A rational solution or atleast a logical explanation.
 

Some businesses that are both inclined to think this way and are trully considerate of their customers paint their lots with large spaces so that even the big coupes of the world can open their doors with abandon and not clobber their neighbors. The overwhelming recent pattern however, like a lot of things in american business, is to maximize profits even when larger "subtle" costs to the customer are involved if they believe that the customer will "take it" without changing their consumer behavior. Lack of service issues at the "big box" chain stores is an example, but the consumers nonetheless keep returning at the expense of the small and usually locally owned service oriented stores.

As a strong believer in free enterprise, I feel the consumer should dictate these trends. The one at issue is the move to small parking spaces which has sort of crept up without any one realizing it over the past several (or more) years. In the world of free enterprise, your vote ($) counts. If the stores/businesses you frequent don't respect you or your property enough to provide reasonably sized spaces don't shop there (and perhaps let them know why). This may not necessarily cause significant immediate changes but it might eventually make architects/planners note the issue in future development and possibly on existing lot resurfacing/restriping. Who knows, our anti-dinging crusade might subtlely change the parking world one day (or at least at a few stores).

The only real solution (or at least one that mitigates your risk) is to park at the end of the lot and hope for the best. My Chevy pickup doesn't fit well into most spaces, so I park out anyway and I do the same with the 300D as well. I've always done it to mitigate the exposure from others and it has worked most of the time.

Besides, I need the exercise.....:)

in parking lots, i avoid parking beside 2-door cars (especially the large American ones), because of their long doors. Or SUVs, because the high doors will ding against the metal part of my door, and not the plastic cladding.

i try to park beside minivans with sliding doors.

sometimes i park to the left of 2-doors or SUVs (i.e., on their driver's side) on the assumption that the driver is more careful about opening the door than the passenger.

a clean neighbor car/SUV is also an indication that the driver cares about his/her car, and is likely to also be careful about his/her door hitting your car.

in the end, it's just probabilities, and i view the dings on my door (as long as they're not too big, and don't expose metal) as scars you pick up in life, and wear like a "mileage badge".

knock on zebrano wood ... ;)

Not long ago, as I was loading my golf tools at a local country club, I saw the ultimate auto disrespect. A very professional looking gentleman in his mid fifties, was preparing to load his gear up. He walked up to his new Lexus and hoisted his big golf bag onto the deck lid!! What a total disrepect for his car, I thought!! But I was wrong, he did respect his car! He opened the trunk of his Mercedes next to it and placed the bag in it!:rolleyes: