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My dad has just bought a new Renault Laguna which is slightly longer than his previous Renault Espace. The problem being that his garage is only just long enough to fit his new car in, and he has to be very careful not to hit the back wall when putting his car away. With very limited visability from inside of the Laguna it is difficult to judge so has anyone got any ideas on how to tell when you have reversed far enough? The one trick that we have tried is the tennis ball hanging down so when it touches the rear window you know you are far enough back, but because the Laguna has quite a sloping rear window this method doesn't work too well. So are thoughts or suggestions are appreciated.
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Fix a batten of wood to the garage floor (full width) to line up with the rear wheels.
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Fix some old carpet to the back wall and park by touch.
I had the same problem with a Renault 21 Savanna a few years back. I even had to move the up and over door and its' frame out by 1.5 inches to get enough clearance.
Chris M
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Fix a mirror to the garage wall and angle it at 45 degrees pointing down , set the mirror at drivers eye level. This will give a direct vision of the decreasing gap.
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I'm about to make an offer on a property which has this problem. I hope to be able to have the garage extended. Expensive , but at the least "constructive" (!!), suggestion for you to consider.
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An old small tyre hung on the far wall so that when you hit it no damage to your pride and joy.
(L'excargot - you changing to a more twirly shell?)
DVD
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Hang a cork from the rrof in just the right place so you contact it and stop before you hit the wall and the batten on the floor will be the end stop.
Peter
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Hang a squeaky toy level with the bumper
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(L'excargot - you changing to a more twirly shell?)
No, just to a single shell in place of my current semi-detached "one on top of another" variety !!
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Simon,
I have exactly the same problem with my current car/garage.
I glued a 2 inch thick piece of high-density foam (from hi-fi, computer etc. packaging) to the rear wall at bumber height and also have a wood batton fixed across the floor too for good measure. While your at it, stick/fix a strip of carpet or underlay horizontally at door handle level so you don't chip the paint of the door edges.
Chad.R
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Apart from security and the odd frosty morning is there really much advantage in garaging a modern car nowdays?? we can only fit the smaller pugeot in our garage (after a clear out) but as SWMBO goes out first some mornings I prefer not to move my car on/off the drive to avoid very short start up times. I reason the damage done to mine by short start ups is greater than the damage to PUG shivering outside !
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I've seen this electronic gadgets that light and signal when you reach a suitable distance from the wall.. should be easy enough to mount a pressure switch pad on the wall or similar that detects the car as it approaches the wall, or easier still have a marking on the side walls that aligns with the wing mirrors once you are at the correct distance (assuming the mirrors dont move!). I'd go for the electric solution, just have a pair of heavy duty push switches on a panel attached to the rear wall.
Simon
_____________________________________
SVPworld (incorporating PSRworld)
www.svpworld.com
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Apart from security and the odd frosty morning is there really much advantage in garaging a modern car nowdays??
Yes there is, misterp, if you've got a van. These vehicles are not painted as well as cars. I garage my Citroen C15 as, otherwise, it would probably be a pile of rust by now.
Some people also get insurance reductions, I believe. Also, if you keep a car in the garage then it's not cluttering the front of your house like the eyesores most of them are - encourages you to keep the garage tidy, too!
:-)
Ian Cook
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Apart from security and the odd frosty morning is there really much advantage in garaging a modern car nowdays?? we can only fit the smaller pugeot in our garage (after a clear out) but as SWMBO goes out first some mornings I prefer not to move my car on/off the drive to avoid very short start up times. I reason the damage done to mine by short start ups is greater than the damage to PUG shivering outside !
... and you don't get birds leaving corrosive deposits on the paintwork.
:-)
Kind regards,
Cyrill
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Mark out 2 parallel lines all the way around the circumference of the car, about 6 inches apart, just behind the B pillar.
Cut around both lines with an alligator saw or angle grinder. Throw away the 6 inch strip of car (this is surplus to requirements). Weld the two ends back together. Problem solved.
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Mark out 2 parallel lines all the way around the circumference of the car, about 6 inches apart, just behind the B pillar. Cut around both lines with an alligator saw or angle grinder. Throw away the 6 inch strip of car (this is surplus to requirements). Weld the two ends back together. Problem solved.
I've heard of cut and shut before, but never cut and shorten !!
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Well I have had this problem and there is an easy and very simple way both my son and I use:
Take 1 tennis ball.. drill a hole in centre and attach to a string.
Park car in garage so the end you want at the door end is JUST inside the garage and you can shut the door.
(I reverse my cars in so my references from now on refer to the REAR winscreen.. if you go in forwards, then change the reference to the FRONT windscreen)
Suspend the tennis ball on the string from the ceiling until it just hits the middle of the rear (front) windscreen (note middle - car in straight, middle of screen in both width and height).
Suspend string from ceiling so ball hits middle of screen as described.
In future just park car and stop when the tennis ball just touches the windscreen. Hey ho: you are properly parked.
(It is essential you drive in reasonably straight : as we have a 3 car garage slight sideways deviations do not matter:-)
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There is in the latest Innovations catalogue an Auto Reversing Detector Kit, with a distance display and "increasingly insistent audio warnings". A little expensive at seventy quid but it does not take much of a bump to cost more and I expect they can be had elsewhere, cheaper.
I have such a thing, audio only, as original kit on Supra and it works well and is useful.
Another negative posting from
Tomo
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