If you are parking between two cars, the gap will be about two car lengths.
Yes. GOV.UK lists parking sensors and cameras among the features you can use during the test, but you must still look all around. Self-parking cannot be used.
Stop and let it pass, then check all around again before you carry on. Examiners expect proper care for other road users while you reverse.
A sensible correction is fine, such as pulling forward a little to get closer to the kerb. DVSA lists having to reposition the car a lot, because of poor control, as a fault, so aim for one tidy correction rather than many.
You do not signal while reversing in. Signal left before you pull up alongside the parked car if it would help other road users.
DVSA tells examiners to ask you to pull up on the left, well before a parked car they point out. You then drive up alongside it and reverse in, either behind that one car (finishing within about two car lengths) or between two parked cars about two car lengths apart.
No. DVSA tells examiners not to use vehicles parked on the right-hand side of the road for this exercise.
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