Hill Parking: Wheel Positioning & Uphill/Downhill Procedures

When parking on a hill, proper wheel positioning is crucial to prevent your vehicle from rolling into traffic or off the road if the brakes become disengaged.\n\nParking Facing Downhill:\nWhen parking facing downhill, turn your front wheels towards the curb or right shoulder. This will keep the vehicle from rolling into traffic if the brakes become disengaged.\n\nParking Facing Uphill with a Curb:\nTurn the steering wheel to the left so the wheels are turned towards the road if you are facing uphill with a curb. The tires will catch the curb if it rolls backward.\n\nParking Facing Uphill without a Curb:\nWhen facing uphill without a curb, turn the wheels sharply to the right. If the vehicle rolls, it will go off the road rather than into traffic.\n\nGeneral Hill Parking Procedures:\nWhen parking on a hill, always:\n• Set the parking brake\n• Move the gear selector into park (automatic transmission)\n• Shift into first or reverse gear (manual transmission)\n• Turn off the engine and remove the key\n• Check for traffic before opening the door\n• Remember to lock your vehicle\n\nMemory Tips:\n• Downhill: wheels toward curb (away from traffic)\n• Uphill with curb: wheels toward road (so tires catch curb if rolling back)\n• Uphill without curb: wheels toward shoulder (so vehicle rolls away from traffic)\n• Always engage parking brake regardless of transmission type\n• Use lower gears as additional safety measure with manual transmission\n\nSafety Considerations:\n• Hill parking puts extra stress on parking brake\n• Wheel positioning provides backup safety if parking brake fails\n• Proper gear selection adds additional holding power\n• Always test that parking brake is properly engaged before leaving vehicle\n• Be extra cautious when starting on hills - vehicle may roll