Length,Wheelbase and height

hi,

In india most of the hatchbacks are under 4 metres (for tax benifits). On which factors interior space of the the car depends?

some say if the car has more wheelbase,It will be more spacious. is it true with all the cars?

for example,Grande punto. 2510mm wheelbase, its actually a big number for hatch. But car is not at all spacious as dimensions suggests,you have less legroom in rear. I found hyundai i10 more spacious than punto! strange, 2380mm wheelbase,both cars have nearly same legroom. 

I think now comes height of the car.Grande's sloping roofline spoils the thing. Also part of the wheelbase is eaten by huge and long bonnet.Space has been sacrificed for style.

When you buy segment up car, say compact hatch to premium hatch, lots of upgradations are expected.In terms of space,interior trim,ride etc.

Indica vista having less wheelbase than puntos,uses the space very smartly..lots of legroom in rear! There are many examples like this.

 New arrivals like polo and figo. good wheelbases about 2460mm., but height? around 1450mm.(figo 1427). will they able to prove themselves as spacious 'b'segment hatchs ?  

@Unmesh, some say if the car has more wheelbase,It will be more spacious. is it true with all the cars? To quote your own sentence in one word, not always, for example the Spark take a look at the car's exterior it is so small and yet the car is capable of seating 2 adults and 2 kids or 4 adults in complete comfort. Then take the example of the Mercedes of the 1994's model especially the s-class even i am not able sit inside without adjusting the seats. On the other hand, the Linea, the Honda Jazz, the city all models, tha Matiz, cielo, accent, the verna and some others they don't look like as if they will accommodate a person like me, but surprisingly they do. The conclusion, not always, the cars that appear big on the outside are not always spacious from inside as well.

Never judge a book by it's cover, a fact which you might uncover, after you have testdriven all the kind of cars that are in our Indian market. It's amazing.

Yes. these are all relative terms. Take example of Ritz & Figo. Ritz wheel base is 2360 & Figo it is 2486. Height of Ritz is 1620 & Figo it is 1427. Now if you check yourself in in Ritz, your sitting posiotion automatically is at upper level & in Figo it is at lower level. NOw the Magic of space starts..In Ritz u suddenly fill more roominess. This is because of the height. so in all it will leave space of 14 fingers above your head. BUT you can not stretch your leg because 1) u are sitting at higher position 2) Back of Front seat limits space. So space is available BUT at top. Now let us go to Figo. You check yourself in in Figo, your sitting position is lowered as compared to Ritz. So u suddenly fill less space..wait in reality...if u check the space above your head it will be 10-12 fingers. Almost equal to near by Ritz. Now next magic is as u are sitting at lower level, if u want to stretch your legs, it is possible in Figo because of wheelbase of 2486 verses 2360.

yeah,you are right.In few days I will chek out the polo.I am interested in buying one,just concerned about its interior space..!

Wheel base and overall length are exterior parameters. they are never a true indication of space inside. Some cars have very legroom but small boot and some are otherwise. Personally, some people like tall cars as that makes getting in and out lot easier, others prefer lower cars as they seem to be more comfortable (streching your legs for e.g.)

So don't take wheel base or length of the car as indication of interior space. They are not. The large wheel base cars, with same or lower hieght will be more stable at high speeds, will corner well and will be easy to manouvere. However, as these start getting taller these differences start to fade out.

Overall length is simply a matter of putting everythig together in the minimum space possible. If the engine itself is bigger, boot is bigger and you also want decent legroom, then the length will have to be increased. But most hatches need to be lesser than 4mts. So they will compromise on one or more of these. Different cars compromise differently. So take you pick based on your preference.

@ unmesh, about the interior space of the Polo is good for the person whose height is less than 6 feet, a person whose height is more than that then seats, whether the front driver or the rear passenger, is going to be very much uncomfortable. Other than that, the legendary build quality of the german manufacturer VW is very much there to assure you.