Buick Designs for Seniors--Quietly
Question: I am 75 and have a Toyota Celica, which is dependable but difficult to get into. Can you suggest which mid-size new car is easiest to get in and out of and which cars appeal most to older people? S.F.W.
Answer: For decades, auto makers have focused a disproportionate amount of their marketing efforts on younger motorists, designing everything to appeal to people under 40.
But as the American public ages, design trends will shift. In addition, automobile designers are getting much more sophisticated about ergonomic features that will add to the ease and comfort of every age group. What improves comfort for a 75-year-old driver like yourself can also appeal to a 35-year-old.
Perhaps no automobile line identifies with older drivers more than General Motors’ Buick division, which designs cars with the special needs of older drivers in mind, although it does not advertise cars that way.
Ronald Roe, section head for Buick’s human factors group, says Buick has long considered designing and marketing a car specifically for older drivers but has always backed off.
“There is concern that people may not want to be identified as older oriented by the car they drive,” Roe says.
In addressing the needs of older drivers, Buick designers say they consider everything from overall dimensions to minor accessories. For example, Buick designs its floor and column shifts for people with arthritis who can’t exert a lot of thumb pressure to release the safety button on a floor shift.
Something as basic as ease of entry and exit involves a lot of design issues. Buick recently hired a designer whose thesis for a doctorate was on analyzing body motions in entering and exiting a car, Roe says.
The major considerations in entry are the rocker panel height, floor pan height, seat height, door opening and roof panel height. Obviously, entry is easiest if a motorist can pivot into a seat without climbing up or lowering the body. One of the easiest vehicles for an older driver to enter is a compact pickup, Roe says. The seat height for a Chevy S10, for example, is 260 millimeters above the ground, just about perfect for the average-size person.
Most family sedans have seat heights of 260 to 270 millimeters, but they have rocker panels drivers must lift their feet over, and they sometimes have seats placed further inside the vehicle than a small pickup.
Sports cars are the most challenging vehicles for entry and exit. Cars such as the Pontiac Firebird have seats down at the 170 millimeter level, low enough that you have to use muscle to lower yourself into the seat and to climb out.
At the high end are minivans. The Chevy Lumina APV has a seat 380 millimeters from the ground, higher than even a full-size pickup.
Most cars, big or small, provide the same door opening space. A two-door coupe has a larger door, but that is to provide access to the rear. The door of a four-door sedan, because it is smaller, can be opened wider in tight spaces.
Although seat height and related dimensions are not available to the average car buyer, you can probably find a car that fits your body with a reasonable amount of shopping.
