I've had no issues in parking lots. I was used to vehicles with a shorter wheelbase (Subaru Forester, for example) so that's been the thing I've had to get used to the most. The turning circle of the Ridgeline is quite good, though.

 

Thanks Sneefy- That is actually a very useful reference. I see the Ridgeline has a turning radius I think of around 22 feet my LC is 19 feet and a Forester (2011 guess) is around 17 feet. So... if the 22 foot radius is "good" to you, me going from 19 foot to 22 foot radius... it sounds not even as noticeable as it was to you....

 

I own a 2014 (G1) with a turning radius approximately 1 foot less than the current G2 Ridgeline. I also live in an urban area with typical tight/congested parking lot spaces and lanes.

I actually find the maneuverability is not the greatest for tight parking lots. But over time I have adjusted my habits and learned to adapt. The far corners of parking lots often have larger spaces that don’t get as much traffic, so I head for those and the extra maneuvering space they afford. However whenever possible I will choose a smaller vehicle if the trip entails tight parking.

 

I own a 2014 (G1) with a turning radius approximately 1 foot less than the current G2 Ridgeline. I also live in an urban area with typical tight/congested parking lot spaces and lanes.

I actually find the maneuverability is not the greatest for tight parking lots. But over time I have adjusted my habits and learned to adapt. The far corners of parking lots often have larger spaces that don’t get as much traffic, so I head for those and the extra maneuvering space they afford. However whenever possible I will choose a smaller vehicle if the trip entails tight parking.

ISO Truck- Thanks for the feedback on your parking observations. yeah, that last part... I am considering going with this being my one and only vehicle. ie. selling my Landcruiser and my 06 Tundra.

 

This is going to be quite subjective... Compared to our 16 Subaru Forester, the truck is cumbersome in tight parking lots. The truck has to do a 5 point turns instead of 3 point turns on some 2 lane roads. To park in the garage at work is a challenge and I have to pick my time and spots or I literally don't fit in the space between pillars. Due to my low parking skills, I don't take the truck to places where parking is tight. However, if you are used to driving larger vehicles as is, it might not all really be that much of a change so not a problem. If you can find one to test drive, maybe part of the drive could involve parking it in what you would consider a tight parking lot.

 

Silkiechicken- Thank you for sharing your observations on this. Yes... definitely subjective but good to hear the feedback from you and others! Yes.. at some point, I will definitely test drive one to include some parking excercises. -- John

 

I should note, that my low viewing angle from the drivers seat probably adds to my challenges parking. I park backwards in the parking garage at work because I can watch the camera. I can't see the hood of the truck, so I just have a rough idea where the nose is.

 

Don't expect to pull into a parking place knowing how much room you have left between the front of the truck and the wall or a post. It will always be more distance than you think until you hit the wall. No sensors on the front center of the vehicle.

 

It's odd. I keep reading people saying this. I use the sensors regularly in a parking garage and they have always worked as expected. Maybe I need to play around with parking exactly perpendicular to the wall.

 

The wife says the RL is harder to park and I think its the geometry of the car and later parking spaces designed or econoboxes that gives her a bit of a problem. I don't have any issue with it....

 

Definitely easier than a full sized half ton without a back up camera. One thing I realized with a camera is how much more room I actually have than I thought I had just using mirrors years ago.

 

Soichiro1906 - Yes, I am quite sure it will park magnitudes better than my 06 Tundra double cab... wheelbase and overall length are both 15 inches more than Ridgeline. So far of all the feedback all of you have given, it is leading me to believe that it would not be to much more difficult than my Landcruiser. Like i said, I will test drive one some time if and when get closer to actualizing my idea. However, even a test drive and parking a few times will only tell me so much so all of the thoughts all of you are sharing, are quite helpful.

 

Expect door dings. I'm in a metro-Boston area. It can be a minor challenge sometimes... but it's probably more of what you compare against. I thought I would struggle a lot more coming from a Audi Q5, but really things haven't changed in difficulty much at all.

Tight lined (perpendicular) mall and grocery parking spots can take a 3-point turns. But, I always "BACK" in... backing into perpendicular spots is always an easier task (turned wheels being in the rear so-to-speak) and it's a safer exit strategy with Z-Gen Zombies on their phones not caring if you're trying back out. But, it is always tight enough to get door dings, though. It does stink that U.S. didn't have the power mirrors to assist with tight parking. So, to save my doors and cart dings... I tend to park way out.

Street parallel parking is hit or miss. It seems to fit most available street parking. Certainly not as challenging as a full size, at all... I have amazed myself at some of the shoehorning I've done. I can say, I don't know why, but I had a bit of an adaptation struggle in the beginning trying to parallel park the truck. I could never "size-up" as easily for me as past vehicles. So, for a while, I was THAT guy that pedestrians would watch and chuckle as I kept re-adjusting. But that didn't last more than a couple of months.

I don't think the turning radius is fabulous, only just ok. It will take both shoulders deep on a 2-lane road to do a U-Turn... and then most likely it will end up as a 3-point anyway.

Bottom line in all of this rambling?... It won't be as bad as you fear.

 

Expect door dings. I'm in a metro-Boston area. It can be challenging, sometimes... but it's probably more of what you compare against. I thought I would struggle a lot more coming from a Audi Q5, but really things haven't changed in difficulty much at all.

Tight lined (perpendicular) mall and grocery parking spots can take a 3-point turns. But, I always "BACK" in... backing into perpendicular spots is always an easier task ((truned wheels being in the rear so-to-speak) and it's a safer exit strategy with Z-Gen Zombies on their phones now caring if you're trying back out. I But, it is always tight enough to get door dings, though. It does stink that U.S. didn't have the power mirrors to assist with tight parking. So, to save my doors and cart dings... I tend to park way out.

Street parallel parking is hit or miss. It seems to fit most available street parking. Certainly not as challenging as a full size, at all... I have amazed myself at some of the shoehorning I've done. I can say, I don't know why, but I had a bit of an adaptation struggle in the beginning trying to parallel park the truck. I could never "size-up" as easily for me as past vehicles. So, for a while, I was THAT guy that pedestrians would watch and chuckle as I kept re-adjusting. But that didn't last more than a couple of months.

I don't think the turning radius is fabulous, only just ok. IT will take both shoulders deep on a 2 lane road to do a U-Turn... and then most likely it will end up as a 3-point anyway.

Bottem line in all of this rambling?... It won't be as bad as you fear.

Nervey- Thank you for the write up! Again.. very useful anecdotal type information here! even though the RL is only 1 inch widder than my Landcruiser, I do imagine I would notice that as well. That is odd how the US market never got the folding mirrors? --John

 

I'm coming from an Impreza so the adjust took a little bit to get used to but I'm not having any trouble fitting in spaces.

The backup camera has a helpful straight-down "trailer" look that really helps for make sure you're within the lines.

 

Thanks- Yeah... I have heard about the two camera modes for backup. Sounds useful to have those two. The truck is definitely super well thought out from all I can tell!

 

Comparing to a gen 1 the there are less blind spots, the turning radius is better, the backup camera is MUCH better. It is longer than a gen1 by 3 inches but seems longer when parking.

It's not as easy as some cars I've had but overall way better than others.

 

Comparing to a gen 1 the there are less blind spots, the turning radius is better, the backup camera is MUCH better. It is longer than a gen1 by 3 inches but seems longer when parking.

It's not as easy as some cars I've had but overall way better than others.

Russ S- Thanks for sharing. Good to hear about the blind spots in the Gen1 and better turning radius of gen 2.

 

I put one of those bug deflectors on the hood of the '22 and if you look at the front of the car from the side the deflectors give a good indication of where the rest of the front of the car is positioned. I use the deflector to tell how close I am to an object when pulling forward.

 

Depending upon what type of weather you are driving in, the Ridgeline will glide right into the parking spot unlike conventional 4wd vehicles that scrape the front wheels on the pavement while turning with 4wd engaged.

 

I find the RL wide in comparison to parking spaces in most lots - I park at the back of the lot away from the crowds as it prevents door dings and wasted time looking for the "perfect spot"

 

I find the RL wide in comparison to parking spaces in most lots

I agree. A lot of parking spaces are really narrow. The RL fits, but I often have to back up and realign to get centered in the space. Also makes it difficult to get my tool bag out of the rear seat.

 

My previous vehicle was a 157" wheelbase F150. 20 feel long or so. Driving and parking a Ridgeline is easy. Very easy.

 

Agreed with some of the other comments. If it’s tight, just back in. Otherwise the RL does just fine in tight spaces.

 

Thanks.

 

Coming from driving a GMC Sierra extended cab to the RL was easy. But my other Truck was a 108 ft Aerial Ladder Truck and she was fun to park. For the most part I could park where I wanted. LOL
Backing into the Fire Station was fun too. If I kept 2 inches on my side the other side was ok.
It seems like I can never get straight in Parking spots, with the RL, always crooked.
When they got the new ladder truck they didn't make the doors wider.
A foot on each side would have been nice, instead we got 3" on each side.

 

I know I am late to the game posting on this thread but I just traded in my 2018 RL Sport 2 days ago and there was not a single door ding on it and I parked it at least 2 times or more every week since buying it at Walmart, TSC, Home Depot and other crowded parking lots. I guess people are getting more sensitive about hitting other peoples cars around here as the Chevy truck I traded in back in 2018 had multiple dings in it.

 

Parking in tighter spaces is all about adapting to the size of said vehicle. In the case of my RL, I learned fairly quickly to adapt to its size, given I went from a Jeep Cherokee KL (which is 182in in length) to the RL (~210in). Plus, it is also wider, so for some parking stalls, it is a little bit of a squeeze to get in, but thankfully the parking sensors have been a good help, especially when driving in a parking garage. Even when the sensors are at full flatlined beep, I still have a good 1.5FT before I would hit a wall for example in the rear.

There are situations where I do have to do 3-point turns getting into a space, and then there are several instances where it's easier to reverse into a stall. I have started to get more familiar with how far out the RL sticks out in a spot depending on where I am relative to the stall markings where I'm seated.

It's not a particular issue for me, but I could definitely see cases where for others it might not be the most trivial thing to do. Most importantly though, KNOW THE SIZE OF YOUR VEHICLE. It may be big, but the space you occupy is a lot bigger than you think relative to the size of your vehicle. You think you're about to hit something imminently, but in reality, you're still a good 3ft from hitting anything. You have plenty of leeway.

EDIT: Working on Construction projects, you get incredibly good at knowing how big...or small your vehicle is compared to the world around you. You may be surprised where you in reality CAN go vs. where you think you cannot go.