If you think it's a tight fit when you parallel park and there are only two or three feet left over, imagine what it's like to park in a spot and have 5.5 inches of space.
A German driver named Ronny Wechselberger recently set the world record for parallel parking, fitting an 11-foot-7-inch Volkswagon Up into a 12-foot spot. He beat the old record, set by Han Yue of China, by about four-tenths of an inch.
Wechselberger didn't so much as park the car as he did maneuver it into the space, but it still counts. Here's the record-breaking attempt:
Amazingly, this might not have been Wechselberger's most impressive parallel parking job. He also set the world record for parallel parking in reverse, pulling into a spot with just 14 inches of space left over.
We'd like to see Wechselberger try that in the middle of traffic on the streets of New York City. That'd be a real accomplishment.
