Car shopping for huge people
Today I got my roommate to take me car-fitting. Basically I went around to different dealerships, asking them about what cars they thought I’d fit in, and trying them on. Had a couple choices in mind I particularly wanted to try.
Now, being that I’m 6′8 and in the >300lb range, this isn’t as easy as it would be for someone who’s like 5′7 and 145 or something :p. So it was fairly challenging, but not too bad.
First place we went was the Chrysler dealership, because it was the furthest south. Then we worked our way north. At the chrysler dealership, I tried basically 3 vehicles: the PT Cruiser, the Chrysler 300, and the Jeep Patriot. The PT is right out, because of console issues with my legs (namely, I couldn’t wedge my leg between the wheel and the console enough to get to the gas pedal).
The Chrysler 300 was an excellent, excellent fit. It was really really nice, one of the best fits I sat in today. But tipping the budget scale in the 25-30k range and only getting like 15 city 22 highway, it’s got its drawbacks. If it were 20k with a more respectable city mileage, it’d be my car. Right now it’s just a candidate.
Next stop was the Chevy dealership. Tried on 8 vehicles there. Notes:
Impala was ok, but had a weird panel by the gas pedal that stuck out and I caught my shoe on when I was getting out.
Cobalt was a pretty decent fit, with a good price and good mileage.
Aveo: no way in hell. It’s just too small, all around.
Equinox: a pretty big sport utility, but the seating just didn’t work, it didn’t fit.
Trailblazer: a decent fit, but not really compellingly great, and the high price and bad fuel economy really make it a non-option.
HHR: this actually fit pretty well, although it wasn’t perfect, I could drive it. Good price and fuel economy though.
Malibu: my leg was fighting the steering wheel too much going for the brake. Probably a non-option.
Then we went to the Honda dealership. I was unimpressed by the sales people, who seemed to have too much they were juggling and didn’t want to really listen to what I was saying. I tried on a Civic, a Fit, an Accord, a CR-V and an Element. The Accord was ok, the CR-V was workable, but the civic, fit and element all had fatal design flaws that made them nondrivable for me.
Next we went to the toyota dealership. I was curious about the Rav4, the Matrix, the Scion xB and xD. Well, the Matrix and Scion xD were pretty well undriveable. The Scion xB was an ok fit, I could have driven it. It was about the same as an HHR for fit.
However, the Camry, Rav4, and the Highlander were all quite good fits. The Highlander was, in fact, a really, really good fit, and was the first car since the Chrysler 300 that I didn’t have to fight to get into.
On impulse, we went to the Nissan dealership. And Oh My God. The Altima is a great car for a larger guy like me. It’s a close race between it and the 300 as far as comfort goes … telescopic tilt wheel, etc. I’d say the 300’s more comfortable, but the Altima’s compellingly cheaper.
Checked out the Pontiac dealership last, and the guy showed me a G6. It was ok, but not great. However, it was cheap with good mileage… basically a sportier version of a Malibu, with a bit better fit. I wasn’t too impressed … I mean, I could drive it, but it wasn’t great.
Didn’t look at Saturn or Hyundai, because by the time we left the Pontiac dealership it was about 6 pm, the Saturn dealer was closed, and the Hyundai dealer was another 4 miles north.
So the results: The following cars are my favorites, in order of comfort and space:
Chrysler 300 series
Nissan Altima
Toyota Highlander
Toyota Rav4
Toyota Camry
Chevy HHR
Pontiac G6
Honda CR-V
I couldn’t really drive anything else that I tried very comfortably.
Since I’ve got some good choices on the list, I’m scratching out the bottom three as not-so-good choices. Here’s a comparison of the remaining cars:
| Car | Fuel Economy | Expected price | Comfort |
| Chrysler 300 Series | 18 City, 26 Highway | $25K | 10/10 |
| Nissan Altima | 23 City, 32 Highway | $22k | 9/10 |
| Toyota Camry | 21 City, 31 Highway | $22k | 8/10 |
| Toyota Highlander | 18 City, 24 Highway | $27k | 10/10 |
| Toyota Rav4 | 21 City, 27 Highway | $24k | 8/10 |
So at this point I’m bouncing back and forth between an Altima and a 300, and occasionally tossing one of the other three in the mix. Having trouble deciding what to go with … is fuel economy more important, or is that comfort edge? 7 more miles per gallon, or more fun with those miles? And, could I see myself driving a 300 series without feeling like a gangsta?