FJ Cruiser - Ergonomics Questions
 

I'm looking for people with thoughts on the FJ Cruiser. I'm doing a study regarding the general interior design flaws that might hinder general ergonomics for potential older users aged 60-80 yrs:

- Front and rear visibility
- Blind spots
- Parking
- Will this vehicle be good for getting in and out for older people (Age 60-80 yrs)?
- Suitable for baby seats in the rear?
- Getting in and out from the rear seats?
- Accessibility to cargo?
- Comfort for long distance travel?

Any input would be appreciated. Thanks.

Wut?

Grandkids.

I work at Toyota and constantly drive FJs.

Visibility/Blind spots/Parking

Visibility is as expected from a vehicle of its size and shape. The windshield is quite far forward and nearly at a 90 degree angle and quite narrow, which makes it nearly impossible to see a traffic light if you're the first car at the stop light. Its tall ride-height doesn't help either. With that being said, I daily drive a Honda Element which has a similar shape, but its seat is much lower than the FJ along with its ride height, so I do know vehicles of this shape tend to have less-than-average visibility. Going from a Honda Element to an FJ isn't too much of a problem for me, I'm used to having poor visibility (though, the FJ has far thicker pillars and even worse visibility than the Element). Going from a sedan to an FJ I could see problems with getting used to the poor all-around visibility, particularly the rear. IIRC, most, if not all 2013 FJs come equipped with a backup camera though.

tl;dr - visibility is not much of an issue for everyday driving or if you're used to driving large SUVs, but parking may be a pain.

Suitable for older people?

Go to a showroom and check it out. It rides quite high, so ingress/egress is somewhat difficult, as with the 4Runner or the Tundra if you have had experience getting in/out of them. With that being said, don't expect your granny/grandpa to be able to climb into the FJ with ease. I'm 5'11" and I either have to use the sidesteps to get on, or literally have to hop on.

Suitable for baby seats?

Depends on what your definition of "suitable" is. I'm 5'11" and with the front seats moved far back enough that I feel comfortable driving the FJ, there's very little legroom in the rear. To answer your question then, yes the rear seats are suitable for baby seats, but actually getting to the baby seat may be an issue if the front seats are moved back.

Accessibility to cargo

Not too sure what you mean here. I suppose you mean how easy it is to place things in and take things out of the cargo area? If that's the case, it's not different from any other large SUV. Do keep in mind the rear trunk swings to the left when open a la RAV4, something I REALLY cannot stand. The trunk is also quite large, and heavy as a result. Ample space is needed to actually open it up. I doubt 60-80 year old folks will be able to handle the heavy rear trunk.

Comfort for long distance travel

As far as ride comfort goes, the FJ rides surprisingly well, better than the 4Runner SR5 in fact. The ride is quite supple, as expected from a larger SUV geared for off-road use, and body roll/dive is surprisingly controlled. Both road and even wind noise is suppressed well, as well as engine noise. Seats are comfy, controls are all placed well within reach.

All in all, it really depends on what you'll be doing with it. It's an excellent truck with great off-road capabilities that looks pretty badass in my opinion. However, as a daily driver for highway use and general driving around, there are more down-to-earth options available. It's also quite thirsty so that's another thing to keep in mind.

Thanks akinari-kun for all the input.

My cousin in Los Angeles has an FJ and akinari-kun pretty much summed it up to the T.

I talked my dad out of getting a Ranger Rover and into an FJ Cruiser. He's not the healthiest guy so the last thing we needed to deal with was a 3-5 year old Range that may or may not need a lot of work.

The FJ is one of his favorite vehicles. This is a guy who drives Ferraris and Hummers. He loves the style, the comfort, and the overall reliability and ability of the FJ. To me, that speaks volumes about the truck. He's in his mid/late 50's and spends a lot of time downtown. Imho, if he likes the FJ, it has to be a great vehicle. Needless to say I'm happy that he likes it, as he was a stoic Ford/Euro guy for years.

Rear pillars are huge! Front windshield as mentioned is kinda small...

Got to ride in the back seat of one all the way to Whistler, and it was VERY comfortable.. even with the off road package suspension and those BF goodrich off road tires. Didn't even have a lot of body-roll around each corner.