Small SUVs feature easy-to-get-in seats

It’s easier to get in and out of a vehicle with seats about two feet off the ground, said Keith Knudsen, Ford vehicle architecture manager.

That’s the emerging sweet spot as a wave of SUVs replaces traditional sedans as America’s best-selling vehicles.

And so the automaker shift from sedans to small SUV-type vehicles could pay off in a big way as drivers grow older and learn to appreciate seats that are easier to slip into than lowslung cars or traditional taller SUVs and pickups.

A few examples include the Nissan Kicks, Chevrolet Trax, Ford Escape, Honda HR-V and Kia Soul. The vehicles also provide better visibility, thanks to their height and big windows.

Easy entrance and exit will become more and more important as the population ages and huge groups like Gen X move into their 50s and 60s.

“Seat height is key,” Knudsen said. “People like to be able to slide in, not lift themselves up or down.”

It’s a truism that people want cars that make them look younger, not reminders they’re less limber at 60 than 40. Nonetheless, the incoming tide of small SUVs will fit aging drivers and people with limited mobility like a glove.“The vehicles are just easy to use. It’s easy to see, easy to get in and out,” Nissan human factors engineer Larry Smythe said. “People appreciate that.”