Mercury Grand Marquis, Lincoln Towncar. Not so bad of fuel economy as they used to be, reliable, sturdy, easy to get in and out of. No step up, room in back seat for things. Drawback is all her friends will want her to drive THEM around to appointments and erands and such. At least, that has been our experience with my Mother. Though your MIL is a bit younger...

WRONG...my 78yr old mother has real problems getting into the subby they bought a couple of years ago. she does like the seat that will adjust in hight but getting in an out really are a problem. not sure if a small suv will be better since she has a problem getting into dads ford ranger too. mom has bad knees and hips and all kinds of issue with arthritis

there is a reason many old ladies drive olds-mo/Buick's....they are easy to get into and easy to drive if they can see over the dash

How about a Volvo S60 sedan or XC60 crossover. Both start around $30K and include 5 years/50,000 miles everything except tires. Super safe and very very comfortable seats. She might want leather to make sliding in and out easier, which will add to the cost.

Something with "Lambo" doors. ( kidding )

Steve

73 911 T MFI Coupe, Aubergine

How much are Mercedes GLKs? Does it have to be new or is almost new ok? I'd have a hard time going from a Benz to a Mazda or Subaru, but maybe she doesn't care.

The hardest thing for me when giving car advice is to keep my own preferences out of it. My preferences might not be someone else's.

How about an older Aston Martin. Even one with an auto transmission. One to give to her favorite son in law when she passes one. :D

Mazes 5. I volunteer for an organization that helps elderly folks with transportation. Several of them have commented that my Mazda5 is easier for them to get in and out of than the average vehicle. The doors are big and square plus the seats seem to be the right height.

Sounds like the specs for a wife.

We looked at a bunch of cars. Many of the SUVs were too tall. She had to climb up into them.

We looked at one Toyota Altima Limited that was a nice car. We asked for a sales brochure and the hard sell began. "What will it take to get you into this car." We wasted some time just wanting a brochure and he made an offer that was just one grand off sticker, and 2 grand less than her car is worth as a trade. We just walked out.

In the end her old Mercedes looked even better. I adjusted the seat to be a little higher and that helped.

I also discovered her car is actually a 2002 C240, 46,000 miles. I suspect she will keep it for a while.

Some Mercedes seats are floor mount (not side rail mounted) and/or the seat body attaches to the seat frame with horizontal mounts. So you can install easy-to-make spacers to raise the seat even further.

If that poses a pedal-fit issue, mobility companies make pedal extensions.... or you can make your own.

Keeping a known-good car (esp with low miles) is always the most cost-effective way to go.

Every Benz I've ever seen has seats that adjust for midgets or 6 year old drivers. I'm not kidding, when I put front seats all the way forward and high up to clean the rear floor, I simply cannot believe it.