If you are over 6' tall what do you drive and how tall are you? Enough room? Not enough room? Wish you had more room? Can't see stoplights? Any modifications to fit yourself in that vehicle?
Tall people cars or trucks
- Thread starter FlyingDutchman
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CentaurG2
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I am 6’1” tall and fit into most cars/trucks without trouble. I even boot around in an mx-5 occasionally. Biggest factor I have found in being comfortable in a vehicle isn’t height, its girth. Light and lean make driving much better. I also like heated power seats and telescoping steering. Heated seats are sooooo gooood on the back.
A neighbor came buy in his classic 1940 panel van with one of those sun visors over the windshield that made it impossible to see a stop light. He had a prism thing mounted on the dash that let him see stoplights. I had never seen one of those before and found it interesting.
To drive an MX-5 or a Corvette I have to remove the seat and sit on the floor!
On my old jeep I looked at the reflection on the hood to see the stoplights.
On my old jeep I looked at the reflection on the hood to see the stoplights.
Some things you just can't fix.....
Yeah that's me essentially. I'm not a motorcyclist but I still know what it's like to get hit in the forehead with a junebug.
CentaurG2
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On the mx-5 NA, I know shorting the gas pedal and removal of seat cushions or seat back were ways to make the car more friendly for taller drivers.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rTs8ZFee_6o
The NC was the largest of the mx-5 models. The newer ND went retro and is as small as the old NA but they make more use of available space. I think 6’3” and 250lbs might be doable in an ND without mods. Trouble with modifications would be in the event of a crash. The car is designed a certain way to try and survive a crash. At 2400lbs, you need all the help you can get.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gE6cz4cR5zw
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rTs8ZFee_6o
The NC was the largest of the mx-5 models. The newer ND went retro and is as small as the old NA but they make more use of available space. I think 6’3” and 250lbs might be doable in an ND without mods. Trouble with modifications would be in the event of a crash. The car is designed a certain way to try and survive a crash. At 2400lbs, you need all the help you can get.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gE6cz4cR5zw
Accident safety is a big concern of mine. I've driven a C4 Corvette and a CRX with the seat removed. The corvette had a bar that was right on your tailbone. Hurt bad to drive it.
Sports car related, I was trying to justify a Dodge Challenger as a daily driver. Tons of room in them.
Sports car related, I was trying to justify a Dodge Challenger as a daily driver. Tons of room in them.
CentaurG2
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Dodge… Yucky! The only thing they used to well was the Dakota. Everything else was pure junk. Try the new MX-5. I don’t think you will be disappointed.
I'm 6'9" tall, sure I'll give it a crack.
I worked at an FCA dealership for a bit. I guess I would disagree with everything being pure junk. I liked the vehicles and believed in them, and still do like them. They don't deserve their reputation. I liked the older 4 cylinder Dakotas quite a bit..
I worked at an FCA dealership for a bit. I guess I would disagree with everything being pure junk. I liked the vehicles and believed in them, and still do like them. They don't deserve their reputation. I liked the older 4 cylinder Dakotas quite a bit..
CentaurG2
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I am an old AMC guy myself and still have an AMX. While I like them, I know deep down in my heart AMC made junk. Perhaps that is what makes them so special. At 6.9 I don’t think the MX-5 ND2 is going to work. Puddle over to a honda dealer and see if they have a Civic R type. The new 2.0L turbo is something else. Honda builds a good engine. I have the 2.0L in my accord with a 6-speed manual and it is quick! It will easily take the mx-5 on a straight. It does alright it the corners too for a big boaty sedan.
https://www.caranddriver.com/features/a23289554/2018-honda-accord-sport-turbo-manual-lightning-lap-2018/
https://www.caranddriver.com/features/a23289554/2018-honda-accord-sport-turbo-manual-lightning-lap-2018/
Wow, that's impressive! Never would have thought the Honda could run with them. .
A friend has some Javelins. Crappy, true enough but they have a charm to them that makes me like them quite a bit.
I have a soulless Jap trap now, a 2016 Subaru Legacy. It has the 2.0 N/A engine. Its fast enough, but not fun to beat on at all. It just mindlessly turns out about 30mpg with a really good ride and traction. Based on Edmunds specs, they (Challenger, Legacy, Accord) are almost identically sized front legroom but the Mazda MX-5 beats them by a full inch! Go figure. The Challenger had enough seat adjustment I could barely touch the pedals in the one I sat in to actually maybe buy. I don't remember this while messing with Hellcats etc... But never spent a lot of time doing that. The showroom cars usually end up with dead batteries fast enough.
The sealcoated cowpaths in my area need something with good suspension. The only other vehicles I drove that had superior suspension were a C6 Corvette and a Golf R. Both unattainable money wise. I test drove somewhere around 40 some odd cars to settle on the Subaru. The worst thing about it is the lack of room, and the lack of handling finesse. But its been a good "tool" but would be fun to change.
Truck keeps breaking though....
A friend has some Javelins. Crappy, true enough but they have a charm to them that makes me like them quite a bit.
I have a soulless Jap trap now, a 2016 Subaru Legacy. It has the 2.0 N/A engine. Its fast enough, but not fun to beat on at all. It just mindlessly turns out about 30mpg with a really good ride and traction. Based on Edmunds specs, they (Challenger, Legacy, Accord) are almost identically sized front legroom but the Mazda MX-5 beats them by a full inch! Go figure. The Challenger had enough seat adjustment I could barely touch the pedals in the one I sat in to actually maybe buy. I don't remember this while messing with Hellcats etc... But never spent a lot of time doing that. The showroom cars usually end up with dead batteries fast enough.
The sealcoated cowpaths in my area need something with good suspension. The only other vehicles I drove that had superior suspension were a C6 Corvette and a Golf R. Both unattainable money wise. I test drove somewhere around 40 some odd cars to settle on the Subaru. The worst thing about it is the lack of room, and the lack of handling finesse. But its been a good "tool" but would be fun to change.
Truck keeps breaking though....
CentaurG2
Addicted to ArboristSite
The mx-5 is a spry little car but truth be told most crossovers will beat it off the line at a stop light. I think you might like this vid.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NSq5Zb5ZNWY
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NSq5Zb5ZNWY
CentaurG2
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Man some expensive equipment in that lineup. I wonder, which of those cars was the most streetable?
I was a big fan of the Scat Pack Chargers. 6.4 V8 with about all the power you'd want in a daily. The salesmen all loved them too and they all wanted one. It is a useable family car, really. The Challenger loses appeal cause of the 2 door but its still cool.
Right now I'm looking at Caprice PPV's. Can be had cheap, big 6.0 LS powerplant and a good track record for durability. A friend has one and I'm going to check out the room soon. WAY cheaper than a Challenger, too. MPG's aren't great though.
I was a big fan of the Scat Pack Chargers. 6.4 V8 with about all the power you'd want in a daily. The salesmen all loved them too and they all wanted one. It is a useable family car, really. The Challenger loses appeal cause of the 2 door but its still cool.
Right now I'm looking at Caprice PPV's. Can be had cheap, big 6.0 LS powerplant and a good track record for durability. A friend has one and I'm going to check out the room soon. WAY cheaper than a Challenger, too. MPG's aren't great though.
CentaurG2
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MPG is always something that I consider when car shopping as I log over 36K per year. Best I have gotten in the 2.0L Honda accord is 36 MPG using the cruse and eco throttle. Ave is around 32. Not too bad for a car than can go 0 to 60 in under 6 seconds. The mx-5 can get well over 40mpg if you keep your foot out of it. Better than most hybrids.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W3feIgZD0bM
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W3feIgZD0bM
My Legacy gets 32mpg summer and 28 winter. I run 87 in it and it doesn't complain a bit. No premium fuel needed. Its something I take for granted a bit. DD'ing the truck, fuel cost quickly smashed my finances. So much in fact I tried buring waste oil as fuel for a couple months, which caused more trouble than it was worth.
That was a pretty good rut there. That BMW driver definitely either wants to kill a set of tires, or hasn't gotten a tire bill yet. The Hellcat driver didn't smoke a single tire that I saw. Either taken care of well by traction control, or being nice to it.
Be a bit before I can sit in new stuff, lots of things going down. Will be able to look at my friend's Caprice.
That was a pretty good rut there. That BMW driver definitely either wants to kill a set of tires, or hasn't gotten a tire bill yet. The Hellcat driver didn't smoke a single tire that I saw. Either taken care of well by traction control, or being nice to it.
Be a bit before I can sit in new stuff, lots of things going down. Will be able to look at my friend's Caprice.
4seasons
ArboristSite Guru
I don't get hung up on mpg. If you do the math unless you put 100k on a car in a year, you really don't save that much. 20k miles at 20 mpg means you burn 1000 gallons of gas. At 25 mpg you save 200 gallons at $3 per gallon that's $600. So how much did you spend to get better fuel mileage to save $600 a year?
Back to the original question I am right at 6' but carry a bit of extra weight. I rarely get into a car and don't run the seat all the way back and still want another inch. I have modified the seat on several of my vehicles to fit me better.
Just a few off the top of my head that I either redrilled the seat mount, added a spacer under the seat, replaced the seat with one from a different brand of car, or totally built my own mounts: 75 Dodge Power Wagon, 77 Chevy K1500, 80 GMC C2500, 90 Chevy K2500 Extended Cab, 2000 Dodge Durango. Funny how all these larger vehicles needed a mod for me to fit when several small cars fit without modifications. I used to drive big rigs for a living and used to complain that big rigs were built for midgets. I drove Peterbilts, KWs, Internationals, and especially Volvos, that just crammed my knees into the steering column.
The cars I have had that didn't need modifications were 85 Toyota truck, 88 Camaro, 91 Sentra (it was border line but was also the smallest car I ever owned) and 2006 Hyundai Sonata. Other than my Camaro I have found that imports tend to have more leg room. Funny how the Japanese people are generally several inches shorter than me. Maybe they think Americans are giants so they build bigger cars for us.
Sent from my XT1254 using Tapatalk
Back to the original question I am right at 6' but carry a bit of extra weight. I rarely get into a car and don't run the seat all the way back and still want another inch. I have modified the seat on several of my vehicles to fit me better.
Just a few off the top of my head that I either redrilled the seat mount, added a spacer under the seat, replaced the seat with one from a different brand of car, or totally built my own mounts: 75 Dodge Power Wagon, 77 Chevy K1500, 80 GMC C2500, 90 Chevy K2500 Extended Cab, 2000 Dodge Durango. Funny how all these larger vehicles needed a mod for me to fit when several small cars fit without modifications. I used to drive big rigs for a living and used to complain that big rigs were built for midgets. I drove Peterbilts, KWs, Internationals, and especially Volvos, that just crammed my knees into the steering column.
The cars I have had that didn't need modifications were 85 Toyota truck, 88 Camaro, 91 Sentra (it was border line but was also the smallest car I ever owned) and 2006 Hyundai Sonata. Other than my Camaro I have found that imports tend to have more leg room. Funny how the Japanese people are generally several inches shorter than me. Maybe they think Americans are giants so they build bigger cars for us.
Sent from my XT1254 using Tapatalk
Capitalist
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5'10" 54" chest. Not a vehicle on this planet that fits me comfortably and I cannot access center consoles. All bucket seats hit my lats in the most awkward way and I play holy hell trying to look out a back window to back up.
Ford superduty bench seats are the only thing close to comfort I can find. I feel you tall guys pain in the width department.
It is frustrating as hell being cramped up.
Ford superduty bench seats are the only thing close to comfort I can find. I feel you tall guys pain in the width department.
It is frustrating as hell being cramped up.
CentaurG2
Addicted to ArboristSite
That’s good for a Subaru. I ran a 05 Legacy some years ago and the best I ever got was 27mpg. Developed the infamous boxer head gasket problems and I ditched the car and switched to Camrys. Subarus have a cult type following here. My personal truck is a gasser with a 6.0L. It gets about 10-13MPG with a tail wind.
The BMW driver was insane. If you can find one in decent shape the old Crown Victoria was a very good car. I think they made them up to 2012. Most town/state police here run the explorer. Might also be a good bet for a larger individual.
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