[raihan]

What you could do to negate the effect of strain is reverse the direction of the car each time you park. Such that a different axle is more loaded each time you park.
I do this with my car regularly since 2 years & I do not see any adverse affect on suspension.

[dailydriver]

Originally Posted by raihan

What you could do to negate the effect of strain is reverse the direction of the car each time you park. Such that a different axle is more loaded each time you park.
I do this with my car regularly since 2 years & I do not see any adverse affect on suspension.

I did the same. Earlier, I used to park in such a way that the left tyres would be at least 6 inches over the right ones. This was because of the difference in level of the tarred and untarred part of the road in front of my home.

Specially after parking it continuously for 3-4 days, I would find that steering feel was not the same as earlier. At times, it would feel a bit hard or would not auto return smoothly after a turn.

Also, even when parked on a level surface, the car would be sagging ever so slightly on its right.

The vertical gap between the RHS tyres and the fenders would also be lesser than the respective measurement on the LHS.

I then started parking the opposite way, i.e with the right tyres on the raised portion of the road. After about a fortnight, when I could see that the gaps were almost identical, I began parking on a level surface, albeit a little distance away from my home .

[vijayvelprakash]

Originally Posted by dailydriver

Specially after parking it continuously for 3-4 days, I would find that steering feel was not the same as earlier. At times, it would feel a bit hard or would not auto return smoothly after a turn.

Thank you for the feedback. I never thought that parking for 3-4 days could show such a difference. I always thought that it is prolonged duration (like 15 days) that would show noticeable effects.

[dailydriver]

Originally Posted by vijayvelprakash

Thank you for the feedback. I never thought that parking for 3-4 days could show such a difference. I always thought that it is prolonged duration (like 15 days) that would show noticeable effects.

My car is six years old, with a suspension that has seen the worst of roads. Also, please note that continuously is the operative word here. After 3-4 days, the changes in steering feel are very subtle and may not be noticed by a casual driver. The same is more pronounced when the car remains parked longer.

Even then, unless the uneven parking is playing at the back of your mind, you will rush towards your alignment guy/service centre complaining of a left/right pull or a non compliant steering!

If you ever face such a situation, don't worry. This is a self healing malady. You can aid the recovery by stationing the car on level ground. That's all.

[srinath_mys]

Hello,

Even i park my car in slant place in front of my house, with Left side tyres some 3-4 inches above the right side tyres, i park for whole week and take out only during weekends, mine is new car 6 months old, will this affect by wheel balancing and the suspension, i am following this from past 6 months

[Aroy]

I once had a funny experience. I parked my Esteem on a cross slope at my office. The car was low on fuel (just before low fuel level). When I tried to start the car it would not. On Checking the fuel line I discovered that no fuel was coming in. The reason was that the slope put the fuel inlet in the tank above the fuel level! We pushed the car back to normal level and it started.

So be careful while parking on a slope. With low fuel you may be stranded if there is no help in sight.

[R2D2]

Originally Posted by Aroy

So be careful while parking on a slope. With low fuel you may be stranded if there is no help in sight.

This also applies to engine oil in the sump. Depending on the incline and where the oil pump is placed in the engine, if oil level is low the pump may get an air lock and be unable to lubricate the engine if it starts. It is therefore important to maintain oil levels between the halfway to full mark.

[mithun]

Originally Posted by srinath_mys

Hello,

Even i park my car in slant place in front of my house, with Left side tyres some 3-4 inches above the right side tyres, i park for whole week and take out only during weekends, mine is new car 6 months old, will this affect by wheel balancing and the suspension, i am following this from past 6 months

Don't worry, it won't affect wheels or the suspension at all :-)

[dr_rdey]

Can parking in gear on an incline damage the gears?
I parked my 10 year old alto in an incline with handbrake and in gear for around 10 hours.
After driving for 15 minutes, the gear shaft gave way and started rotating freely.
Ever since wondering whether it was the parking or some impact which did this?
Or is it just the old car which gave in?

[_nitink_]

Originally Posted by dr_rdey

Does parking in gear on an incline damage the gears?
I parked my 10 year old alto for around 10 hours today in gear along with handbrake.
After driving for 15 minutes, the gear box gave way - started rotating freely.
Ever since wondering whether the parking was responsible. Or can gear shaft be damaged by someone or some impact?

It can be a contributing factor. On the other hand, we must not forget that this is a 10 year old car and the problem can be due to the wear and tear due to long usage.
I always use the gear lock in my cars, even when I park it for 5 mins. During this time, the car is always in gear. Our Santro is 8 year old and has always been parked in gear along with handbrake from day 1. To conclude, I think parking in gear can be a contributing factor but may not be the reason for this problem. Get it checked and keep us updated.

[bullrun87]

Originally Posted by dr_rdey

Can parking in gear on an incline damage the gears?
I parked my 10 year old alto in an incline with handbrake and in gear for around 10 hours.
After driving for 15 minutes, the gear shaft gave way and started rotating freely.
Ever since wondering whether it was the parking or some impact which did this?
Or is it just the old car which gave in?

`

It is very unlikely that parking in an incline would affect the gearbox at all. I have been parking on inclines for over 10 years and yet never faced any issue. It could however be that you failed to engage the handbrake properly and the gearbox was actually keeping the car from rolling while the car was parked.

[longhorn]

Parking in gear is not the real problem. The weight of the vehicle should not be on the gearbox while parked on a slope, i.e., after applying the handbrake you should disengage and reengage the clutch so that the weight of the vehicle is transferred to the hand brake.

[hridaygandhi]

At home, I normally park my car on a flat surface, on an open ground, under a tree. Due to monsoon right now, and the muddy nature of the ground, I am forced to park the car on the street. However, the left side of the street has a slight incline, roughly about 20 cms/8 inches.

Now I have always occasionaly been parking the car there, and I have never found any noticeable difference in driving either with the steering feel or with the tire wear and tear. But then the car used to be parked again at a flat surface at my work during most of the day. However, during the past week, courtesy Covid-19 right now, I have been using the car only once every two days (and parked on an incline with left side higher than right, for about 36 hours). The steering has started feeling funny, with the right side feeling heavier than the left. The steering has also become a little off-centre in its static position. I suspect this to be due to slight change in tire pressure, the right tires have lost tire pressure faster than the left.

However, at my workplace, the car is parked on a flat surface. So the problem seems to correct automatically (somewhat) after the car gets parked at work for a few hours.

I plan to measure the tire pressure and document the effect every day by parking the car on different surfaces, and will update the same here.

[Aroy]

Originally Posted by hridaygandhi

.................

Now I have always occasionaly been parking the car there, and I have never found any noticeable difference in driving either with the steering feel or with the tire wear and tear. But then the car used to be parked again at a flat surface at my work during most of the day. However, during the past week, courtesy Covid-19 right now, I have been using the car only once every two days (and parked on an incline with left side higher than right, for about 36 hours). The steering has started feeling funny, with the right side feeling heavier than the left. The steering has also become a little off-centre in its static position. I suspect this to be due to slight change in tire pressure, the right tires have lost tire pressure faster than the left.

........................

When you have to park on an inclined slope, try to reverse the car direction each day. That is if the left side is raised one day, reverse the car so that the right side is raised the next day

[hridaygandhi]

Originally Posted by Aroy

When you have to park on an inclined slope, try to reverse the car direction each day. That is if the left side is raised one day, reverse the car so that the right side is raised the next day

Thank you. That was helpful. But what I am concerned about is the occurrence of this problem, although temporarily. Would they have a long term effect on the tires? I feel that certain part of the tires might face greater wear and tear. And does this pose any risk in the long term? If there is slightest chance, I would rather not take the risk, and find a flat surface to park the car. Unless, this does not have long term effect.