Small car for a tallish guy

steveeeee

Following the birth of my son, my wife and I swapped cars and I've given up my lovely Mazda 6 for her VW Polo 1.4 Match. I commute approx 90 miles a day and, as a 6-footer with quite long legs, I'm finding the lack of legroom and reach adjustment on the steering wheel to be quite uncomfortable. Because I have to have the seat so far back to fit my legs in, I end up hunched forward to get a decent grip on the steering wheel and it's doing my back/shoulders in.

So... I'm thinking of getting a different car: something of a similar size (so it fits in our tiny garage) but a bit roomier inside. And since we're changing things around, I'd also like to get a 5-door (to make it easier to get in and out of the car in the tight spaces at work) diesel model (for the fuel economy and the extra torque). Air con would be nice, as would electric front windows and side mirrors, and a standard DIN fitting for the stereo so I can keep my upgraded Sony MP3 unit.

I'm not allowed to spend any more money on the replacement car than I get for selling the Polo, so a new car is out of the question. The budget is looking like ~£4k, and the age range I'm looking at is 2000-2002 or so. I've done a bit of research online and my shortlist is currently looking like this:

Ford Fiesta Mk6 1.4TDCI LX
Seat Ibiza Mk3 1.9 TDI
Seat Ibiza Mk4 1.4 TDI SE/SX
Skoda Fabia 1.4 TDI (pref 2002 onwards)
Toyota Corolla 1.4 D4-D T3
Toyota Yaris 1.4 D4-D GLS/CDX/T3/T-Spirit

I know the Yaris is loved by many on here and it does look good on paper, if a bit expensive. I'm aware that the Ibiza and Fabia are built on the same platform as the Polo, but I'm hoping that the driving positions might be better. I've intentionally left off Fiat, Peugeot, Citroen, Renault as the stereotypes of unreliability make me a bit nervous.

The Skoda Felicia 1.9D GLI looks interesting, too, especially as I could get a 1999 facelift model for about £1500 with 77k on the clock and I could stick the rest of the cash in savings to pay for nursery fees :eek:.

What other small cars are good for big lads? Any horror stories about any of the ones on my shortlist? Any advice appreciated!

colin79666

Hmm I was going to say Grande Punto but I don't think you would get a diesel one with 5 doors for less than 7k 2nd hand. I have one and I'm 6ft 2" and love it - even my base model has a fully adjustable steering wheel.

My uncle drives a diesel Citroen C3 (2003) and gets on very well with it (he's 6ft 4"). If you do look at a C3 looks for the SX model as the L and LX don't have reach adjustable steering which make for a very uncomfortable position I found.
The C3 diesel could be had for 3-4K easy and should return well into the fifties MPG.

steveeeee

30111987 wrote: »

Hmm I was going to say Grande Punto but I don't think you would get a diesel one with 5 doors for less than 7k 2nd hand. I have one and I'm 6ft 2" and love it - even my base model has a fully adjustable steering wheel.

My uncle drives a diesel Citroen C3 (2003) and gets on very well with it (he's 6ft 4"). If you do look at a C3 looks for the SX model as the L and LX don't have reach adjustable steering which make for a very uncomfortable position I found.
The C3 diesel could be had for 3-4K easy and should return well into the fifties MPG.

Actually, I love the look of the C3 but the review on Parkers mentions a few negatives that turn me off: body roll and soft handling, flimsy interior, seats might be uncomfortable on long trips.

colin79666

Perhaps you should take one for a test drive. I find the seats to be fine (although my own car has more support) and interior is reasonable well finished.
The handling ain't sporty but that's partly down to the shape which gives more cabin space and plenty headroom in the front.

snails's_pace

anything with a sunroof

i'll get my coat....

M4RKM

i'd go with the seat ibiza. much better than any fiesta.. and if you get the latest shape, they are a great car.. (MK4 ?)

steveeeee

snails's_pace wrote: »

anything with a sunroof

i'll get my coat....

:rotfl: I was waiting for someone to say it! :rotfl:

It's my legs that are the problem, more than my upper body. That said, how about a roll-top 2CV?

ixwood

It's a little bit bigger, but what about a seat Leon? I've recently got a TDI and it's great. Plenty of room, nice inside and relatively cheap to run (50 mpg, insurance group 7, £115 tax).