Self-parking is a feature that gets better and better as the years pass. For many inner-city drivers, it’s a feature that makes the last few metres of a journey that little bit easier. But there’s a huge difference in how effective the systems are.
The difference between the best systems and the rest comes down primarily to ease of use. It’s for this reason that Mercedes stands proud from the pack.
In the Mercedes C-Class, operating the feature is simplicity itself. All the driver needs to do is select reverse, and assuming it’s already scanned a space, which happens automatically, it will offer the option to park.
It takes care of the steering, like all other similar systems, as well as the accelerator. But the fact that it will automatically select forward and reverse gears is outstanding. And there’s no need to rely on the car’s front- and rear-parking sensors as it will apply the brakes all by itself, making the chances of a collision virtually impossible.
As well as parallel parking, it can also park in perpendicular spaces; a feature that’s still not particularly common. The feature is offered as standard on all versions of the C-Class apart from the entry-level SE trim. It uses rear cameras that can provide a 180-degree view of the road behind, making it easy to spot oncoming traffic.
We also rated the Jaguar XF highly because it, too, offers simplicity of operation. It offers large touchscreen buttons to start the process of parallel or perpendicular parking, and has functions to help you exiting a parking space as well. It’s able to parallel-park quickly and easily, and a 360-degree camera system provides additional confidence. Its perpendicular parking is a little slow, but that was the only blot on an otherwise-spotless copybook.
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