Fat Guy's Only!!! Roadster

19ED30

19ED30

Senior Member
How do you Fat Guy's get In & Out of your Roaster? ( 30-31 stock )
The door's on a Roaster are shorter then my sedan , in my sedan I have moved the stock seat's back 4 inches And wonder why Henrry didn't make the door's a few inch's longer , Now I am worken on my roadster ( body was complely a part when I purchased it ) Now all body pael are hung ,I am now working on inside ,
I have installed a 15 inch steering wheel ( stock 17 ) I have removed package tray , seat now sets about 3 - 4 inches back futher , and I have lowered the seat 2 inches . Still tight to get in & out !! It looks like close cab trucks are even tighter . Where there no big / fat guy's back then ,
Or Do I just have to lose weight !!!!
My self 6 ft 260 size 14 shoe,
 
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Henry Ford was a runt.

Walter Chrysler was a big fella, much easier to get into a 28 plymouth.
 
Henry was 5 ft 8 1/2 inches and 138 pounds in 1919.

Edsel was 5 ft 7 1/2 inches.

Big difference from 260 pounds of the OP and his car is the bigger 30/31.

I dive in forwards in my 28 and back my big arse out first.

One bonus is, the door is small so I can throw it open without impeding traffic.
 
In a friend's '29 roadster I did 2 things to help him. Moved the wood seat back support frame back about 1" on the bottom. Makes the seat back a bit more vertical. We both worked to tie the seat spring coils in the seat back into a more compressed position which gained another 1". Seemed to help him quite a bit.
 
Fat has become the norm today, and I also need to loose some weight. People were much lighter 80 years ago, but the Model A's still seen to have doors and entrance clearances that are too tight. I often lift my feet over the seat to get in and out, otherwise you have to be in the right position to slide your feet through the narrow opening sideways. Henry should have hinged the front doors on the rear, like he did a couple years later.
 
Take those size 14's off first. Lol. I'm a small guy with only size 8's and my biggest problem is getting my feet through the space between the seat and the door frame so your problem is understandable. Might try several unorthodox entry methods to see what works best...like butt in first etc. It's easier in the summer with the roadster top down.

Glen
 
I have to put my right leg in first under the steering wheel then slide in and last pull in the left leg. The last leg has to have the foot turn outward to get in by the seat and the front of the door opening. (Also too fat!). But if the top is down, it is no problem at all.
 
Just be glad you don't have a '28-29 open car! Their door openings are even narrower than in a '30-31 open car. "Pooch" has the right idea - head first, dive in as if you are bailing "into" your car. The rest of your body will naturally follow. I am only 5'10" and about 170-175 pounds, but even at that size it can be a challenge getting in and out of my '28 Phaeton, mostly because of the windwings. By contrast, entrance and egress (P.T. Barnum - "This way to see the Egress") for my '31 Roadster is much easier, even with the windwings. I imagine Ford received complaints about the '28-29 open car narrow doorways even in the day because he widened the '30-31 doorways noticeably.
So, Big Guys - you want an open Model A? Better buy a '30-31 model. The Deluxe Phaeton has the widest doors of all. But $$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$.
Marshall
 
I am 5' 10 and 240 and have a bad knee. Own a '29 Coupe and '29 Pickup my way of entry is to back in and slide over to the passenger side, then get my legs past the door and seat. To get out I repeat the process, slide over work my legs up and scoot out.
 
Roadster Rich said:
I have to put my right leg in first under the steering wheel then slide in and last pull in the left leg. The last leg has to have the foot turn outward to get in by the seat and the front of the door opening.
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That's how I get into my CCPU too. Getting out is easier unless I've been in the driver's seat a little too long. In that case, getting unbent and standing again can be a challenge, but it's also a challenge in a modern vehicle. :(
 
Install a seat setup on a "swivel". Hide the hardware and no one will know. This idea started out as a joke but....
 
I guess I'm a freak today with the help my new Wife I've fatten up to 180lbs (6'4") Teenage Daughters --enough said.
 
They hopped over the closed door and had fat man steering wheels. Some discarded the package tray and moved the seat further back.
 
39topless said:
Install a seat setup on a "swivel". Hide the hardware and no one will know. This idea started out as a joke but....
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I thought of that to ( swivel bucket seat out of sedan ) but there is NO. room ,
I guess We the Fat and Handy-cap! Can enter the Passagerside & slide across seat ,( Maybe that why the door key lock is on the Passagerside !! I think I read in small town it was a law that you had to enter from the Passagerside of the car . My biggest PROLBEM is my Big Foot feet , In my race car ( blown altered / funny car ) I have to take my shoes off & put my funny car boots on so I have enough room to get my foot to the Loud Pedal ,
I have seen a few Fat -man sterring wheel , but if I install one I will not be able to hide that I am Fat !! I think that I will make a adaptor on the mill so I can take the sterring wheel off & on ,, just remember if you go that rout ( removable sterring wheel ) that you check that it is Latched & secured befor you do a over 80 MPH BURNOUT in your Model A .
 
Not usually over here and sorry that I tresspass - my ride is a 1935 Coupe ... but just wanted to mention that at 6'4" and 14's as well - I shortened the package tray and moved the seat back 5" - also moved the heater off-center to the right to give me room for my big foot on the accelerator pedal - also did not touch the roof for good headroom.
 
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