Use the clear opening—not the number printed on the garage-door quote.
A door can be sold or drawn as 8, 9 or 10 ft wide, yet the finished passage available to the vehicle may differ. For a straight approach, a small difference may feel unimportant. During a side-entry turn, the body can cross the wall plane at an angle, so inches at the jamb can matter.
What “clear opening” means
For GarageTurn, clear opening width is the horizontal distance between the narrowest fixed edges the vehicle body must pass when the door is fully open. That may be framing, finished jambs, tracks, guides, trim, seals, a center pier or another fixed element.
| Dimension | Useful for | Use in GarageTurn? |
|---|---|---|
| Nominal door size | Product category, rough planning and quoting. | Only if it truly equals the finished clear passage. |
| Rough opening | Framing and installation. | No—unless it remains the narrowest finished passage. |
| Finished clear opening | Actual vehicle passage. | Yes. |
How to measure an existing garage
- Open the door fully and secure it.
- Measure between the narrowest permanent edges at vehicle-body height.
- Check whether tracks or guides project farther inward than the jamb face.
- Measure at more than one height if the opening is not perfectly rectangular.
- Use the smallest relevant clear width in the simulator.
For a new build, ask for the finished dimension
Do not rely on a schematic label alone. Ask the architect, builder or door supplier what the vehicle will actually see after framing, finish materials, tracks and seals are installed. If that number is not known yet, model a conservative opening and rerun the final dimensions before construction is locked.
Why this matters more on a 90° approach
The critical body corner may pass near one jamb while the opposite end is still rotating in the apron. That means the effective clearance is not simply “door width minus vehicle width.” GarageTurn uses the opening as one boundary in the swept-path test.
If hardware is the concern, continue to garage-door jamb, trim and track clearance. If you are still deciding the product type, compare garage door types.
Frequently asked questions
Should I enter the rough opening in GarageTurn?
Usually no. Enter the finished clear passage available to the vehicle when the door is fully open.
Can tracks make a nominal 9 ft door effectively narrower?
They can, depending on the door system and installation. Measure or obtain the narrowest finished fixed opening rather than assuming the nominal label is the usable width.