# Reverse Parking Question



## Jayc (May 19, 2016)

A question to all the lucky long time Model 3 owners...

How practical is it to reverse park a Model 3 in to a tight garage just looking at the reverse parking camera and guide lines on screen ? 

In my case, the mirrors will have to be folded as well to get in through the garage opening.

Any thoughts and suggestions from your experience would be good. Still not got my RHD car but trying to decide whether to install home charger inside or outside garage.


----------



## Greg Appelt (Sep 27, 2018)

Jayc said:


> A question to all the lucky long time Model 3 owners...
> 
> How practical is it to reverse park a Model 3 in to a tight garage just looking at the reverse parking camera and guide lines on screen ?
> 
> ...


I've had several backup cameras before (aftermarket) and they were all lower resolution that the M3. Also the predictive lines are very accurate on the M3. I've never liked auto-tilting mirrors before, and never used the auto-fold before parking either, but with the M3 the backup camera has converted me. In very tight spots I still try to use my side mirrors, but I'm getting more comfortable without them. I've only had my M3 for 2 weeks now.


----------



## iChris93 (Feb 3, 2017)

Greg Appelt said:


> Also the predictive lines are very accurate on the M3.


@Jayc could paint lines on the floor in the garage to lineup with the predictive lines.


----------



## FogNoggin (Mar 19, 2019)

Jayc said:


> A question to all the lucky long time Model 3 owners...
> 
> How practical is it to reverse park a Model 3 in to a tight garage just looking at the reverse parking camera and guide lines on screen ?
> 
> ...


My garage is super tight but I back in every night. I trust the cam image and the sonar but I don't trust the white guidelines in the cam image. They're a little askew. I wouldn't attempt backing in without sideview mirrors. Above all else, the sideviews have saved me from tragic paint damage in my garage.


----------



## GDN (Oct 30, 2017)

This may be a perfect use case for Summon, but more than one report has been noted that summon has damaged a car, so it may not be perfect if your situation is that tight.


----------



## garsh (Apr 4, 2016)

I would try taping some guidelines onto the floor of the garage. You could then match those up to the guidelines on the screen to be a little more confident in your position when backing in.


----------



## Ed Woodrick (May 26, 2018)

Easy to back in. How do you get out of the car?


----------



## iChris93 (Feb 3, 2017)

iChris93 said:


> @Jayc could paint lines on the floor in the garage to lineup with the predictive lines.





garsh said:


> I would try taping some guidelines onto the floor of the garage. You could then match those up to the guidelines on the screen to be a little more confident in your position when backing in.


Tape also works


----------



## MelindaV (Apr 2, 2016)

FogNoggin said:


> but I don't trust the white guidelines in the cam image. They're a little askew.


my car the lines seem perfectly located, but had a Turo rental for about a week earlier this year and that one was off center by 6-12". You would park per the lines and appear to be dead center, then get out and look and the car was off center enough to notice, but was consistently off, so once I knew, just compensated accordingly (it is probably something service can correct for yours though).


----------



## Klaus-rf (Mar 6, 2019)

You only need the mirrors folded when that portion of the car passes through the narrow doorway. They can be unfolded before and after passing that point.


----------



## Bibs (Jun 9, 2018)

Backing into a tight garage with just the camera? This is my daily situation, and I've had very good results.

The guide lines on the camera are accurate; realize that your perspective in the car will look slightly off center when you get close to the back wall because the camera is not mounted at the exact center of the trunk. But the lines on the screen are dead-on.

Put down tape on the garage floor so you can "match the lines." If you ever plan to remove the tape (ex: living in a rental), use blue painters tape. Masking tape will bake onto the concrete and live there forever.


----------



## FogNoggin (Mar 19, 2019)

MelindaV said:


> my car the lines seem perfectly located, but had a Turo rental for about a week earlier this year and that one was off center by 6-12". You would park per the lines and appear to be dead center, then get out and look and the car was off center enough to notice, but was consistently off, so once I knew, just compensated accordingly (it is probably something service can correct for yours though).


When I back into a parking space, perfectly aligning the cam lines with the pavement lines, the car ends up rotated about 5 degrees off parallel every time.


----------



## MelindaV (Apr 2, 2016)

FogNoggin said:


> When I back into a parking space, perfectly aligning the cam lines with the pavement lines, the car ends up rotated about 5 degrees off parallel every time.


bring it up to Tesla. FYI, here's a pix of my parking in the rental


----------



## Jayc (May 19, 2016)

Fantastic suggestions. I'm going to try stick some tape initially and take it from there. Will report back on how it goes.



Ed Woodrick said:


> Easy to back in. How do you get out of the car?


It's actually a double garage with two single doors and a center column so there is space on the drivers side to open door if I reverse into garage.


----------



## Frully (Aug 30, 2018)

Off topic: One day, I want the car to have a trunk/roof mounted drone to provide aerial visuals during outdoor parking - no fake stitched panoramic view...actual live aerial view. Drone gubbins these days have gotten smart enough to do 'follow me' modes and this would be dead simple with machine vision coupled with gps and commands from the AI.

On topic: I've ALWAYS backed in...everywhere, with practically every car that doesn't have a trailer. It's more intuitive to drive like a forklift with rear-steering. Once I switched to using the reverse camera I can NEVER park straight in the lines. Always end up akilter. The white display lines seem right if I align before going in, park and it looks straight, but then the car ends up rotated or even over the painted line. Might need to stick to mirrors for me... I find the white lines are great at telling me where the rear wheels will go *if I keep the wheel turned the same amount*, as it becomes a complicated problem if you steer while moving (as one should). Knowing where the wheels will go isn't super helpful at knowing where the bumper will go. I've hit the recycle bin beside the garage door several times backing in while steering hard - it didn't show up in the picture feed at all, but definitely came into the rear quarter of the car while steering changed. Would absolutely love a panoramic stitched view provided by the AP repeater cameras.


----------



## TheHairyOne (Nov 28, 2018)

Jayc said:


> A question to all the lucky long time Model 3 owners...
> 
> How practical is it to reverse park a Model 3 in to a tight garage just looking at the reverse parking camera and guide lines on screen ?
> 
> ...


I have dog kennels in the garage and back into a foam covered plastic gate every night next to stored furniture on one side and my garage gym equipment on the other. I have barely enough room to get out on one side and plug her in every night.

It's tight, but when I put it in it feels great; to be parked inside vs. the elements.


----------



## jsanford (May 24, 2016)

When we got the car back after minor body work and a taillight replacement, the camera was askew. We pressed it back into place. If you see too much trunk on screen, check it.

With some practice and patience, you’ll trust the camera.


----------

