Possibly the most daunting and hated part of your driver’s test was the parallel park. Some motorists find this tricky manoeuvre so stressful there’s actually a word to describe the fear of attempting it: “parallelophobia”. Every year we are seeing cars being launched with the most cutting edge technology. Lane assist, Automatic Emergency Braking and 360-Degree Cameras are being found in nearly every new motor we see. But, arguably the most popular is self-parking.
One of the first parking systems on offer was the simple parking sensors which used audible cues to indicate if you got too close to a curb or car. Over the years, thanks to advances in autonomous driving, many new cars can perform this task for you. Self-parking cars are definitely a welcome addition to the plethora of clever driver assists currently found in newer models.
Many new and experienced drivers will sigh with relief at the thought of self-parking cars. They offer an end to a multitude of stress-inducing parking scenarios. But the autonomous systems vary between manufacturers, so we’ve compiled a list of the top cars you can buy or lease with self-parking technology.
What types of Park-assist or Self-parking are there?
In total, there are four main types of parking assist systems available on today’s roads:
1) Fully automated parking – This does the whole process for you, all the driver has to do is manage the safeguards, which is usually holding down a button.
2) Steering assisted parking – As the name suggests, this will do the steering for you once a space is selected, prompting you when to brake, accelerate, and change gears – it’s currently the most common type of parking assist.
3) Park and exit –
This functions like steering assisted parking, only with the added bonus that it’ll get you out of the space as well as in it.
4) Remote control parking –
This kind of assist requires you to line the car up with a space, exit the vehicle, and hold down the digital key fob or smartphone app to remotely activate the car to park in the spot (or exit it).
What are the top cars with self-parking?
Vauxhall Astra
The new Vauxhall Astra allows you to enjoy accurate and speedy parking thanks to the Advanced Park Assist technology. The Parking Pack (standard on Ultimate Nav models) option not only includes parking sensors, but also blindspot monitoring and an automatic parking system that can identify a suitable space and steer the car into it for you.
As well as being able to negotiate parallel parking bays, it makes light work of perpendicular bays and can even park in spaces you might not even consider. All you have to do is press the button in front of the gearstick, and the system will identify a space and give clear prompts to get you into the parking space. These futuristic park-assists combined with the high-quality touchscreen which displays clear guidelines of your surroundings are particularly worth considering if you’re a nervous parker.
Tesla Model 3
It’s a clever self-parking feature on the Tesla Model 3 that takes advantage of the vehicle’s connectivity and autonomous driving capabilities. With Summon owners can command their Model 3 to pull into a parking spot and power down.
With a Tesla, you can enjoy fully automated parking and one of the most advanced self-parking assists on the market. Tesla has quickly become famous thanks to its desirable cars that are not only incredibly fast but fully electric. With these top of the line cars, you’d expect some top of the line technology. All you need to do is drive to a perpendicular or parallel space, select the right option from the car’s massive touchscreen and wait for the car to do the rest.
There are additional automatic features such as garage door control and the ability to drive itself into space. While there may be no birds-eye-view camera, the view out of the back is clear and all versions of the Tesla Model 3 come with parking sensors on both the front and the rear of the car.
Volvo XC60 SUV
If you drive off in the Volvo XC60 with Xenium option pack then you will gain a beautiful Scandinavian interior that exudes relaxation with a tilt-and-slide panoramic sunroof, Park Assist Pilot and a 360 degree surround camera view. Going even further, the XC60 doesn’t even have a button to engage the assist system like most self-parking cars. Instead, you select the self-parking feature from the Sensus touch screen and let the car take the lead as you apply the accelerator and brakes when prompted.
The impressive system has the ability to guide the XC60 into a space 20% larger than the car, thanks to ultrasonic sensors that measure the space. As with most of these systems, the driver controls the accelerator and brake pedals as the XC60’s steers into the chosen space.
There are a number of great new cars with driver assisting technology available to buy or personal lease. Driving has never been safer with the technology available today and finding your perfect new motor has never been easier with cars2buy. Contact us today for more information.