When I drove one, I had plenty of cabin room, in fact I had the seat moved up a few notches. I'm 6' 2". My gut feeling is that someone 6' 7" might be fairly comfortable in one. Another option---try a Porsche, new or old. The ones I've been in also were fairly roomy for tall drivers.
Also, do some research on what cars (other than Escalades and Mercedes CLKs) are driven by NBA players. If it's tall enough for one of them, it'll be tall enough for you.
I hear that the Maxima has the most front passenger space of any car in the US. You might try one of those. I am 6'3 and have a Jetta that's comfortable. I even have a sunroof, and I fit. I also recline the seat a little though, but I have to for my comfort anyway.
40.5" of headroom. You must have short legs. I am 6'8" and have been very comfortable in both the intrigue and the impala. The intrigue has a bigger greenhouse, while the impala's rearview mirror can block forward vision.
The passat has a lot of rom also. There is a guy in the CTS thread who is 6'11".
A good friend of mine is 6'4, and has a 94 Mercury Cougar which he fits fine in. I touch the roof though, when sitting in the driver's seat. He, on the other hand, has to put the seat all the way back in my Jetta when he drives it. His height is more in his legs than his torso, and I am the opposite.
True Vocus, I just saw a post about someone 6'3" with a 31" inseam ???!!!
Top 10 Cars for Driver/Front-Passenger Space
RE: MAXIMA "the Maxima feels as roomy as a full-size American car. This may be encouraging to those drivers over six feet who are still hanging onto 10-year-old Chevy Caprices."
My Chevy Caprice is 9 years old, and with a bench seat, nothing out there comes close for roominess. Unfortunately, I have lost faith in it's reliabilty.
I drive a VW NewBeetle, which has by far the most headroom of ANY car for sale in north America (under $100k). I could also drive my wife's '91 Passat with her brother (also 6'5") sitting behind me. I didn't adjust my seat, and his knees didn't touch the seat either. The new Passats are even better. He drives a new Jetta TDI (which gets 50+ MPG like my Beetle TDI). (She drives a VW Eurovan now, which is adequate up front, but its the only front-drive van that will seat 7 - six=footers comfortably for a 5 hour drive). The Benz E-Class is great for space too (if you can afford it). S-class too, and M-class is OK. If you like Detroit Iron, that ugly Pontiac Aztec has lots of room up front, and I presume its twin (wearing a different dress), the Buick Rendezvous, should be similar. We rented a new Maxima in Hawaii and its pretty good, but doesn't match VW's Passat (in space, handling, solidness, ... but if you want to go drag-racing, I'll take the Nissan any day!) and the 4WD option in the Passat is nice too. The Audi A6 is also very roomy and cozy at the same time ... possibly the world's ultimate mid-size sedan. But the Beetle (with the seat adjusted to a low height) is the ONLY car in N.A. that I could wear a Stetson in. It rocks! (just don't make your friends sit in the back unless they've been VERY bad!) I go to the Vancouver International Auto Show annually just to check the headroom of everything! I don't think that Chrysler sells a vehicle for anyone over 6' tall. Even Suzuki's Esteem has more headroom than a Jeep Grand Cherokee or Dakota or Durango! Nissan seems to be best in import trucks, although my old Toyota LandCruiser was fantastic! Too bad they cost more than their weight in gold...
dieselbreath, I agree about the VWs. Even though they may seem small, they are particularly good for those who have longer legs. Though I'm only 5'3", I have about a 31" inseam, so I need to have the seat back far enough to give me the legroom WITHOUT having to stretch my arms to a full-on flex to reach the steering wheel.
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That's interesting Diesel, I saw one on the road and the driver looked like they were swimming in it. That's pretty ironic, and even though I really like the look of the new beetle, I am looking for alittle more armour protection against distracted SUV drivers, they're everywhere you know ! We were braodsided by a Jeep Cherokee that ran a red light. $9,700 damage to my "boat", but all six of us walked away in one piece. I shutter to imagine what it would have looked like in a Beetle.
I'll give the Passat a "sit" and check it out, thanks.
I heard there is quite a bit of headroom in the Impala. Regarding the Mini-cooper, I like the interior a lot but, again, need alittle more protective armour.
I would expect you to be able to obtain plenty of headroom and leg room with the current generation Taurus or Sable, especially if you get a model equipped with power drivers seat and also adjustable pedals.
I am not very tall myself and don't have the adjustable pedal features on mine, but there is tons of headroom if you adjust the power seat down and tons of leg room if you move the seat back. I bet someone 6'7" could fit fairly well.
Otherwise, most minivans have a lot of headroom and I would think you would fit fine in them.
Excellent head and front legroom in the Impala. One of the few cars where I can pull the front seat up a few inches and still be comfortable. You do have to get the power seat to take advantage of the legroom though.
Downside to the imp is the rearview mirror is mounted low and tends to block some forward vision.
I drive a 2001.5 VW Passat. The headroom and legroom is perfect for me. I am 6'-7" tall with a 36" inseam. I don't fit in any car with a sunroof so I never consider vehicles so equipped.
The Passat with the 1.8T engine and 5-speed manual tranny is very fun to drive and gets good mileage. I think it is one of the better looking sedans available and has struck a pretty good balance on the suspension (not too tight and not to soft). The engine power is very good although there is some slight turbo lag (this is where the manual tranny allows you to keep the revs up to overcome the lag). You can get the Passat in the wagon variant if you need more cargo room. Overall, the Passat is a very solid vehicle.
I sat in a Mini and was surprised that I fit . . . although the drivers seat was all the way back and touching the rear seat to provide enough leg room. I want to test drive one and may consider it as a future purchase.
The VW Beetle has good head room but in order to maximize legroom the seat needs to be back all the way. This puts the seat at the position where the roof line dives down in the back. My head was firmly planted against the headliner when I had the seat back to provide enough legroom.
I'm not sure what my reasons were for looking at the Altima over the Passat, but I should try a Passat on for size. I never test drove one.
I will check out the headroom ... I have read quite abit about the VW quality of build !
Now, one reason is coming back, I was fearful of regular repair and maintenance costs. Have you found servicing your VW in the USA over the long haul to be more expensive ?
I have my Passat on a 4-year lease. I am into the lease 1.5 years and have had no trouble to speak of as of yet. I had a temperature sensor that went bad at month 3 of the lease but I brought it in to have it checked out (no appointment) and had it back by the end of the same day without any cost to me (all under warranty). No problems since then. Because the vehicle is a 2001.5 it has the first 4 oil changes done at no cost to me (5k, 10k, 15k, and 20k miles). I think they stopped doing that with the 2002 model year (the same time they extended the warranty from the feable 2 year/ 24k. I also got an extended warranty to carry me through the full 4 year lease so I am not expecting to see any major expenses while I am driving it.
I have the cold weather package so I get the seat warmers and that really helps out on those cold winter days. I also have the Monsoon stereo and find that the sound system is very good.
I sat in the Passat when it first came out and even though VW says there is 41" of legroom I would say it is more like 45". Again one of the few cars I havesat in where I could actually pull the seat up. I am almost 6'8".
Another thing I really like about the Passat is the tilt and telescoping steering wheel. Not many manufacturers include the telescoping feature and even fewer in the $21-$23k range.
I also like the lever on the side of the seat that allows you to raise and lower the seat. If I crank the seat all the way down I have almost 5" of clear space between the top of my head and the roof liner. I usually crank it up so I have 2" clear.
I also like the quality of materials that VW puts in the Passat. It might not have as much thrust under the hood as the Altima but the interior is much more upscale.
I'm about your height, and can't even imagine having any play left in the seat track. Amazing !
Also, it always seemed odd to me that they position those seat tracks so far forward. To illustrate to the car salemsan, I have moved the seat all the way forward, it's so ridiclous how far it goes. My knees bend up as high as the steering wheel. It's even more funny on a power seat because it looks like you are in a slow moving torture machine jamming under the steering wheel.
You would have to be 4 feet and 80 pounds to set the seat there !
Anyway, big_guy and b4z, thanks for the info, it's good to not feel like you're the only tall car buyer out there.
There already was a short-lived discussion on a similar topic, but it was archived a couple of years ago (no additions possible), so I decided to open a new thread here.
As a tall driver, I find a lot of the information in car mags to be irrelevant because I do not feel comfortable in the vehicle after doing all the "spec" research. So, I took advantage of the 9th International Auto Show taking place in San Jose, and went there with a sole purpose of looking at cars from a tall driver's perspective. The resulting writeup came out very long with a bunch of pictures, so I put it on my server and decided to place the URL here.
I am curious, what do you, as tall drivers, look for to give you a clue as to whether the car will turn out comfortable on long journeys? Obviously, just sitting in one is insufficient (better than nothing, though), but even short rides when testing might prove to be a weak indicator. I owned one such car. It was just fine for a one-hour ride, but for a long, all-day trip it was really trying.
1. Interference with my right calf and the center console: It is natural for a tall person to splay their legs out to get their knees off the steering wheel, but this sometimes results in an abrasion of the leg against the console. For short trips you don't notice it but after a few hours you sure do.
2. Head hitting the left side of the headliner: Some car designs allow the doors to angle into the roof and it's a great way to bash your head on turns or bumps.
3. Windshield too narrow: I have to hunch down to see traffic lights, etc.
4. Awkward switches for gorilla arms: sometimes the switch gear and gear shift is too close for the tall person. Either your elbows keep you from reaching in close or you have to bend your arm unnaturally. Ditto handbrake on some cars.
Telescoping steering wheels would be nice. I've never owned a car with one, and each time I get in the car I wish I had one.
I liked your comments (shifty), and the web site (tallguy). I wish I'd taken a camera to NAIAS and done a Tall Guy perspective of my own. Of course, "tall" is subjective and I'm just 6'2", but very long legs and arms. I could imagine someone else who is three inches taller than me but has arms that are three inches shorter, and therefore reaches about the same height. So maybe "What is Tall?" is a valid question.
I'm going to create a new edmunds login called yaoming and go ask "What is the best car for 7-footers?" over on the sports car board...
I know this 7-foot guy in Aspen (well I've seen him) and he drives a van with a huge extended (upwards) roof, like a "pop-top" camper, but in metal. Had it especially made.
You may recall the famous Fiat-Abarth "double bubble" cars, which actually had two lovely humps in the roofline to accomodate two heads while racing.
I'll see if I can find a good picture. It's one solution!
Mr_Shiftright wrote:Interference with my right calf and the center console
That's a very important one, and one that is hard to notice during a casual inspection of the interior or even a short drive.
It is also one of my pet peeves--companies putting automatic transmission levers on the floor and surrounding them with huge, useless plastic boxes, so they can look "sporty."
First of all, why would you need an automatic transmission lever on the floor? How many people shove their auto trannies up and down all the time?
Secondly, why take away my space to put a honking, ugly, plastic box right where my leg could be resting (not to mention an occasional third passenger up front)? Some of the new versions of the full-size Ford CV/Mercury GM are good examples of that. I think Lincoln also has something like it. Almost all large imports suffer from it as well. It is sacrificing utility for a dubious image. While we're at it, why not put a fartcan on a Cadillac? That should enhance its image. And let's lower its suspension so that it scratches the pavement in every turn. Yeah, that would be cool. I think companies sometimes forget who their customers are. Pointing out Oldsmobile is like shooting fish in a barrel, but I couldn't help myself.
Windshield too narrow: I have to hunch down to see traffic lights
I've got one related to it: rear view mirrors in the middle of the windshield, so that I have to lean over to the lower left to see where I'm turning. Were those cars all designed for people 4'3"? Nobody else can see underneath that mirror.
sphinx99 wrote:So maybe "What is Tall?" is a valid question
I am 6'3" with legs to justify 6'5", 175lbs. That may not be very tall, but it's enough to cause a lot of discomfort in many modern cars. I also have a minor problem with my left knee, so once in a while I need to stretch it and rest it.
than just height. We've been kicking this around on the Lincoln LS owner's club site, and it seems that a person's preferred driving position is as important as height. We have people well under six feet tall who want to move the seat back farther, and we have guys 6'5" who are perfectly comfortable in their cars. Someone who likes to sit upright will have more legroom than someone who likes to recline more. sphinx99 is right; the telescoping wheel is great, you can get the wheel in the right place without being too close or too far from the pedals. I imagine adjustable pedals would do much the same thing.
But what do I know? 5'7" with legs to justify 5'4".
first thing I think of when thinking of tall driver's was a scene from the 1st Police Academy movie where Bubba Smith (Hightower) is learning how to drive this little hatchback... Finally he rips the front seats out and sits in the back and says "Much Better"
As for myself I'm 6'3" and bout 290lb. I myself have had a variety of vehicle and am now currently driving a 2001 Escape XLT 4wd. I have no problems with room in it. I've gone lone trips from Lebanon,Pa to Knoxville,TN which straight driving is about 8 1/2 hours and I was not sore or achy after the drive. Now if I tried this in my wife's 2000 Civic EX... that would hurt. For me to drive her car.. the seat has to be all the way back and reclined a good bit... plus the sunroof shade has to be open for head room. I just wish the Civic had the Leg room like the Prelude had. But when-ever we need to drive long distances we take the Escape. Granted is doesn't get the same MPG as the Civic. It does have a nice ride and gets adequate MPG for us (about 20-23 City / 24-27 Hwy.. and usually push 30 mpg on TN trip)
But when it comes to purchasing a vehicle I more look at the leg / head room and the contour of the seat how it will feel on my lower back... I can usually tell right away if the seat will not agree with my back.
odie6l wrote:But when it comes to purchasing a vehicle I more look at the leg / head room and the contour of the seat how it will feel on my lower back
Good point about the lumbar support. I also had a car that felt great on short trips, but on longer ones I had to fashion a makeshift lumbar pillow. Otherwise my back would really hurt after several hours.
Oh, we got some BIG boys on this board. Great, you know the problem.
That center console is a killer for me. Another pain is that there is sometimes no place to put very big FEET. The little "dead pedal" some cars offer isn't roomy enough to squeeze a size 12 shoe or boot in there between the clutch pedal and dead pedal. Or my shoe tip hits the firewall or the CONSOLE again!
Tilt wheel can take care of the knee issue, even though it feels like I'm driving a city bus.
Svoopy-doopy windshields are a pain. I feel sometimes like I'm looking through someone else's prescription glasses or driving into a tunnel.
Mr_Shiftright wrote:Another pain is that there is sometimes no place to put very big FEET
Ahhh.... Good point. In my present car, if I put my wingtips when going to work, I cannot operate the clutch comfortably because the firewall is so low that the tip of my shoe catches it. I end up putting my shoes in the right well and driving in my socks. Ridiculous.
bigfur wrote:Live in minnesota, so i just skip cars and go straight for the trucks
That might be a solution, but since most of my driving is city, a truck would be very uneconomical to drive (horrid gas mileage). Also, I like to have easy access to a well protected storage area (as in a trunk or hatch). Trucks are a pain in that regard.
is one of the biggest problems for me also. Many of htem don't allow me to get my leg between them and the steering wheel. Ex: last year we tested a Ford Focus and although it was terrific on a short road test, the console had a sharp edge that dug into the upper part of my calf. Nix that one and then we tried a Toyota Matrix. Although a little less powerful than the Focus, the console left tons of room for my leg and had no parts that dig into my calf.
Second biggest problem is with sunroofs. Although I can buy a car without them, a few years ago I loked at some upper mid-class cars (Lexus RX300, used BMW 3 & 5 series, etc.) and discovered that nearly 100% of them came from the factory with thick sunroofs that steal 2-3 inches of headroom for us taller people. I ended up with a used E-class Mercedes with a sunroof. Theirs is thinner than the other guys and the roof started out a little higher so my head does not hit the roof. But, the newer model has a slightly lower roof and I don't fit with the sunroof. If I ever can afford a new one, I'll have to order it without the sunroof.
Lumbar support: always an issue with me due to a bad back. I don't need "adjustable" support, just a seat that gives good support to the lower back. One car that didn't, was a LeSabre that had no support whatever between the lower and upper horizontal metal frame members. I couldn't drive that car for more than 30 minutes without incurring back pain. (It was my wife's car!) My current Mercedes does nto have adjustable support but the seat does have adequate support built in. What gets me is that I've owned 4 other much cheaper cars, a Fiat, a Mazda, a Dodge Acclaim, and a Chrysler Concorde that all had adjustable lumbar support. But not in a higher priced Buick or luxury Mercedes.. Why ??
Something no one else mentioned so far is some cars have windshields that are so steeply sloped combined with a curved roof line that it is impossible to lean forward to see out of the window because my head hits the roof liner/window frame as soon as I lean forward just a few inches.
Someone mentioned he had an Escape and that was a serious contender for us last year (actually the Tribute!) becuase it was sooo roomy for us biguns. Even with the driver's seat adjusted for me I could sit very comfortably behind me. Very impressive interior room.
Pet peeve: why so many small cars have good interior space and so many luxury cars have such poor interior space. Try the Neon and then try a Jaguar XJ6. The Jag is a joke for anyone over 5'9" tall. The Neon accomodates 6'4" and maybe more.. Compare Nissan Sentra to an Infinity I30. Sentra is much more comfortable for large folks.
microrepair wrote: Console is one of the biggest problems for me also. Many of them don't allow me to get my leg between them and the steering wheel. [...] then we tried a Toyota Matrix. Although a little less powerful than the Focus, the console left tons of room for my leg and had no parts that dig into my calf.
I agree with the above sentiments. The center consoles are evil in most cars, as there is rarely any functional justification for their existence, particularly when automatic transmission is used. The Matrix, unfortunately, is too small for me - the steering wheel is too close to the pedals. As a result, if I push my seat far enough back, I cannot comfortably grip the wheel. This is a trend with new Toyotas. Camry, despite its generally large dimensions, suffers from the same problem. It was clearly designed for a short driver. Amazingly, Toyota doesn't offer telescopic steering wheel even as an option. Oh, well, I am sure they don't give a hoot about my business, or that of others like me.
Second biggest problem is with sunroofs. Although I can buy a car without them, a few years ago I loked at some upper mid-class cars (Lexus RX300, used BMW 3 & 5 series, etc.) and discovered that nearly 100% of them came from the factory with thick sunroofs that steal 2-3 inches of headroom for us taller people.
For that reason I don't even bother looking at cars with sun/moonroofs, unless they are minivans.
Lumbar support: always an issue with me due to a bad back. I don't need "adjustable" support, just a seat that gives good support to the lower back.
I had a car that was otherwise perfectly comfortable, but after a couple of hours driving gave me a nagging back pain. Since I liked the car otherwise, I resigned myself to using a special lumbar pillow. It was actually quite effective.
Something no one else mentioned so far is some cars have windshields that are so steeply sloped combined with a curved roof line that it is impossible to lean forward to see out of the window because my head hits the roof liner/window frame as soon as I lean forward just a few inches.
I have not encountered that problem yet, but I will be on the lookout.
Pet peeve: why so many small cars have good interior space and so many luxury cars have such poor interior space.
Heh, good question. I remember Ford Granada. It was quite uncomfortable for tall drivers. Yet Ford Maverick, about the same size or smaller, made at the same time, had room to spare. Even more striking would be Chrysler PT Cruiser with lots of room up front, and the Avalon, which dwarfs the Cruiser by 23" in overall length, and which is uncomfortable. Oh, well. I guess some companies want our money, some don't.
Well there are some advantages to being tall. Now that so many cars have a high beltline (like the Mustang), smaller drivers can't even lean their elbow out and rest it on the window sill, but WE can!
Mr_Shiftright wrote: smaller drivers can't even lean their elbow out and rest it on the window sill, but WE can!
Heh, that's true, but in my neighborhood many of the drivers can barely even stick their crew-cut heads up above the instrument panels of their plastic-cladded, fart-canned Honda Civics...
...I actually had the chance to sit in both, just a few years ago. A guy at work had a pristine Maverick 4-door that he let me sit in, for the nostalgia flashback, and my manager when I delivered pizzas had a beat-up old '78 Granada sedan that he was trying to sell, and he let me drive it around the parking lot.
The Granada is actually based on the Maverick, riding the same 109.9" wheelbase as the 4-door Maverick, so I don't see how one could be roomier inside than the other. I'm 6'3", and could fit in either one, but these cars were both at the bottom of the barrel for space efficiency, even back then.
A Nova or similar GM car back then had better headroom, but legroom was still pretty skimpy. Back then, it seemed like Chrysler was the only one that could make a compact car worth a damn for taller people. The Dart back then had headroom and legroom on par with most full-sized cars, although it was still compact in shoulder room. The replacement Aspen/Volare were even roomier.
A bigger car doesn't necessarily mean a roomier car, or a more comfortable car. A lot of it has to do with how intrustive wheel wells, transmission humps, etc are, where the pedals are placed, how high the seats are and how they're shaped, how far the dashboard/steering wheel is from the driver, etc. And what's comfortable for one driver isn't necessarily comfortable for another.
andre1969 wrote: The Granada is actually based on the Maverick, riding the same 109.9" wheelbase as the 4-door Maverick, so I don't see how one could be roomier inside than the other
That's even more amazing to me, then, because I drove both back then, and my Maverick was much more comfortable than the Granada. Perhaps it was the fact that the Granada I used to drive had a bench, and the Maverick had nice bucket seats, I don't know (although that Maverick itself was a near wreck, but the V8 engine was a screamer).
...the bucket seats probably did make a big difference. The Granada and Maverick both had a huge driveshaft tunnel and transmission hump. I'm guessing that the Granada's bench seat may have sat up higher, in an attempt at 3-across seating, but then that would cut headroom. They might have made the bucket seats go further back as well; I don't know.
I did have a '69 Dart GT hardtop with bucket seats, and after that a '68 Dart 270 hardtop with a bench, and the buckets did seem more comfortable than that bench. I kept 'em out of the wreck of the GT and put 'em in the 270. I think, at least in this case, the bucket seats went further back.
Also, with the Granada, it was styled to look like a much bigger car than the Maverick even though it really wasn't. Maybe though, that just gave the perception that it was a cramped car inside? Granadas also had thicker padding and seats, which may also have contributed to a more claustrophobic feeling.
I am 6'3 and a good 275lbs., so I am by no means a small person. I drive an 02 VW Jetta, and it's quite comfortable for me on long trips. I have driven it up to 400 miles at a time (it's fuel range on a full tank on the hwy), and have emerged feeling fine. The heated leather seats, with lumbar adjustment, definitely help in this regard.
The biggest problems for me in a car seem to be headroom (I won't drive a car without a sunroof), and my right knee/calf hitting the center console. (The right calf thing is what kept me out of an Audi A4.)
I think carmakers tend to make cars more for average-sized people, but I guess they can't fit everyone..
i'm 6'3", 190 and have long legs. more than the dead pedal, center console, and sunroof problems, the biggest for me is support under my thighs (femur?). from the top of my hips to my knees is very long, and it's extremely difficult for me to find car seats long enough to provide adequate support. i have the same problem with office chairs.
to date i've found hondas to be decent and toyotas to be absolutely terrible.
That's even more amazing to me, then, because I drove both back then, and my Maverick was much more comfortable than the Granada. Perhaps it was the fact that the Granada I used to drive had a bench, and the Maverick had nice bucket seats
My old 72 Maverick 200" 6 3-on-the-tree had bucket seats, too. I pulled them out of a Volvo to replace the stock bench seat. Nice & comfy. For a stripped Ford that cost $2,000 new, it was a great car. I got it as a family cast-off and put over 120,000 miles on it. There's something to be said for simplicity.
I'm 6'3", too. I have a 2001 VW GTI as a commuter car. The telescoping wheel, very adjustable seat with generous seat rails, and high head liner are great for tall folk. I did the search two summers ago looking for a sub-$20K car including a 100K OEM extended warranty with headroom and legroom. I sat in everything from Japan and my hair would brush the roof liner and it was difficult entering and exiting.
My other car is a 2003 Mountaineer. I've owned 3 Exploder variants and they all have great head room. This one has better leg room since the gas and brake pedal are adjustable. I drive my SUVs 2 miles to the ski area wearing ski boots.
I'm another person who wouldn't get a car that didn't have a sun roof. I use it to see overhead traffic lights.
do German people have a larger build than people from other countries? I'm sure they do compared to the Japanese, but what about the typical U.S. resident?
Reason I'm asking is that a few years ago I heard someone mention this, and that's supposedly why their cars are so roomy inside in comparison to similarly sized cars from other countries.
I could actually see it with the original Beetle...as small as that thing was, I could actually fit in it (and I'm also 6'3"). I don't know if I'd want to drive one every day, but it was at least roomy enough inside that I could if I had to. I probably couldn't say that about a Pinto or Vega back then!
Comments
When I drove one, I had plenty of cabin room, in fact I had the seat moved up a few notches. I'm 6' 2". My gut feeling is that someone 6' 7" might be fairly comfortable in one. Another option---try a Porsche, new or old. The ones I've been in also were fairly roomy for tall drivers.
Also, do some research on what cars (other than Escalades and Mercedes CLKs) are driven by NBA players. If it's tall enough for one of them, it'll be tall enough for you.
The beginning of my list is:
Buick Rendezvous
Nissan Altima
Toyota RAV
Also, here is a link to Edmund's Roomy Vehicles from March 2002, (hope they update it).
http://www.edmunds.com/reviews/list/top10/45759/article.html
Others look first for styling, engine power, price, sportiness, reliability, cargo space, gas mileage, suspension.
While us Tall people have to search for the 4 or 5 cars that we will fit in.
Good luck!
Glad to hear you found the Jetta comfortable, EVEN with a SUNROOF, great.
I am 6'8" and have been very comfortable in both the intrigue and the impala. The intrigue has a bigger greenhouse, while the impala's rearview mirror can block forward vision.
The passat has a lot of rom also.
There is a guy in the CTS thread who is 6'11".
Top 10 Cars for Driver/Front-Passenger Space
RE: MAXIMA
"the Maxima feels as roomy as a full-size American car.
This may be encouraging to those drivers over six feet who are still hanging onto 10-year-old Chevy Caprices."
My Chevy Caprice is 9 years old, and with a bench seat, nothing out there comes close for roominess. Unfortunately, I have lost faith in it's reliabilty.
I could also drive my wife's '91 Passat with her brother (also 6'5") sitting behind me. I didn't adjust my seat, and his knees didn't touch the seat either. The new Passats are even better.
He drives a new Jetta TDI (which gets 50+ MPG like my Beetle TDI).
(She drives a VW Eurovan now, which is adequate up front, but its the only front-drive van that will seat 7 - six=footers comfortably for a 5 hour drive).
The Benz E-Class is great for space too (if you can afford it). S-class too, and M-class is OK.
If you like Detroit Iron, that ugly Pontiac Aztec has lots of room up front, and I presume its twin (wearing a different dress), the Buick Rendezvous, should be similar.
We rented a new Maxima in Hawaii and its pretty good, but doesn't match VW's Passat (in space, handling, solidness, ... but if you want to go drag-racing, I'll take the Nissan any day!) and the 4WD option in the Passat is nice too.
The Audi A6 is also very roomy and cozy at the same time ... possibly the world's ultimate mid-size sedan.
But the Beetle (with the seat adjusted to a low height) is the ONLY car in N.A. that I could wear a Stetson in. It rocks! (just don't make your friends sit in the back unless they've been VERY bad!)
I go to the Vancouver International Auto Show annually just to check the headroom of everything!
I don't think that Chrysler sells a vehicle for anyone over 6' tall. Even Suzuki's Esteem has more headroom than a Jeep Grand Cherokee or Dakota or Durango!
Nissan seems to be best in import trucks, although my old Toyota LandCruiser was fantastic! Too bad they cost more than their weight in gold...
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That's pretty ironic, and even though I really like the look of the new beetle, I am looking for alittle more armour protection against distracted SUV drivers, they're everywhere you know ! We were braodsided by a Jeep Cherokee that ran a red light. $9,700 damage to my "boat", but all six of us walked away in one piece. I shutter to imagine what it would have looked like in a Beetle.
I'll give the Passat a "sit" and check it out, thanks.
The front seats in the MINI are roomier than most compact and midsize cars out there.
The MINI looks pretty deceiving in exterior dimensions but it is a surprinsingly roomy car inside.
Try it.
Also if you want a roomy large American sedan, try the Chevy Impala.
This is one area where the MINI Cooper beats the Beetle hands down.
What do you drive ?
I am not very tall myself and don't have the adjustable pedal features on mine, but there is tons of headroom if you adjust the power seat down and tons of leg room if you move the seat back. I bet someone 6'7" could fit fairly well.
Otherwise, most minivans have a lot of headroom and I would think you would fit fine in them.
The MINI Cooper earned top safety honors in the IIHS and NHTSA tests:
"Best Pick"
http://www.iihs.org/vehicle_ratings/ce/html/0222.htm
More info at MINIUSA.COM
The MINI is a very deceiving car because of its size. When driving it it feels more solid and reassuring than my 3,400 pound Impala.
You do have to get the power seat to take advantage of the legroom though.
Downside to the imp is the rearview mirror is mounted low and tends to block some forward vision.
The Passat with the 1.8T engine and 5-speed manual tranny is very fun to drive and gets good mileage. I think it is one of the better looking sedans available and has struck a pretty good balance on the suspension (not too tight and not to soft). The engine power is very good although there is some slight turbo lag (this is where the manual tranny allows you to keep the revs up to overcome the lag). You can get the Passat in the wagon variant if you need more cargo room. Overall, the Passat is a very solid vehicle.
I sat in a Mini and was surprised that I fit . . . although the drivers seat was all the way back and touching the rear seat to provide enough leg room. I want to test drive one and may consider it as a future purchase.
The VW Beetle has good head room but in order to maximize legroom the seat needs to be back all the way. This puts the seat at the position where the roof line dives down in the back. My head was firmly planted against the headliner when I had the seat back to provide enough legroom.
Just my $.02
I will check out the headroom ... I have read quite abit about the VW quality of build !
Now, one reason is coming back, I was fearful of regular repair and maintenance costs. Have you found servicing your VW in the USA over the long haul to be more expensive ?
I have the cold weather package so I get the seat warmers and that really helps out on those cold winter days. I also have the Monsoon stereo and find that the sound system is very good.
Again one of the few cars I havesat in where I could actually pull the seat up.
I am almost 6'8".
I also like the lever on the side of the seat that allows you to raise and lower the seat. If I crank the seat all the way down I have almost 5" of clear space between the top of my head and the roof liner. I usually crank it up so I have 2" clear.
I also like the quality of materials that VW puts in the Passat. It might not have as much thrust under the hood as the Altima but the interior is much more upscale.
Also, it always seemed odd to me that they position those seat tracks so far forward. To illustrate to the car salemsan, I have moved the seat all the way forward, it's so ridiclous how far it goes. My knees bend up as high as the steering wheel. It's even more funny on a power seat because it looks like you are in a slow moving torture machine jamming under the steering wheel.
You would have to be 4 feet and 80 pounds to set the seat there !
Anyway, big_guy and b4z, thanks for the info, it's good to not feel like you're the only tall car buyer out there.
As a tall driver, I find a lot of the information in car mags to be irrelevant because I do not feel comfortable in the vehicle after doing all the "spec" research. So, I took advantage of the 9th International Auto Show taking place in San Jose, and went there with a sole purpose of looking at cars from a tall driver's perspective. The resulting writeup came out very long with a bunch of pictures, so I put it on my server and decided to place the URL here.
I am curious, what do you, as tall drivers, look for to give you a clue as to whether the car will turn out comfortable on long journeys? Obviously, just sitting in one is insufficient (better than nothing, though), but even short rides when testing might prove to be a weak indicator. I owned one such car. It was just fine for a one-hour ride, but for a long, all-day trip it was really trying.
1. Interference with my right calf and the center console: It is natural for a tall person to splay their legs out to get their knees off the steering wheel, but this sometimes results in an abrasion of the leg against the console. For short trips you don't notice it but after a few hours you sure do.
2. Head hitting the left side of the headliner: Some car designs allow the doors to angle into the roof and it's a great way to bash your head on turns or bumps.
3. Windshield too narrow: I have to hunch down to see traffic lights, etc.
4. Awkward switches for gorilla arms: sometimes the switch gear and gear shift is too close for the tall person. Either your elbows keep you from reaching in close or you have to bend your arm unnaturally.
Ditto handbrake on some cars.
I liked your comments (shifty), and the web site (tallguy). I wish I'd taken a camera to NAIAS and done a Tall Guy perspective of my own. Of course, "tall" is subjective and I'm just 6'2", but very long legs and arms. I could imagine someone else who is three inches taller than me but has arms that are three inches shorter, and therefore reaches about the same height. So maybe "What is Tall?" is a valid question.
I'm going to create a new edmunds login called yaoming and go ask "What is the best car for 7-footers?" over on the sports car board...
You may recall the famous Fiat-Abarth "double bubble" cars, which actually had two lovely humps in the roofline to accomodate two heads while racing.
I'll see if I can find a good picture. It's one solution!
2001 BMW 330ci/E46, 2008 BMW 335i conv/E93
That's a very important one, and one that is hard to notice during a casual inspection of the interior or even a short drive.
It is also one of my pet peeves--companies putting automatic transmission levers on the floor and surrounding them with huge, useless plastic boxes, so they can look "sporty."
First of all, why would you need an automatic transmission lever on the floor? How many people shove their auto trannies up and down all the time?
Secondly, why take away my space to put a honking, ugly, plastic box right where my leg could be resting (not to mention an occasional third passenger up front)? Some of the new versions of the full-size Ford CV/Mercury GM are good examples of that. I think Lincoln also has something like it. Almost all large imports suffer from it as well. It is sacrificing utility for a dubious image. While we're at it, why not put a fartcan on a Cadillac? That should enhance its image. And let's lower its suspension so that it scratches the pavement in every turn. Yeah, that would be cool. I think companies sometimes forget who their customers are. Pointing out Oldsmobile is like shooting fish in a barrel, but I couldn't help myself.
Windshield too narrow: I have to hunch down to see traffic lights
I've got one related to it: rear view mirrors in the middle of the windshield, so that I have to lean over to the lower left to see where I'm turning. Were those cars all designed for people 4'3"? Nobody else can see underneath that mirror.
sphinx99 wrote: So maybe "What is Tall?" is a valid question
I am 6'3" with legs to justify 6'5", 175lbs. That may not be very tall, but it's enough to cause a lot of discomfort in many modern cars. I also have a minor problem with my left knee, so once in a while I need to stretch it and rest it.
But what do I know? 5'7" with legs to justify 5'4".
As for myself I'm 6'3" and bout 290lb. I myself have had a variety of vehicle and am now currently driving a 2001 Escape XLT 4wd. I have no problems with room in it. I've gone lone trips from Lebanon,Pa to Knoxville,TN which straight driving is about 8 1/2 hours and I was not sore or achy after the drive. Now if I tried this in my wife's 2000 Civic EX... that would hurt. For me to drive her car.. the seat has to be all the way back and reclined a good bit... plus the sunroof shade has to be open for head room. I just wish the Civic had the Leg room like the Prelude had. But when-ever we need to drive long distances we take the Escape. Granted is doesn't get the same MPG as the Civic. It does have a nice ride and gets adequate MPG for us (about 20-23 City / 24-27 Hwy.. and usually push 30 mpg on TN trip)
But when it comes to purchasing a vehicle I more look at the leg / head room and the contour of the seat how it will feel on my lower back... I can usually tell right away if the seat will not agree with my back.
Odie
Good point about the lumbar support. I also had a car that felt great on short trips, but on longer ones I had to fashion a makeshift lumbar pillow. Otherwise my back would really hurt after several hours.
That center console is a killer for me. Another pain is that there is sometimes no place to put very big FEET. The little "dead pedal" some cars offer isn't roomy enough to squeeze a size 12 shoe or boot in there between the clutch pedal and dead pedal. Or my shoe tip hits the firewall or the CONSOLE again!
Tilt wheel can take care of the knee issue, even though it feels like I'm driving a city bus.
Svoopy-doopy windshields are a pain. I feel sometimes like I'm looking through someone else's prescription glasses or driving into a tunnel.
Ahhh.... Good point. In my present car, if I put my wingtips when going to work, I cannot operate the clutch comfortably because the firewall is so low that the tip of my shoe catches it. I end up putting my shoes in the right well and driving in my socks. Ridiculous.
bigfur wrote: Live in minnesota, so i just skip cars and go straight for the trucks
That might be a solution, but since most of my driving is city, a truck would be very uneconomical to drive (horrid gas mileage). Also, I like to have easy access to a well protected storage area (as in a trunk or hatch). Trucks are a pain in that regard.
Second biggest problem is with sunroofs. Although I can buy a car without them, a few years ago I loked at some upper mid-class cars (Lexus RX300, used BMW 3 & 5 series, etc.) and discovered that nearly 100% of them came from the factory with thick sunroofs that steal 2-3 inches of headroom for us taller people. I ended up with a used E-class Mercedes with a sunroof. Theirs is thinner than the other guys and the roof started out a little higher so my head does not hit the roof. But, the newer model has a slightly lower roof and I don't fit with the sunroof. If I ever can afford a new one, I'll have to order it without the sunroof.
Lumbar support: always an issue with me due to a bad back. I don't need "adjustable" support, just a seat that gives good support to the lower back. One car that didn't, was a LeSabre that had no support whatever between the lower and upper horizontal metal frame members. I couldn't drive that car for more than 30 minutes without incurring back pain. (It was my wife's car!) My current Mercedes does nto have adjustable support but the seat does have adequate support built in. What gets me is that I've owned 4 other much cheaper cars, a Fiat, a Mazda, a Dodge Acclaim, and a Chrysler Concorde that all had adjustable lumbar support. But not in a higher priced Buick or luxury Mercedes.. Why ??
Something no one else mentioned so far is some cars have windshields that are so steeply sloped combined with a curved roof line that it is impossible to lean forward to see out of the window because my head hits the roof liner/window frame as soon as I lean forward just a few inches.
Someone mentioned he had an Escape and that was a serious contender for us last year (actually the Tribute!) becuase it was sooo roomy for us biguns. Even with the driver's seat adjusted for me I could sit very comfortably behind me. Very impressive interior room.
Pet peeve: why so many small cars have good interior space and so many luxury cars have such poor interior space. Try the Neon and then try a Jaguar XJ6. The Jag is a joke for anyone over 5'9" tall. The Neon accomodates 6'4" and maybe more.. Compare Nissan Sentra to an Infinity I30. Sentra is much more comfortable for large folks.
I agree with the above sentiments. The center consoles are evil in most cars, as there is rarely any functional justification for their existence, particularly when automatic transmission is used. The Matrix, unfortunately, is too small for me - the steering wheel is too close to the pedals. As a result, if I push my seat far enough back, I cannot comfortably grip the wheel. This is a trend with new Toyotas. Camry, despite its generally large dimensions, suffers from the same problem. It was clearly designed for a short driver. Amazingly, Toyota doesn't offer telescopic steering wheel even as an option. Oh, well, I am sure they don't give a hoot about my business, or that of others like me.
Second biggest problem is with sunroofs. Although I can buy a car without them, a few years ago I loked at some upper mid-class cars (Lexus RX300, used BMW 3 & 5 series, etc.) and discovered that nearly 100% of them came from the factory with thick sunroofs that steal 2-3 inches of headroom for us taller people.
For that reason I don't even bother looking at cars with sun/moonroofs, unless they are minivans.
Lumbar support: always an issue with me due to a bad back. I don't need "adjustable" support, just a seat that gives good support to the lower back.
I had a car that was otherwise perfectly comfortable, but after a couple of hours driving gave me a nagging back pain. Since I liked the car otherwise, I resigned myself to using a special lumbar pillow. It was actually quite effective.
Something no one else mentioned so far is some cars have windshields that are so steeply sloped combined with a curved roof line that it is impossible to lean forward to see out of the window because my head hits the roof liner/window frame as soon as I lean forward just a few inches.
I have not encountered that problem yet, but I will be on the lookout.
Pet peeve: why so many small cars have good interior space and so many luxury cars have such poor interior space.
Heh, good question. I remember Ford Granada. It was quite uncomfortable for tall drivers. Yet Ford Maverick, about the same size or smaller, made at the same time, had room to spare. Even more striking would be Chrysler PT Cruiser with lots of room up front, and the Avalon, which dwarfs the Cruiser by 23" in overall length, and which is uncomfortable. Oh, well. I guess some companies want our money, some don't.
Heh, that's true, but in my neighborhood many of the drivers can barely even stick their crew-cut heads up above the instrument panels of their plastic-cladded, fart-canned Honda Civics...
The Granada is actually based on the Maverick, riding the same 109.9" wheelbase as the 4-door Maverick, so I don't see how one could be roomier inside than the other. I'm 6'3", and could fit in either one, but these cars were both at the bottom of the barrel for space efficiency, even back then.
A Nova or similar GM car back then had better headroom, but legroom was still pretty skimpy. Back then, it seemed like Chrysler was the only one that could make a compact car worth a damn for taller people. The Dart back then had headroom and legroom on par with most full-sized cars, although it was still compact in shoulder room. The replacement Aspen/Volare were even roomier.
A bigger car doesn't necessarily mean a roomier car, or a more comfortable car. A lot of it has to do with how intrustive wheel wells, transmission humps, etc are, where the pedals are placed, how high the seats are and how they're shaped, how far the dashboard/steering wheel is from the driver, etc. And what's comfortable for one driver isn't necessarily comfortable for another.
That's even more amazing to me, then, because I drove both back then, and my Maverick was much more comfortable than the Granada. Perhaps it was the fact that the Granada I used to drive had a bench, and the Maverick had nice bucket seats, I don't know (although that Maverick itself was a near wreck, but the V8 engine was a screamer).
I did have a '69 Dart GT hardtop with bucket seats, and after that a '68 Dart 270 hardtop with a bench, and the buckets did seem more comfortable than that bench. I kept 'em out of the wreck of the GT and put 'em in the 270. I think, at least in this case, the bucket seats went further back.
Also, with the Granada, it was styled to look like a much bigger car than the Maverick even though it really wasn't. Maybe though, that just gave the perception that it was a cramped car inside? Granadas also had thicker padding and seats, which may also have contributed to a more claustrophobic feeling.
As a tall driver, this drives me nuts. A lot of times I am looking partly thru this as I drive.
Anybody ever have their windshield changed to solve this.
One note, I have seen 03 Ford Explorers, F150s and Expeditions without the strip - so maybe times are changing?
The biggest problems for me in a car seem to be headroom (I won't drive a car without a sunroof), and my right knee/calf hitting the center console. (The right calf thing is what kept me out of an Audi A4.)
I think carmakers tend to make cars more for average-sized people, but I guess they can't fit everyone..
to date i've found hondas to be decent and toyotas to be absolutely terrible.
My old 72 Maverick 200" 6 3-on-the-tree had bucket seats, too. I pulled them out of a Volvo to replace the stock bench seat. Nice & comfy. For a stripped Ford that cost $2,000 new, it was a great car. I got it as a family cast-off and put over 120,000 miles on it. There's something to be said for simplicity.
I'm 6'3", too. I have a 2001 VW GTI as a commuter car. The telescoping wheel, very adjustable seat with generous seat rails, and high head liner are great for tall folk. I did the search two summers ago looking for a sub-$20K car including a 100K OEM extended warranty with headroom and legroom. I sat in everything from Japan and my hair would brush the roof liner and it was difficult entering and exiting.
My other car is a 2003 Mountaineer. I've owned 3 Exploder variants and they all have great head room. This one has better leg room since the gas and brake pedal are adjustable. I drive my SUVs 2 miles to the ski area wearing ski boots.
I'm another person who wouldn't get a car that didn't have a sun roof. I use it to see overhead traffic lights.
Reason I'm asking is that a few years ago I heard someone mention this, and that's supposedly why their cars are so roomy inside in comparison to similarly sized cars from other countries.
I could actually see it with the original Beetle...as small as that thing was, I could actually fit in it (and I'm also 6'3"). I don't know if I'd want to drive one every day, but it was at least roomy enough inside that I could if I had to. I probably couldn't say that about a Pinto or Vega back then!