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Vauxhall Asks Why Parallel Park When You Can Parallel Bark?

For a lot of fresh driver's license holders, parallel parking is the most dreaded maneuver. You have to be aware of where the corners of your car are while navigating very close (way too close) to other parked cars. One wrong move and your career as a driver will be marked by its first (and, rest assured, not last) unwanted incident.
Gerty the boxer parallel barking 4 photos
Photo: Opel/Vauxhall
Vauxhall Parallel BarkingVauxhall Parallel BarkingVauxhall Parallel Barking
But it's not like more experienced drivers don't have an issue with squeezing their vehicle into a tight spot as well. You too probably know a person who would rather circle half-town in search of a wider parking space than attempt a parallel park. In reality, though, it's not that bad, you just need to overcome your fear (or your laziness) and practice, practice, practice.

Opel has just released a video now that, taken out of context, might be a little demotivational for those still struggling with the maneuver. To the unaware viewer, it would appear that a dog - Gerty, the Boxer - is performing a flawless parallel park in a red Opel Corsa. Well, since it's all happening in London, on Wimbledon High Street, it's actually a Vauxhall.

Of course, this was just a commercial stunt organized by Vauxhall to showcase the Corsa's ability to park by itself thanks to its optional Advanced Park Assist feature. Vauxhall doesn't offer any more details on the way it works, but we doubt it will work without a human being at the wheel. For one thing, somebody probably needs to switch from "Drive" to "Reverse," if not also press the accelerator and brake pedals. As cute as Gerty is, we doubt it can do all these things without a pair of longer legs and some opposable thumbs.

Still, seeing a dog in the driver's seat is always an easy way to get a laugh, especially when said dog seems so confident in its abilities to pull the car as close to the curb as possible. Some of the people watching were smiling, taking photos or even filming the procedure. Some, on the other hand, looked less enthusiastic. They were probably the owners of the two cars framing the spot Gerty found.

Opel/Vauxhall has long started a campaign to bring advanced technology usually found in more upmarket products to its affordable cars, and having a small model such as the Corsa able to park itself is something you don't see very often in this segment. However, all these technologies come at a cost, and when you add them up, the resulting vehicle might not be as cheap as the car maker would have us believe. We'll just have to wait and see if this strategy pays off for Opel in the long term.

Here's the video, and don't forget to check out Vauxhall's pun-riddled press release below.

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About the author: Vlad Mitrache
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"Boy meets car, boy loves car, boy gets journalism degree and starts job writing and editing at a car magazine" - 5/5. (Vlad Mitrache if he was a movie)
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