Hot Rods Will I fit?

You are going to have trouble squeezing into a stock coupe. Henry Ford was about 5 foot 8 and 135 pounds, his cars were made for people like him. If you want room buy a Chrysler product from when K T Keller was in charge. He weighed 300 pounds. Or, a Nash from the late 30s and up, when George Mason ran it. Another 300 pounder.

 

Some channeled cars put the floor pan on the underside of the frame (or basically drop the pan down on either side of the driveshaft) to gain height inside the body, no reason you couldn't make a dropped floorpan like that for a body-on-frame build to gain some height and space.

Also, some chops take a bit less height out of the windshield so the sheetmetal area above the windshield is reduced, a very carefully laid out chop could be the difference between good visibility and bad.

I'm welding up a '33 5W body right now, they're quite a bit bigger than an A, if you lay it out right, you'll be OK.

If I can smash my awkward ass into a T roadster, you'll be able to make your 33/34 work.

 

Lots of variables to keep in mind, so many different components used from build to build.
If it is only an issue for getting in/out of the car, many times the steering wheel is the biggest obstruction, I used a quick release on the wheel in my roadster.

 

Good point

 

I have one similar to that and have put over 8,000 miles on it. 6'4" and 250, fun to drive and no sore back, leg or anything else. I also drive my wife's MG Midget, a little harder to get in but once there I can work the 3 pedals fine. I'm pushing 60 and far from limber, what's all the bitchin' about?

 

My problem is having been in a pretty serious Motorcycle accident in my 20's I have enough metel in my right leg and left hip to build something cool,I have a fused ankle,a replacement hip and a replacement right shoulder,none of it stock.

Had I known I would live this long I would have taken it easy on this old body.

BTW,in the 60's I was pretty skinny but still 6' 4" tall and drove Brenda's 62 MG Midget all over the place,it wasn't hard to get in and out of,even with the top up but I bet it would be a bitch now! HRP

 

Once again I am amazed at the responses here on the board. Makes me wonder if all of these folks talking about how hard it will be to get in, be comfortable in, be able to drive etc, etc, etc . Have actually ever used a suicide door car or a chopped car and be as big as this man says he is. Do you all have a point of reference to qualify what you are saying?

I am 6'4" tall and heavier than the OP by 60 lbs. I have a bad leg that will not flex past 90 degrees on a good day, and I walk most of the time with a cane. Suicide Doors are a God send for me, not a little bit better but a thousand percent better to getting in and out of. They are so much better that I put suicide doors on my Model A Sedan. My Model A also has a big chop at 5 1/2" +, I can drive that car all day long without any problems and have driven it 750 miles in a day. Yea I need to get out and stretch my legs every two or three hours, but hell I do that driving my Dodge Dually as well and it is a new truck, that is just a part of getting old and needing to piss more often.

midnightrider, Listen man I believe you will be fine in this car. If you really have a question and cannot find a car up there in Iowa to try, drive your butt down here to Alabama, spend the day shooting the shit and bench racing, eat some good old southern cooking, and give my cars a try. My 34 ford 3 window coupe is very close to what you are considering and I am confident that you will fit into it just fine.

 

Comparing an A roadster to a 33/4 coupe for space is like comparing a Barbie shoe to an actual shoe.

 

Those coupes you posted are probably about the smallest cockpits you could have chosen. Robert Lomas built them, and besides. 3-3.5" chop, the are both channeled over the frame 5-5.5" in front, and 3" or so in back... also, the fire walls have been brought back to make room for the old Cadillac mills... they are beautiful rides, but you wouldn't want yours to be that cramped. 3 to 4" chop should not be a problem, but as others have said, build a lower, comfortable seat, and suspend it well, and you can do I've it all day. I wouldn't suggest a channel, or deep firewall offset, to maximize room.
As for upwards vision, you will do well with a prism, which lets you see the lights without leaning way forward.

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Being able to fit, does not equate to being able to function. If you're going to have to "peep" out to see, while driving, you may want to choose another option. I saw a guy crawl out of a car at "Burn Out" and I was waiting for the other 9 clowns to pile out. Shit cracked me up.

Personally, I'd get tired of people honking, when a light changes, because I couldn't see it.

 

I've lsot over an inch, in my LEGS.. Compressed dics' in my neck.

 

Reminds me of when I was selling my 41 Willys pick up that was extremely small. Everyone interested, weighed 250# plus. One Ole Boy got into it and I thought we would the "jaws of life"to extricate him.

Gary

 

I was just trying to give some point of reference to what I am certain I will not fit in.

 

I can live without the channel for the sake of practicality. Shouldn't have to do much, if anything, to the firewall. I'm figuring either a flathead or an early sbc would be acceptable for a mid to late '50s build. I've got a decent '56 265 that needs a home. Here is another one I found that I dig. The chop is a bit extreme but overall still a very cool car.

 

Don't do it- you'll kill hot roding

 

Not a 5 window, but another that I really liked. Can't decide if it needs another 1" removed or not.

 

^^^^^ Nope that to "ME" is just about perfect! You however can build it your way that is supposed to be what all of this Hot Rodding thing is about------ Supposed to be anyway.

 

I wasn't directing that at you HRP, you just happened to post a pic of my little clown car. I just think seat height/location and pedal/steering placement can do wonders. MG's/ Triumph's etc. are a blast to drive. I can't help it if I'm too big for them.
I remember when my buddy and I switched bikes during a long ride down south. I had not been on a Harley in over ten years and it felt like I was riding my couch down the highway, not unpleasant at all just weird. When we stopped for lunch he couldn't wait to switch back and get off the crotch rocket. He did admit later on that it was the most fun he had in a long time.

 

3 clowns in a Bantam, counting the dog. Head room is OK, neither chopped nor channeled, look through the holes for lights. Steering wheel is 10", knuckles scraping the windshield. No seat back, rug glued to the bed wall. Size 12s pushing 3 pedals.

And loving every minute.

 

^3 pedals! Oh man, that's got to be crazy. I got maybe 8" from side to tunnel. It's tight with just two and I'm only carrying size 11.

 

I'm almost 69, 6'3", 320 lbs and I get in and out of my 4" chopped 31 5 window [see svatar] without too much problem. Guess it boils down to how much you want it.

 

Hey, it's a hot-rod fer cryin' out loud. If you want comfort go out and buy a new Cadillac. Either you're a hot-rodder or you're not.

 

Yeah what he said-
buy the shoes that are on sale, fuck it if they are 3 sizes off. They are shoes for crying out loud- put them on and go. To hell with comfort

 

Yes, I do. I rode in a guys chopped Model A and it was a very confined space. I could really only see forward. At stop lights, if he was a lead car, he waited until the other cars left first. He got honked at once or twice. I had to figure out how to get in and out. If I owned it, could I have gotten used to it? Probably. But it wouldn't be my first choice of transportation by a long shot.

 

What's under the hood?

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This is a big consideration. How nimble you are and what your comfort level in confined space is.
Also, just how well you move your limbs when you're in a tight sitting position. I've seen 6' 5" guys drive 4 speed chopped Coupes with ease and smaller guys damn near have a claustrophobic attack in the same space. How long of a drive could you make in a chopped Coupe? Some guys can wear a shirt and tie all day. Me: I'm uncomfortable after an hour...

One other thing about 33/34 Coupes that most folks don't realize; Though the 5 window's doors are shorter than a 3 window, the 5 window's cabin is a few inches longer than a 3 window. This gives you a few more inches of legroom.

 

I actually like small spaces as long as I'm in a halfway comfortable position and my limbs can move as they need to.

I looked at a '66 Mustang 289/4 spd a few years back. The car was comfortable, BUT every time I let the clutch out my knee opened the door. No Bueno!

 

Just like my Momma used to say "I might be fat but you're f@cking ugly and I can always lose weight"....did I use that phrase correctly? :0)


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Yeah my gas pedal is part way up the trans hump. As far over as possible and still rest my heel on the floor.

Flathead Ford.

 

There is a full fendered channeled 32 Cabrolet in Central Texas (was in the 70's) owned by a dude named Perry L. that had pans for the seat cushions sunk in the floor between the driveshaft and frame rail so it could run full cushions. I won't say that car was easy to get in or out of and Perry was a big and tall gent when I knew him.
It's like any race car with a cage or any sports car or other car, you learn how to get in and out and make adjustments to make it fit you. Suicide doors aren't as hard as all the guys who haven't had them make it out to be. you just stick your foot out and bend and move. 15 years of daily driving the 48 with suicide doors let me perfect the task.