# parking on steep sloped driveway



## palooka666 (Apr 23, 2002)

My driveway is at a fairly steep slope and i was wondering is there any residual effect parking on such a steep slope could have. Would it be better to park facing up the slope or facing down the slope? or is this another way for me to obssess about taking care of my car?

i mean would facing uphill drain too much of the oil back into the pan? and then it runs without enough iol for a few minutes? 

or is being parked downhill be like over loading the engine on start up?

wondering if this would have an effect over a couple of years?

is there any official word on this?

thanks


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## LilEccentricJ (Dec 19, 2001)

The oil sump is to the front of the engine/pan

do you have step or 5 speed? Step, I would use the parking brake and then put the car in park so as not to rest on the pawl.


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## in_d_haus (Jan 2, 2002)

palooka666 said:


> *My driveway is at a fairly steep slope and i was wondering is there any residual effect parking on such a steep slope could have. Would it be better to park facing up the slope or facing down the slope? or is this another way for me to obssess about taking care of my car?
> 
> i mean would facing uphill drain too much of the oil back into the pan? and then it runs without enough iol for a few minutes?
> 
> ...


This is my situation exactly. Generally a parking brake works better forward than reverse so I always park nose downhill. I don't know where the oil pickup is on the pan. On my old car it was in the back so cavitation was possible (bad thing)


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## LilEccentricJ (Dec 19, 2001)

This is from the Bentley (no pics, sorry) but we can make an assumption here...









Also, the M3's required a baffle to stop the oil from going "away" from the sump under hard acceleration/cornering, so I say front.


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## palooka666 (Apr 23, 2002)

*5 speed*

it's a 5 speed and i've been parkingo n the street but started using the driveway and i've been parking facing uphill. i usually keep the car in first and clutch in and let the car rest on the parking brake, turn engine off and then let off the clutch.

i figure the tranny will stop an accident if the brakes fail but i don't want to put any undue pressure on it.


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## fkafka (Mar 12, 2002)

LilEccentricJ said:


> *The oil sump is to the front of the engine/pan
> 
> do you have step or 5 speed? Step, I would use the parking brake and then put the car in park so as not to rest on the pawl. *


I've always driven stick, and on steep hills always put it in R, let the weight of the car onto the drivetrain, and *then* applied the parking brake. Have I been doing something bad all these years, or are you implying that it would be bad only for an automatic tranny?


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## LilEccentricJ (Dec 19, 2001)

fkafka said:


> *
> 
> I've always driven stick, and on steep hills always put it in R, let the weight of the car onto the drivetrain, and then applied the parking brake. Have I been doing something bad all these years, or are you implying that it would be bad only for an automatic tranny? *


No pawl in stick.. only auto and I would say parking on the pawl on a steep incline would be bad for it since it can wear and become harder to release from P to R or D over time.

BTW, if it were me, I would reverse your order of ops by parking on the brake then putting in gear as a backup. Don't know that what you are doing hurts anything, I just avoid stress to the system when ever possible.


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## fkafka (Mar 12, 2002)

LilEccentricJ said:


> *
> 
> No pawl in stick.. *


Thanks.


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## palooka666 (Apr 23, 2002)

*so is the consensus that pointing downhill is better?*

i take it that the consensus is that pointing downhill is better?
and that it's better to put the weight on the parking brake and not the system.

thanks for the help.


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## fkafka (Mar 12, 2002)

Oh, and while there's somebody mechanically knowledgeable on-line, and we're kind of on the subject, let me ask this:

I grew up where it was very, very cold and was taught never to use the parking brake in the winter. After ignoring that advice once, and having the road slush under the car freeze the brake "on" overnight, I learned. If I'm not on a hill (which is 99% of the time) I park in R and do not use the parking brake at all regardless of the season. Some people seem to think this is a sin against nature. Is it? What's the scoop?

Ok. That's my last dumb question for the day. I promise.


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## palooka666 (Apr 23, 2002)

*circle service dept info about parking on a slope*

well the service guy over at Circle BMW say that it shouldn't make any difference parking on a slope since our cars hold about 7 quarts of oil. Parking uphill or downhill isnt really an issue. He said the baffles are installed to keep the oil levels balanced so even if you were on a steep slope the levels would be ok.

I think i'll fact park facing down hill since my brakes feel like they grab a little better that way.

I had some performance issues with my 99 maxima se and i was always suspect of whether the parking issue may have caused a decrease in performance.

anyway, that's what the guys at circle say.


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## palooka666 (Apr 23, 2002)

*re: fkafka*

fkafa,

actually i started letting the car rest in gear when i'm not on a hill -my old maxima. but since the bimmers have their own parking brakes i figured hell, i might as well use them.

i dont think resting in 1st gear (is what i was taught) would cause any problems. personally i just rather not put that kind of wear on the system, but then again my brakes have never frozen "on"...


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## Teej (Dec 19, 2001)

palooka666 said:


> *My driveway is at a fairly steep slope and i was wondering is there any residual effect parking on such a steep slope could have. Would it be better to park facing up the slope or facing down the slope? or is this another way for me to obssess about taking care of my car?
> 
> i mean would facing uphill drain too much of the oil back into the pan? and then it runs without enough iol for a few minutes?
> 
> ...


This may sound stupid...but what if you keep switching the direction? Park facing up one day, then down the next, or a couple of days one way...and so on. Just to balance out the effects if there are any over the long run? But obviously if parking one way instead of the other is definitely bad for the car, then ignore this post.


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## joes325xi (Jan 9, 2002)

So what's the final consensus on order for the 5 speed?

Rest on the break, turn off the car, put it in gear (1 or R), and then let out the clutch? 

What kind of strain is put on the drivetrain if you let it rest in gear and then pull the hand break after everything else?

I hope i haven't ruined my baby...i probably f'ed it up enough learning to drive stick on it in the first place


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## Mystikal (Dec 20, 2001)

fkafka said:


> *Oh, and while there's somebody mechanically knowledgeable on-line, and we're kind of on the subject, let me ask this:
> 
> I grew up where it was very, very cold and was taught never to use the parking brake in the winter. After ignoring that advice once, and having the road slush under the car freeze the brake "on" overnight, I learned. If I'm not on a hill (which is 99% of the time) I park in R and do not use the parking brake at all regardless of the season. Some people seem to think this is a sin against nature. Is it? What's the scoop?
> 
> Ok. That's my last dumb question for the day. I promise. *


My dads car (E30 325is) sometimes gets the rear brakes locked on after being parked overnight in the cold with the parking brake on. It immediately releases halfway down the driveway though, and we have yet to have any problems related to it. Basically one pump of the brakes will release the stuck caliper.

I personally never leave my car in gear unless it is a SERIOUS incline. Always parking brake on. If someone hits your car from behind somehow and your car is in 1st, exactly how is it going to stop? I once watched a car slowly roll across a mall parking lot and into another car because it was only left in gear, without any brake applied. Something to think about.


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## JetBlack330i (Feb 8, 2002)

palooka666 said:


> *or is this another way for me to obssess about taking care of my car?
> thanks *


If you were obssessed enough about your car you would park it inside your garage.


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