Access and visibility for older drivers

[idlegreg]

For many years my Mum (in her 80s) has driven a 2003 1.4 Fabia and she really likes it ... But......

 

It is getting tired both in appearance (does not matter too much) and with little things going wrong plus the engine seems to be drinking a bit too much oil (about 90,000 miles on the clock).

 

So I want her to get a newer car, She likes the Fabia with its plain but practical interior, for us comfortable seats and it is nice to drive.  But it is not perfect and I wondered if there is a better choice in the Skoda range. There are two related things I think could be improved.

 

Mum is quite short and getting shorter which means she now uses a cushion to see well over the dash.  Also the seating is a bit low to the ground and Mum finds it hard to get up out of the car.   I got her to try a few other cars including a Roomster as I thought it would have a higher driving position but it seems height from seat base to the instrument cluster is about the same as the Fabia and the seat base is also at a similar height from the ground.  I do not see tests anywhere that actually give information about height from seat cushion to top of dash/instruments or the height of the seat above the ground.  Both these I think are relevant for someone like my Mum.

 

I did have a quick look at a Yeti which may at least solve the getting out problem (if it is not too high) but I am not sure the seat is any higher with respect to the instrument cluster. 

 

Any thoughts or experiences welcome and in particular.

 

A friend has an Octavia and I have the feeling that the electric seat adjustment raises the seat further than the manual height adjustment in the current Fabia - does anyone know if this is true and whether these electric seats would have that benefit on a Yeti ?

 

Any thoughts about sensible mileage of a used Yeti - the tired engine of the current Fabia suggests I might want something below say 60,000 miles but then that makes a Yeti quite expensive for us and I wonder if in fact the current car might have had a hard life of short journeys where a good higher mileage car could be OK (I am assuming that for Mum's mainly short city journeys a 1.2tsi is the preferred choice?)

 

Thanks for any info or ideas

 

Greg

 

[RapidPaul]

Does it have to be a Skoda? I can't think of one with a significantly higher seating position. There would be options from other manufacturers that could still be good value. Dacia Sandero Stepway or Fiat Panda perhaps?

[idlegreg]

Thanks Paul

 

It does not have to be Skoda although Mum does really like the Fabia and so I suspect another Skoda is a safe choice. 

 

But it may be the case something else is the answer so thanks for the suggestions that is useful and I will look at them.