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Need a New Car for the Motion Sickness Prone!

nathan118nathan118 Member Posts: 31
in General
I'll keep this brief. Bought a new '07 Camry to replace my '94 Celica. Unfortunately the stupid thing makes me motion sick, even when I'm driving. Whether it's the transmission, a big floaty car, or my imagination, I'm not sure.

Question for everyone: Anyone out there prone to motion sickness who has found a good solution in the 21st century age of computer controlled cars.

CVT? Have yet to test drive one, but the idea of no gear shifts sounds GREAT to a motion sickness person.

Manual Tranny? Maybe I need to go back to my '74 Ghia and take control of my gear shifts.

Small car for less "bounce"? Or maybe it's the floaty sensation of the Camry that makes me sick.

Any ideas are appreciated. Looking for something right at about $20k, and big enough backseat for a car seat. Thanks!
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  • Mr_ShiftrightMr_Shiftright Member Posts: 64,481
    I'm curious why you think the transmission has anything to do with your discomfort...could you elaborate?

    I would think that you'd need a car with a very firm ride (very little body roll) and with very supportive seats that keep your body from moving side to side.

    Actually a base model MINI sounds good for you, and it's right about $20K if you don't pile on the options. Of course, being a 2-door, using a car seat isn't so great.

    Maybe something like a Scion xD or a Honda Fit might work for you...I'm thinking of cars that do not have a high center of gravity and aren't too tall, so that your head isn't moving too much (think of sitting at the top of the mast of a sailboat as opposed to sitting on the deck).
  • nathan118nathan118 Member Posts: 31
    I've considered what you've said about the side to side movements, and this is certainly bigger than the '74 Ghia and '94 Celica.

    I mention the transmission because in the Camry, unsmooth (and unexpected) acceleration and deceleration are a major cause of motion sickness. That's why being a passenger is so terrible, you can't anticipate starts and stops because you're not controlling the pedals.

    I'd like something a little bigger than what you've suggested. My wife has an '01 Jetta and it works fine for me, so I'm looking at Jettas, Passats, Altima, Accord, even a Civic possibly. I'm not a big expert on the technologies behind the cars though, so anyone that knows more, feel free to chime in! Thanks.
  • gagricegagrice Member Posts: 31,450
    I would take the Jetta any day over the Camry. The transmission is much more positive. If you get the DSG it is like a manual without a clutch. Good luck.
  • patpat Member Posts: 10,421
    Nathan, you might drop by the Midsize Sedans discussion and see what those folks think. Many of the cars you mention are the topic there.
  • needsnewcarneedsnewcar Member Posts: 1
    I have been test driving the smaller suvs after being in a sedan and feel sick as the driver!
    Makes no sense to me...yesterday felt sick in a crosstour (not just cause of the price and style) someone suggested to me that it is the new aerodynamic slant to the windshields especially in people with glass others have said its the side motion in the suvs
    Any thoughts and/or suggestions...looking for nice mix of awd and mpg willing to give up on the awd if I have to as I drive 25,000 plus a year, but I live in the woods.....thoughts?
  • nathan118nathan118 Member Posts: 31
    I ended up with an 07 Jetta, and I love it. Amazing how different it drives than most of the cars on the market. I swear VW engineers them differently than everybody else. I even tried a Nissan with a CVT...and it still felt all mushy and non responsive.

    I swear with the Jetta....I push the pedal and it goes, and I let off the pedal and it slows naturally. There's no weird downshifting like in the Camry, and it doesn't feel floaty. I love it.

    In fact, I love it so much that I'd absolutely look at a VW in the future.
  • tabonifacio_95tabonifacio_95 Member Posts: 2
    Honestly I know exactly how you feel, I rode to Vegas many times and in some vehicles I'm 100% okay and in other's I'm just bleh out the window. The last time I actually had a comfy ride to Vegas was in an 05' Chevrolet Cobalt. Very firm, not floaty, but just a really enoyable ride. I now own a 95 Jeep Cherokee and it doesn't make me sick at all, Generally a higher more being able to see over everything makes a dramatic difference. I've had it from the day I hit the planet, Believe me I know it sucks.
  • csgirlcsgirl Member Posts: 1
    I have had the inner ear problem since a baby so I can relate. I also had a camaro and sold it fast as I could because I'd get so dizzy in that car ( not while driving....just when I would get out I would be staggering) that's my problem I get so carsick dizzy wise and no balance when we get out. I do pretty good in a truck that's high up, like a ford, or chevy the big z71 ect but my car I get even more sick. Here's the weird thing I road in a chevy trailblazer and got pretty sick oh and test drove a Buick rendezvous and got sick, is there something to this SUV thing? I thought maybe I needed to get away from a car into a truck what do you guys think?
  • nathan118nathan118 Member Posts: 31
    For me, it hasn't been about car size...but the way the transmission shifts.

    I recently test drove both passats...the standard and the TDI(diesel). The transmission in the TDI made me sick, but the standard was great.

    For me it's about how the car drives. Does it go smoothly when I tell it to, and does it slow down smoothly when I let off the gas and break. If it starts aggressively downshifting on it's own...barf city.
  • momstaximomstaxi Member Posts: 1

    I used to own a 1995 Audi (cousin to VW) A6 and loved everything about it, especially the fact that no one ever got motion sick in it. I could even do a little reading as a passenger!

    I traded it for a 2007 Toyota Tundra Crew Max Limited TDR. It is terrible for people that are prone to motion sickness. My children get so sick in it, even just traveling short distances.

    For this reason mainly, I need to sell the truck and get something that doesn't make all of the passengers sick. Both the shifting and low center of gravity argument both make sense to me, I have actually considered the Jetta but it's a little small for my family.

    Does anyone have any input on the newer Audi A6's, Acura MDX's, or any of the other small SUV's comprable to the MDX?

    Thank you Nathan for your input about the Passat, I've considered that and was sort of thinking TDI but I'll definitely steer away from that! Does the standard shifting help prevent passengers from getting sick as well?

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