Jeffrey Johnson

Insurance Lawyer

Jeffrey Johnson is a legal writer with a focus on personal injury. He has worked on personal injury and sovereign immunity litigation in addition to experience in family, estate, and criminal law. He earned a J.D. from the University of Baltimore and has worked in legal offices and non-profits in Maryland, Texas, and North Carolina. He has also earned an MFA in screenwriting from Chapman Univer...

Insurance Lawyer

Laura Walker

Licensed Agent for 10 Years

Laura Walker graduated college with a BS in Criminal Justice with a minor in Political Science. She married her husband and began working in the family insurance business in 2005. She became a licensed agent and wrote P&C business focusing on personal lines insurance. Laura serviced existing business and wrote new business. She now uses her insurance background to help educate drivers about...

Licensed Agent for 10 Years

UPDATED: Apr 25, 2022

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UPDATED: Apr 25, 2022Fact Checked

America is certainly not well known for skinny jeans. In fact, quite the opposite – America is the fattest country in the world by many measures. So while all those tiny electric and hybrid cars are great for the environment, they aren’t so great for our butts!

Sleek and sporty is useless if all you can do is pose next to the car, and you have difficulty even leaning in the door to grab your wallet.

Below are some of the best cars for fat people, an explanation why the posted MPG doesn’t apply to everyone and how many wasted dollars we collectively spend on gas every year.

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Feel free to use this graphic however you like. Even print and post it at your nearest fast food joint if you can – just try to avoid stopping to order the meal.

<a href="https://www.compareautoinsurance.com/best-car-for-fat-people/" title="best cars for fat people"><img src="https://www.compareautoinsurance.com/wp-content/uploads/best-cars-for-fat-people.jpg" alt="Best Cars for Fat People" /></a>

Best Cars for Fat People

It’s not cheap to be overweight and it’s definitely not cheap to drive when you’re overweight. Since larger cars weigh more, the combination of a large car and a large person means the average MPG for any vehicle will go way down.

That means more trips to the gas station and more money guzzled away at the pump. Sales of larger vehicles like SUVs, vans and trucks have increased dramatically over the last few years, from 16% per year to now about 40% of all car purchases each year.

How much more gas do Fat People use?

Heavy Americans have used about 1 billion gallons of gas just due to their excess weight. It’s about 39 million gallons per year for each pound gained! Do you know how much 39 million gallons of gas would cost you? Well… it’s a lot. And it’s painful to think about.

What makes a car better for obese drivers?

An important safety feature for obese drivers is good visibility – lots of windows and good mirrors. This is because obese people have a hard time making the rapid movements necessary for checking blind spots.

Be sure any car you’re looking to buy affords you enough visibility to drive safely without performing uncomfortable maneuvers just to see.

Are obese drivers more likely to get hurt in a car accident?

Did you ever purchase a leather punch to keep making new holes on your belt for your expanding waistline? (Did you even know you could do that?) Well, you can’t do the same thing with seat belts.

They only pull out so far (unfortunately) and if you pull them all the way out of their bases they’re useless. This means obese people are less likely to wear seat belts – because sometimes they just don’t fit, or are extremely constricting. Other facts include:

  • Men with a BMI between 35 and 50 are 10% more likely to die in a car crash if they aren’t wearing seat belts.
  • Women who are overweight or obese are at an 8% increased likelihood of dying in a car crash, compared to women of healthy weights.

Aside from seat belts, overweight drivers need increased leg room, greater mobility/tilting of the steering wheel, and just more room in general to be comfortable and safe in their cars. If your arm, leg or foot gets stuck while driving, the consequences could be horrific.

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What are the Best Cars for Fat People?

Below are some suggestions for models of car that should suit the needs of larger drivers. Take note of the altered MPG stats for overweight drivers – it’s not something manufacturers typically address, but it’s definitely something you should consider!

The Honda Odyssey seems to be a great choice, with average MPG in the city at 18 MPG and 27 MPG on the highway. However, the plus-sized driver may only get an average of 19 miles to the gallon. At $32,610, this might not be the most economical choice, although it does offer the necessary features for heavier drivers.

The Honda Accord, on the other hand, is just $22,795, and gets an average of 23 MPG in the city, 34 on the highway. For overweight drivers, the typical MPG is around 23 – an improvement over the Odyssey and the same as the average city MPG. It actually gets the best MPG for overweight drivers of any car on the list.

The Hyundai Azera is a bit less fuel-efficient at 28 MPG on the highway and 20 MPG in the city. Heavy drivers may see an average MPG of 20 – better than the Odyssey, but not much. It’ll run you $31,670.

The Kia Rondo is a cool $20,665, making it the cheapest on the list. The MPG averages of 20 in the city and 27 on the highway aren’t the best, but a plus-size driver will get about 21 miles to the gallon–the second highest on our list.

The Subaru ForesterXT LTD gets 20 MPG for heavy drivers, although the average is 21 in the city and 27 on the highway for leaner drivers. The Forester runs $28,860.

Of course, there are other vehicles for obese people but before deciding to buy any car you really need to factor in how much money will be wasted simply due to the fact that you are obese. This list isn’t exhaustive, of course, but these are good vehicles to start with if you’re looking for a car with plus-size-friendly features.

How big a problem is Obesity in America?

If you’re thinking that all the fitness programs and health gurus are making America skinnier, think again. Obesity in America is not on the decline by any means… In the last 2 years, it’s risen 1.1% in the United States with

  • 2.4 million more obese people
  • 17% of kids between the ages of 2 and 19 are obese, and if you think that’s shocking, consider that 33.8% of adults in the US are obese! That’s over 1/3.
  • In the year 2010, our United States did not have a single state with obesity rates below 20% of the population. Really.
  • And over the last 2 years, the number of states with incidences of obesity higher than 30% has tripled!

If it’s time for a car you can fit into, consider the cars and features we’ve listed above. You won’t get the best possible MPG for any car, but some will definitely provide better ratios than others.

However, if the stats about obesity and gas expenses have scared you then maybe it be time to join a gym and perhaps you’ll soon be trading in your overweight-friendly car for a hybrid or electric teeny car in good time.

If you do really good you may even be able to spring for a Vespa.

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Jeffrey Johnson

Insurance Lawyer

Jeffrey Johnson is a legal writer with a focus on personal injury. He has worked on personal injury and sovereign immunity litigation in addition to experience in family, estate, and criminal law. He earned a J.D. from the University of Baltimore and has worked in legal offices and non-profits in Maryland, Texas, and North Carolina. He has also earned an MFA in screenwriting from Chapman Univer...

Insurance Lawyer

Laura Walker

Licensed Agent for 10 Years

Laura Walker graduated college with a BS in Criminal Justice with a minor in Political Science. She married her husband and began working in the family insurance business in 2005. She became a licensed agent and wrote P&C business focusing on personal lines insurance. Laura serviced existing business and wrote new business. She now uses her insurance background to help educate drivers about...

Licensed Agent for 10 Years

Editorial Guidelines: We are a free online resource for anyone interested in learning more about auto insurance. Our goal is to be an objective, third-party resource for everything auto insurance-related. We update our site regularly, and all content is reviewed by auto insurance experts.