car/parking dilemma

[tmitchell]

I recently sold my condo and moved into a great rent controlled apartment with my SO. Trouble is the new parking space is TINY and I'm squeezed between a concrete beam and a giant SUV. Can barely open the door and damage is imminent.

I bought a new Audi A4 in 2018 and hate the idea of having to swap it out due to sunk cost. I could probably get a relatively even exchange with a used smaller A3 that will fit better, but still loosing several grand however I look at it.

Is making the swap a dumb move?

 

[HenryD]

Can you sublet/swap the parking space?

 

[Sunset]

Instead of swapping it, put door edge guards and other bumper guards on it.

Any possibility of finding another parking spot (and rent out the one you have to compensate the cost) ?

 

[W2R]

Well, as I see it you have 3 choices:

1) Sell the car and buy a smaller one,
2) Move to an apartment with a bigger parking place, or
3) Grin and bear it.

I'd probably go for (1), and consider the loss as the cost of gaining experience in such difficulties.

Next time, I'd suggest measuring your parking space and your car before moving. That's part of the decision making process.

 

[ivinsfan]

is there an on or off site property manager in the building? Have them come a look at your car, in the parking spot.. if a sedan doesn't fit there it's not a proper parking space...

See if they come up with a solution...

 

[JoeWras]

Next time, I'd suggest measuring your parking space and your car before moving. That's part of the decision making process.

Good friends of ours bought a brand new house and had to sell their vehicle and buy a new one!

You wouldn't think a new house would be a problem. Turns out this builder played some tricks and the two car garage has very narrow doors. They had nothing crazy either, a Toyota Highlander, I think. They had to fold in the side mirrors going in or out.

The fix was a new, narrower vehicle.

So, yeah, check your parking space no matter where you move to!

 

[spncity]

Instead of swapping it, put door edge guards and other bumper guards on it.

Any possibility of finding another parking spot (and rent out the one you have to compensate the cost) ?

Plus buy door edge guards for the other guy.

 

[donheff]

is there an on or off site property manager in the building? Have them come a look at your car, in the parking spot.. if a sedan doesn't fit there it's not a proper parking space...

See if they come up with a solution...

+1 Maybe you can get switched to another space. If not, and given that you are happy with the apartment, I would opt for a smaller car. My garage is very short so I am stuck with compact and subcompact SUVs no longer than 185 inches and preferably 182. It's a PITA but worth it for the house and location.

 

[skipro33]

Plus buy door edge guards for the other guy.

Does the other guy normally have a passenger on that side? Even if he does, maybe he lets them in/out when not fully pulled into the slot. For you, do the same, let SO out before pulling in then hug the passenger side to give you more room to open your door. Then back out so SO can get back in when leaving.
Would backing in provide more room on the driver side by hugging the passenger side? Without a layout diagram, just pitching a few thoughts...

 

[easysurfer]

I feel you pain about the tight condo parking spaces.

My tiny Honda Fit narrowly fits in the spaces I have. I had bad luck as each space has one side next to a wall.

 

[Montecfo]

I recently sold my condo and moved into a great rent controlled apartment with my SO. Trouble is the new parking space is TINY and I'm squeezed between a concrete beam and a giant SUV. Can barely open the door and damage is imminent.

I bought a new Audi A4 in 2018 and hate the idea of having to swap it out due to sunk cost. I could probably get a relatively even exchange with a used smaller A3 that will fit better, but still loosing several grand however I look at it.

Is making the swap a dumb move?

Is the SUV able to fit in the spot?

I guess I'm some ways good you have the beam on the other side, instead or another vehicle to ding your doors. But I guess you lose a little of the buffer space to open door on that side.

 

[gerntz]

Not understanding why the issue wouldn't be investigated before renting or buying.

 

[Gumby]

Not understanding why the issue wouldn't be investigated before renting or buying.

There is a lot to think about when you are trying to move to a new place. I can easily see that particular issue not being on the radar. Anyway, how about we help him solve his problem instead of just chastising him for having it?

 

[ivinsfan]

There is a lot to think about when you are trying to move to a new place. I can easily see that particular issue not being on the radar. Anyway, how about we help him solve his problem instead of just chastising him for having it?

Right cause the OP should have known he was going to get sandwiched between a post and big suv...I wonder if the building has a vehicle size guideline? How does the person in the SUV get out when they have cars parked on both sides? I'm assuming the SUV isn't actually encroaching on the other parking spot. Have you ever noticed how narrow some retail outlets make their parking lot lines?

 

[Scrapr]

There is a lot to think about when you are trying to move to a new place. I can easily see that particular issue not being on the radar. Anyway, how about we help him solve his problem instead of just chastising him for having it?

I spent all of about 25 minutes inside the home I just bought. No time for a 2nd look. The offer was accepted about 24 hours later.

Later I drove through the alley & noticed how cramped the cars were in the garage. I looked back at the listing to get the garage dimensions. My Volvo is 182.9 inches. I also noticed the HO Highlander fit in. The Highlander is longer than my car. So it "should" fit. It does explain why i see so many cars on the street. 2 cars don't fit in a 2 car garage

Literally no time to spend a lot of time horsing around with details

 

[PaunchyPirate]

Same problem when I bought my Chicago condo. There was no way my Texas-bought Chevy Tahoe would come close to fitting in the shared 2-car garage. I parked on the street for 2 days and then traded in on a low-end Camry. Even with the Camry, I kept hitting the side of the wall now and then. I didn’t see any sense in fixing the damage since I was likely to hit the wall again. After 5 years, I sold the condo and moved back to Dallas. Then Traded in the Camry, dents and scratches and all, on a big old pickup truck.

 

[Aerides]

three steps I'd try before ever considering a different car:

Find the neighbor who owns the SUV and become their new best friend. Talk to them about your concerns (framed as "that one of us might ding the other")

Talk to building managers about another space assignment

Park in guest/other spots and consider the time walking worth the peace of mind

 

[rodi]

Tight parking is a real issue.

When I was preggers with my youngest, I ran into issues of being parked in to the point I couldn't get into the car at the end of the day through the driver's side... my pregnant belly wouldn't fit through the skinny opening. I had an explorer at the time and when it happened, would crawl in from the back of the car. When not pregnant I could twist sideways and squirm in.

I would buy door guards for the other driver (and yourself)... We have enough room in our garage for our two cars - but we still have them on the cars, in case a teenager isn't paying attention and flings the door open.

This is what we got:

https://www.amazon.com/Protectors-Guards-Rubber-Protector-Protection/dp/B07KC2B4DW/ref=sr_1_5?crid=1R1S6G0CU4CM5&dchild=1&keywords=car+door+protectors+edge+guards+clear&qid=1602202676&sprefix=car+door+protectors+edge+guards%2Caps%2C228&sr=8-5

 

[kgtest]

Well, as I see it you have 3 choices:

1) Sell the car and buy a smaller one,
2) Move to an apartment with a bigger parking place, or
3) Grin and bear it.

I'd probably go for (1), and consider the loss as the cost of gaining experience in such difficulties.

Next time, I'd suggest measuring your parking space and your car before moving. That's part of the decision making process.

Inversely, when buying a car, always drive it to where you would park it for your very first test drive. Just make sure the car salesman isn't along for the ride if you live in a nice hood.

I always make sure the truck fits, and I use a tape measure to measure these things.

 

[Amethyst]

+1. Frankly, I have made much bigger mistakes due to moving/selling/buying stress.

For OP, I second Aerides' suggestions, as they are what I would try in your situation. I hope this is the only fly in the ointment and that you love your apartment.

There is a lot to think about when you are trying to move to a new place. I can easily see that particular issue not being on the radar. Anyway, how about we help him solve his problem instead of just chastising him for having it?

 

[Lewis Clark]

Inversely, when buying a car, always drive it to where you would park it for your very first test drive.

Yes yes if at all possible.

Years ago my wife and I were looking to buy a full sized 4-door sedan. We really liked one model and the salesperson insisted we drive it home "to see what it looked in our garage". We found the car was too long to fit in the garage with all the other stuff we had, and ended up buying a different car.

 

[pb4uski]

I spent all of about 25 minutes inside the home I just bought. No time for a 2nd look. The offer was accepted about 24 hours later.

Later I drove through the alley & noticed how cramped the cars were in the garage. I looked back at the listing to get the garage dimensions. My Volvo is 182.9 inches. I also noticed the HO Highlander fit in. The Highlander is longer than my car. So it "should" fit. It does explain why i see so many cars on the street. 2 cars don't fit in a 2 car garage

Literally no time to spend a lot of time horsing around with details

It could be worse. A friend bought a villa in our neighborhood in Florida remotely... based on pictures. After closing... on his first visit, he finally realized that what he thought was a 2-car garage was really only a one-car garage. At least we get to yank his chain about it every now and then.

 

[Aerides]

There is a lot to think about when you are trying to move to a new place. I can easily see that particular issue not being on the radar. Anyway, how about we help him solve his problem instead of just chastising him for having it?

And IIRC from the OP's prior thread, this was more than "get a new place" - this was move in to the existing place of their SO, changing both residence and relationship status, in a desirable location with rent control...so the "place" was non-negotiable in this move.

 

[latexman]

There are cars you can park from outside the car. Check them out.

 

[tmitchell]

Update:

Spoke to manager and there are no other spots available . Also spoke to the guy who owns the SUV and he was nice and also is aware it's a tight fit. Luckily his is an $$ new BMW so he's not looking to get it banged up .

I hear all the posters about investigating the space before I moved, but since I moved into SO's place there weren't many options!

I'm going to hang tight and see how it goes for the time being. Thanks for the door guard suggestion @rodi & for everyone else's thoughts as well!