Before you leave a parking space which is parallel to the curb, you should:
- Sound your horn
- Turn on your four-way flasher
- Look for traffic by turning your head ✓
- Look for traffic by using your inside rear-view mirror
Answer: C. Look for traffic by turning your head
Before leaving a parallel parking space, look for traffic by turning your head.
Why this is the answer
The manual's parallel-parking steps tell you to turn your head and look over your right shoulder through the rear window for pedestrians, bicyclists, motorcyclists, and other vehicles. It also says to use the inside rear-view mirror, but as a supplement. In the Sharing the Road chapter, the manual warns not to depend only on mirrors when leaving a curb and directs you to turn your head to spot bicyclists, skaters, and scooter riders beside or approaching you. A head check is the reliable way to see traffic before you move out.
Why the other answers are wrong
- A. Sound your horn — Sounding your horn is not listed as a step for leaving a parallel parking space in the manual passages.
- B. Turn on your four-way flasher — Turning on your four-way flasher is not described as a step for pulling out of a parallel parking space, and the passages do not say it replaces looking.
- D. Look for traffic by using your inside rear-view mirror — The inside rear-view mirror is useful, but the manual says not to depend only on mirrors; you must turn your head to check for people and vehicles.
Remember it
Mirrors are helpers, not the whole check—turn your head before you pull away from the curb.