Ford commissioned the survey to determine how motorists truly feel about parallel parking.
Findings of the survey by TNS research company include:
* Nearly one third of European drivers (32 per cent) said they needed more than one attempt at parallel parking, with the figure rising to 42 per cent for women.
* Some 56 per cent of European drivers think men are better at parallel parking than women, while just 12 per cent said women are better parkers; just 4 per cent of men thought women were better while 41 per cent of women thought men were superior.
* New drivers across Europe rated parallel parking as stressful as Christmas shopping and twice as stressful as a visit from the in-laws and motorway driving.
Ford say nervous parkers have no need to worry as their Active park Assist is available on the new Focus, C-MAX and Grand C-MAX models. At the touch of a button, it enables you to park in the smallest of spaces ... and stress free.
The system employs ten ultrasonic sensors mounted on the sides of the car and on the front and rear bumpers. The front side sensors constantly scan for gaps between cars parked at the side of the road, alerting the driver to a suitable space with an audible chime and via a visual display in the centre console.
Retaining control of the accelerator and brake input and selecting first or reverse gears is all the driver needs to do. Steering input is provided by the electronic power steering system which uses information from the sensors to help guide the car perfectly into the parking slot. You can park at speeds of up to 10 km/h and the system is designed to park 150mm from the kerb to avoid damage to wheels and tyres.
The survey was carried out in six European markets - UK, Germany, France, Italy, Spain and Russia last month.
