I was going to buy a Meyers 200D, but the deal got “weird” so it fell through.
So I thought why not a V35? Fast, well thought of, sort of the “Cadillac” of GA airplanes, right?
Well I rode in a neighbors in the left seat, and right away I was cramped, really felt like I was shoved against the window, a lot like in the 140 with the window closed, so Wx permitting I always fly with the window open, except in a Bo, you don’t have a window to open, so it’s cramped if your 5’10” and 245.
So I did some looking around, supposedly the cabin width on a C-140 is 42”.
Well guess what it is in a V35? would you believe 42”?
How about a C-182? Yep, 42”
You have to get up to a C-210, to get another 2”, it’s 44.
Now I got my Commercial and Instrument ratings in a Mooney 201 and have a soft spot for it, I mean what else can you cruise 160 kts on 10 GPH?
But as everyone will tell you they have a tiny cockpit, you don’t ride in a Mooney, you put one on, right? So I’d never fit now?
A M20J’s cockpit is 43.5” wide, how is that possible. it’s 1.5” wider than a Bo. I just did a pre-buy in one and a test flight. I can’t confirm it’s wider than the Bo, but I can confirm it’s at least as wide, the difference is you sit on the floor sort of like a Corvette and not up in a chair like an SUV. The Bo sits like an SUV, but seat height isn’t adjustable in a Bo, but is in a 210.
I won’t get into useful load as that’s an eye opener in itself.
But I went out and measured the cockpit in my 140, I don’t know where the 42” is coming from, maybe I have the narrow model, but I can confirm that crazy as it sounds, but if you open the window, you have more shoulder room than you do in a Bonanza, and likely more than a Mooney too, oh and my old M6/235 Maule? you guessed it,42” cabin width, but it’s windows opened too
Point is that surprisingly, the little C-140 isn’t as cramped as we think it is, not when compared to other GA aircraft, which is something I never suspected.
-- as you indicate, that seems to change a bit with time, at least for me. I also used to get a bit miffed with seeing folks shoes hitting the front door posts when entering/exiting &, now, with knees that don't seem as flexible as they once did I'm finding that my own shoes hit the posts! ...best I recall, the Navion seems to have more room "all around"...maybe similar to the Meyers? As this staying at home plague tends to keep a lot of us in and often snacking too much, I expect cabins to get even "smaller".