Hats In The Car/A Newbie Question

[David Conwill]

Gosh, I've read this whole post and I didn't see a single K.T. Keller reference! Legend holds (and I value this legend too much to research it) that the '49-'52 Chrysler Corporation products look the way they do because Keller was a hat wearer and wanted "to build cars you sit in, not piss over."

Here's a fine example of one of Keller's finest, a beautifly restored (and respectfully modified) '50 Plymouth belonging to a fellow on another message board:

I really want one, especially now that I am a regular hat wearer. The beauty is that they're still considered ugly ducklings by the classic car community, so they can be picked up quite inexpensively. I'm shooting for a 1950 Dodge Meadowbrook. I have slightly evil plans, however, as I'd like mine to look like the above but house my 1976 Dodge 440 V8.

But, I digress...

Anywho, I currently drive a 1993 Ford Escort originally purchased by my grandfather (a flat cap fellow). I find it quite comfortable to drive with my hat on, although checking my blind spot occasionally causes me to bump the crown on the sunvisor. I have started subconsciously ducking as I bend forward now, however, and such collisions are greatly reduced. I should note that I've only had my Dobbs for about a month now, so there's not much of a learning curve.

Driving my wife's S10 Blazer is a similar experience, although the darker colored headliner gives a feeling of less room, so I'm less comfortable than in the Escort.

-Dave

 

[NonEntity]

David,

That's a gorgeous '50 Mopar. It's nearly identical to the green one my next door neighbor had when I was growing up in the '60s. Mrs. Farmer was a giant woman, 6 feet and probably close to 300 lbs, and appeared even larger with an overbearing personality and the tall beehive hairdo then popular. Even so, she had head room to spare in that old Plymouth.

My dad and I used to crack up when we saw her next to her husband, a tiny guy who drove a VW bug.

 

[Topdog]

I have a 2008 Passat and am 6"0" tall. I wore my Stetson Chatham to work today. It was the first time in this car. No issues once I was seated, but had to duck a little to clear the top of the door entrance. By the way, it has a sunroof also. I have been driving pickups for the last 15 years and this is my first venture back into an automobile. Luv the car.

 

[panama jack]

Being 6'3" there is definitely no hat headroom in my corvette unless the top is off. Living in the northeast I don't drive the car in the winter anyway so it's not a big deal. I have no problem when driving my Toyota Tundra though.
Still being new to wearing a fedora I have hit it a few times getting in or out.

pj

 

[Lou]

I can wear my hat in my 99 Ford Contour without a problem. I'm thinking about replacing the Contour soon and want something larger. The Dodge Charger looks like a good option and is probably roomy enough for my not-too-tall hats.

 

[Lone_Ranger]

Another variant of the vehicle hat rack.


http://www.galls.com/style.html?assort=general_catalog&style=VP178&cat=2692

The description says, "fits most hats, including Sheriff or Campaign styles." If it holds a Sheriff style hat it should hold a Fedora, or Western hat. Only problem is that it has to be mounted, unlike the one with the suction cups.

 

[Wolfwood]

I drive a Mazda3 - which is not at all a big car - and I have no problems with my Akubra Fed Deluxe IV even though I'm 6'2". It's just a question of adjusting the seat to as low a position as possible (most modern cars give this option in addition to the adjustment of the back of the seat) and not resting your head backwards against the headrest while you drive.

 

[David Conwill]

Update Re: S10 Blazer and Ford Escort

Since I originally posted to this thread my Dobbs melted into unwearability and has been replaced with a Stetson Candidate and an Akubra Fed IV. Both have a taller crown than the Dobbs, and the Fed IV has a broader brim - no clearance problems on either vehicle.

-Dave

 

[Fatdutchman]

I can hardly get in and out of modern cars anyway, much less with a hat on.

I had a '55 Dodge years ago. Wish I still had it, and more importantly, I wish I knew what I was doing when I did have it. Plenty of headroom!

 

[jpbales]

Volvo 850

I drive a 96' Volvo 850 (Flieger, you can appreciate that haha) and with the bucket seats and low headspace, it's difficult to wear the tall Fed IV in there comfortably. However, in my girlfriends Ford Taurus, the headrests are low enough and there's enough headspace for me to wear my hats pretty easily (and I'm 6 foot).
I think the suction-cup hat rack is ingenious!! I wish I had one... maybe someday...

I'd bet that it's more the decline of hats led to the decline of head space in cars. Once people stopped wearing hats as frequently, there was simply no need/reason to waste time and materials creating bigger cars that were also less aerodynamic, especially when fuel-efficiency and performance became big issues.

 

[Delthayre]

Blandmobiles

I have no trouble when boarding my mother's Subaru Forrester whilst wearing my hat, although sometimes it bumps into the handle above the front passenger side door if that has been pulled out, as it often is if my father has been driving with my mother in that seat (she refers to it as the, "oh **** handle," as she pulls it for relief whenever my father's driving becomes, shall we say, adventurous).

Boarding my father's Honda Accord is an altogether less comfortable matter; I must remove my hat to board or disembark from it and if I am wearing my tall (6" when open) crowned fedora, I often simply leave it in my lap as it tends to rub against the ceiling of the passenger compartment.

It is usually necessary to remove my hat as I enter or leave a modern car; the maneuver has by now nearly become an involuntary reflex.

 

[Forgotten Man]

I used to drive a '89 Mazda 929... I had to have the seat all the way back and leaned back to keep my head from hitting the roof... not to mention my hat.

Now that I drive a '46 Daily, I have no problems with hats and headliners. I do when I ride in other people's cars... I just take the hat off and suffer. It really wouldn’t kill car companies to give us a little more head room... would it?

 

[Hemingway Jones]

Amazingly enough, my hat fits comfortably in my Mini Cooper, and I am 6'2"! I was surprised, pleasantly!

 

[indycop]

Amazingly enough, my hat fits comfortably in my Mini Cooper, and I am 6'2"! I was surprised, pleasantly!

Would love to see a picture of that!

I have driven a real mini (right hand drive) and they are seriously fun! I could hang my arm out the window and touch the groundlol . no comments!

 

[warbird]

Would love to see a picture of that!

I have driven a real mini (right hand drive) and they are seriously fun! I could hang my arm out the window and touch the groundlol . no comments!

No fair! lol

 

[indycop]

No fair! lol

I even have a pic. no not postin it!

 

[MattJH]

2005 Subaru Forester. No issues. If there were, I'd... take my hat off.

 

[carter]

In my '03 T-bird any hat is fine with the top down.
With the top up I usually remove my fedora when I enter and put it back on when I exit.

I could touch the ground while seated in an old Triumph but I'd need gorilla arms to do it in a Mini.

 

[Hemingway Jones]

Would love to see a picture of that!

I have driven a real mini (right hand drive) and they are seriously fun! I could hang my arm out the window and touch the groundlol . no comments!

I'll see what I can do.
The modern Minis are larger than their vintage inspirations.
Next year, I may have to buy a cinquecento when they come.

 

[carldelo]

Yep

Amazingly enough, my hat fits comfortably in my Mini Cooper, and I am 6'2"! I was surprised, pleasantly!

I was wondering if anyone else had one - it's odd to be able to wear a hat comfortably in a 'small' car - I'm only 5'9 so have lots of room. It very much irritated my friend with an Audi A4 when I got my Mini and it turned out to be more comfortable inside...