I did not know that there was such a thing as a world record for parallel parking. I do now, and the new record, and how these guys do it, are shown in this video from the folks at Guinness World Records, along with some blatant advertising by Mini. These guys don’t parallel-park like you or I do. No, they spin into it, like a short-distance drift sideways into the spot. It has to be hell on the tires, but now we know how the pros do it. And there really should be a “don’t try this” disclaimer on it, because while these guys know that the space is just large enough for their Minis to fit, you don’t know if there’s enough room for your car in the spot you just saw open up. Plus, you’re in traffic and that zero-to-60 u-turn spin probably isn’t legal. And I think doing that with an SUV wouldn’t go quite as swimmingly. It’d be entertaining, but it wouldn’t end well.

Anyway, Han Yue is the driver who gets the record in this video from a Mini event in Beijing, fitting his Mini between two other Minis (this sentence brought to you by Mini) (not really) (although if Mini wants to sponsor it…) in a space that’s just 15 cm — 5.91 inches! — longer than the car itself. He juuuuuuuuust misses the bumper in front of him.

Now, what’s the record for getting your car OUT of a space that’s 5.91 inches larger than your car?

HT: The Daily What