To Valet or not to Valet?

Fabulist said:

When I first got the Karma, I would not trust it to a Valet, in part because I was not sure if they knew how to operate the car and, more importantly, I did not want them to break anything. Lately, I am finding that the Valet attendants seem to be familiar enough with the car that they can safely move it around. In a city like San Francisco, where parking is always at a premium, opting out of valet parking will seriously diminish your access to the better restaurants.

I was curious how other members feel about valet parking. Do you, or don't you valet your Karma?

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I haven't yet, but I've only had mine since Saturday afternoon.

It's not nearly as important here in SLC though. There's one restaurant I like to go to sometimes (Tuscany, in Knudsen's Corner) that is complimentary-valet-parking-only, and Log Haven up in Millcreek has valet parking as well, so at some point I may have to; we'll see....

I had the same fear but I recently risked using the valet service. The two times I have done it both attendants were familiar with electric cars which reduced my anxiety. Of course the biggest risk reducer was that the good looking Karma was parked right in front so it was not driven far.

I valet park whenever I can. In Atlanta that means valet at nicer restaurants and at the malls. Only once was the valet truly baffled, and that was back in February when I was one of the very few on the road here. The last time I valet parked at a restaurant the response was "That's the third Karma I've parked in three weeks" which I took as a good sign. One nice thing about the Karma is that every single time I've used valet I've gotten the rock-star, leave-it-up-front parking.

I valet at the malls because they keep the rarer and exotic cars in the valet lane where there are no other cars next to it, so not only do I avoid door dings, I have zero wait when I return to the car and I can watch people checking out the Karma which I still find very enjoyable.

The only exception is the (sadly rare) case where the place I'm going has a nearby charging station. I'll skip valet and plug in, just because I can


Brent

I guess I'm just paranoid or watched Ferris Bueller too many times however I try not to leave the keys with the valet if possible. Luckily the Karma gets treated like an exotic so most valets have been obliging. Park it out front and take the keys with you if possible.

Drove the Karma down to Atlantic City a couple weeks ago and stayed at the new Revel casino. They offered to keep it parked up front overnight between two Bentleys. I had to leave the keys but they assured me it would not be moved. Just for good measure I left the keys but took the LoJack keyfob. That was a casino, however most restaurants let you keep the keys.

If they had refused to leave it out front I would have self-parked...and as far away from other cars as possible.

I use the valet all the time. Seattle has lots of electric cars, so no issues on that front. My reasoning is that I am probably less likely to get a door ding with a valet driving not only my car, but the cars parked next to it.

I did have a size issue with the valet the other day. A place I go regularly had all of their parking full, and the valet didn't want to take it to their overflow parking where, he explained, the spaces were tight (and my car is wide). I was a little miffed, but found parking where he directed me so all was well.

With my Bentley I sometime got asked for extra $20 or so and they would leave it in the front.
I never yet had an offer like that with my Fisker.
IT'S ALWAYS IN THE FRONT.

I always BRING the car to the valet, but once I roll down the window, they say " I bet you want to park it yourself". They clear a spot, moving Porsche, Bentley, Mercedes, etc and guide me in. I give them the keys (always a requirement) but they never move it.

Its a mindset in my opinion and the valets get it. They always offer to park it, but its important to position the vehicle for what it is, a very rare luxury vehicle. I always tip the valet on the way out just for the opportunity to "front" the car even though they didn't do much.

So, valet yes, but let them drive it "no"

I pulled up to valet at the hospital, I told them, "I don't have time to train you on driving this car. Can you keep it close?" The manager said, "pull it right up to the front door and keep your keys." Now when they see me coming, they waive me to the front spot. It's a free system - but I always tip them good!!

always valet.. they are not taking your car for a joyride...
my car is always parked right up front. The Fisker Karma is the cheapest exotic car on the market.

explaining how to use the car... If they are busy, all you have to do is tell the Valet to be patient with the car. These kids are raised tech savy so its not a big deal.

Henrik frequents the same places I do so every valet I have been to is familiar with the car.

99% of the time they will just guide us to a spot. About a year ago with one of our other cars a valet at the Hard Rock Cafe in FL insisted that it was policy/insurance regs that they park the vehicle. So we said 'ok, but just let your boss know that the clutch on this car is $10K to replace and if you mess it up he has to replace it.' After a few seconds, he said 'Where do you want to park it?' Maybe he was worried about a tip, but he got treated well.

The funniest part is watching them try to get out when they pull it up. Finding the flat square door release is NOT like any other car's door latch handle.