Saat parkir, Ayah memutar setir pelan-pelan sambil melihat spion.

Saat means when or during. Here it introduces the time background for the main action:

Saat parkir = When parking / While parking

It tells you when Ayah was turning the steering wheel and looking in the mirror.

Indonesian often leaves out words that are clear from context. In saat parkir, the subject is understood to be the same person as in the main clause, namely Ayah.

So saat parkir naturally means:

• when parking
• while he was parking

This kind of shortening is very common in Indonesian.

Here, parkir functions like a verb: to park.

Indonesian words can be flexible, and parkir is often used directly as a verb in everyday language:

• Saya parkir di depan. = I parked / am parking in front.

So in saat parkir, it means while parking.

Memutar is the active verb form built from the root putar.

• putar = turn, rotate
• memutar = to turn something

The prefix meN- often marks an active verb, especially when the verb has an object. Here the object is setir.

So:

• Ayah memutar setir = Dad turned the steering wheel

Using just putar would sound less complete in standard sentence structure.

For the same reason as memutar: melihat is the standard active verb form.

• lihat = look, see
• melihat = to see / to look at

In casual speech, Indonesians often say lihat, but in more standard Indonesian, melihat is the fuller form.

So:

• sambil melihat spion = while looking at the mirror

Setir means steering wheel.

So:

• memutar setir = to turn the steering wheel

In driving contexts, this is the normal meaning.

This is called reduplication, and it is very common in Indonesian.

Pelan means slow or gentle/soft depending on context.
Pelan-pelan means slowly, gently, or carefully.

In this sentence, it describes how Ayah turned the steering wheel:

• memutar setir pelan-pelan = turned the steering wheel slowly/gently

Reduplication often makes the meaning sound more natural as an adverb.

Sambil means while, at the same time, or while doing another action.

It connects two actions done by the same person:

• memutar setir pelan-pelan
• melihat spion

So the meaning is:

• He turned the steering wheel slowly while looking at the mirror.

Sambil is very useful for expressing simultaneous actions.

Ayah means father or dad.

It is capitalized here because it is being used like a name or title, similar to English Dad:

• Ayah memutar setir... = Dad turned the steering wheel...

If you were talking about a father in general, it would usually not be capitalized.

Spion means a car mirror, such as a rear-view mirror or side mirror, depending on context.

In everyday Indonesian, spion is a common word for the mirror a driver checks while driving or parking.

So melihat spion means:

• looking at the mirror
• more naturally in English, checking the mirror

Indonesian often does not need a preposition where English does.

So:

• melihat spion literally = see/look mirror
• natural English = look at the mirror / check the mirror

You may also hear melihat ke spion, but melihat spion is perfectly normal.

In Indonesian, adverbs often come after the verb or after the verb phrase.

So:

• memutar setir pelan-pelan

is a natural order:

1. verb: memutar
2. object: setir
3. manner: pelan-pelan

It describes how the action was done.

Yes. Sedang makes the ongoing aspect more explicit.

• Saat parkir = when parking
• Saat sedang parkir = while in the middle of parking

Both are understandable. The version without sedang is shorter and very natural.

Yes. Some common alternatives are:

• ketika
• waktu
• sewaktu

So these are all possible:

• Saat parkir...
• Ketika parkir...
• Waktu parkir...

They all mean something like when parking or while parking, though saat and ketika often sound a bit more neutral or standard than waktu in some contexts.