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Small cars - they're economical, cheap to insure and buy and are ideally suited to city living.
But if you're blessed in the height department you probably think they're out of bounds for a driver of your size.
That's not necessarily true. The long and short of it is that there are some compact superminis that are perfectly suited to people over six feet tall - here are What Car?'s top recommendations for tall motorists.
Hyundai i20
Price from: £9,995
This is a city car with a spacious cabin that gives you headroom, legroom and elbow room.
According to Car Wow's dimension guide to the car, there's 1038mm of headroom - that's more than any other model in this list - and 109 8mm of legroom in the front seats.
Those in the rear will be quite happy too, even if you have the driver's seat far back.
You get a ton of equipment as standard, including safety equipment, so that compensates for rather mediocre ride and steering.
ROOF HEIGHT | CAR WIDTH | INTERIOR HEADROOM (FRONT) | INTERIOR LEGROOM (FRONT) |
---|---|---|---|
1474mm | 1734mm | 1038mm | 1098mm |
Kia Rio
Price from: £12,135
This is a bit like the i20 in that you have a Korean car with mediocre handling and ride, but that's offset by a large cabin and a very keen price.
The driver's seat can be adjusted forward and back and also up and down, so you'll easily get your lanky limbs into a comfy position.
Based on Car Wow's figures, there is 23mm less headroom up front but there is class-leading legroom, measured at 1112mm.
It's not quite as wide as the Hyundai, so elbow room might be slightly more compromised.
ROOF HEIGHT | CAR WIDTH | INTERIOR HEADROOM (FRONT) | INTERIOR LEGROOM (FRONT) |
---|---|---|---|
1458mm | 1715mm | 1015mm | 1112mm |
Mini Hatch (5 door)
Price from: £15,250
The Mini isn't like it was half a century ago (though you can buy modernised versions of the original in the UK) - the current car has morphed into something much bigger.
Still, if we were tall we wouldn't go for the three-door - the five-door is the one for the lankiest of drivers.
If you are six-foot-plus, you can get comfortable as there is a lot of legroom and headroom in the front, although the offset pedals are slightly irritating.
Car Wow says there is 10mm of additional headroom over the three-door car and lots more rear legroom, which means you can slide the driver's seat as far back as you like without rearranging the knees of your back-seat passengers.
ROOF HEIGHT | CAR WIDTH | INTERIOR HEADROOM (FRONT) | INTERIOR LEGROOM (FRONT) |
---|---|---|---|
1425mm | 1727mm | 1034mm | n/a |
Skoda Fabia
Price from: £11,295
There's reasonable room for tall drivers in a Fabia as well as space for three passengers.
The driver gets a wide range of seat and wheel adjustments so it's a practical choice – and a great one.
The interior dimension readings taken by Car Wow say there's 1021mm of headroom - only the Hyundai and Mini better it. It 's also one of the widest models in the list, so elbow and shoulder room should be good.
It's really well built too, with lots of safety kit and has a large boot.
ROOF HEIGHT | CAR WIDTH | INTERIOR HEADROOM (FRONT) | INTERIOR LEGROOM (FRONT) |
---|---|---|---|
1488mm | 1732mm | 1021mm | n/a |
Ford Fiesta
Price from: £13,955
There's a new Fiesta due later this year, so if you're buying new now, you should get a really decent discount.
This is a possible car for you so long as you're not always carrying rear passengers. The steering wheel and seat have a lot of reach and range, and the seats are very comfy, but they do diminish rear space.
According to Car Wow, there's 1072mm of front-seat legroom when the chair is slid all the way back into the rear footwells.
ROOF HEIGHT | CAR WIDTH | INTERIOR HEADROOM (FRONT) | INTERIOR LEGROOM (FRONT) |
---|---|---|---|
1468mm | 1722mm | 993mm* | 1072mm |
*Car measured fitted with a sunroom meaning a lower ceiling height |
Volkswagen Polo
Price from £11,970
Like the Ford Fiesta, there's a replacement model due this year, so bear that in mind when haggling.
There's plenty of room up front in the current Polo, although the rear space can't match the Korean cars featured higher up.
Ultimately, it's the same car as the Fabia underneath, but the Skoda has a boxier shape which means a slightly taller roof.
The Polo has the lowest interior headroom measurement of all the cars in this list, Car Wow's figures showed.
ROOF HEIGHT | CAR WIDTH | INTERIOR HEADROOM (FRONT) | INTERIOR LEGROOM (FRONT) |
---|---|---|---|
1462mm | 1901mm** | 974mm | 1042mm |
**Measurement inclusive of wing mirrors |