I don't recall ever seeing a "Follow me" car or anything in front of the aircraft on actual flights I've taken. And it seems unlikely that pilots have memorized the position of every gate at every airport. So how do you find your way without getting lost or having to turn around or anything like that?
Believe it or not, airplanes do get lost...turn the wrong way, take the wrong taxiway. One of the worst air disasters in history involved two large airplanes occupying the runway at the same time, when they ought not have.
For finding the gate, we call in advance, and have that information given us over the radio, a satphone or a datalink. Aeronautical charts publish gate positions, including diagrams and coordinates. Part of the airport area arrival is reviewing the area charts, arrival procedures, approaches, and then after landing, how we exit the runway and how we get where we need to go. Navigation on the ground is taken very seriously, because even at less than 20 knots, one can still get into a lot of trouble my making a wrong turn. We brief the taxi route, potential trouble spots with intersecting taxiways and runways, and then both pilots have an airport diagram available, with one looking outside, and one dividing his attention inside and out, and confirming each taxi turn and crossing.
We do get marshalling cars frequently, depending on where we go. They seem more common in Europe than most places. We also have airport signs marking taxiways and runways, and painted markings identifying gates and taxiways.