Я положила пакеты в багажник, чтобы в салоне было свободнее.

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Breakdown of Я положила пакеты в багажник, чтобы в салоне было свободнее.

• в: in
• быть: to be
• пакет: the bag

Questions & Answers about Я положила пакеты в багажник, чтобы в салоне было свободнее.

Why is it положила, not положил?

Because the speaker is female.

In the past tense, Russian verbs agree with the gender and number of the subject:

• положил = a man put
• положила = a woman put
• положило = it put
• положили = they put

So Я положила means I put said by a woman.

Why is the verb положить used here, not класть?

Положить is the perfective verb, while класть is imperfective.

Here, the speaker is talking about a completed action: she put the bags into the trunk, and that action is finished. Russian normally uses the perfective in that situation:

• класть / положить = to put, to place
• Я положила пакеты... = I put the bags...

If the sentence were about a repeated action, a process, or a general habit, Russian would more likely use класть.

Why is it пакеты? What case is that?