I'm not tall (5'10") but have very long legs (36" inseam). We have a Highlander.

I can easily adjust the driver's seat for me and comfortably sit in the second row. There is good room back there.

As for the third row, we use it a lot. If we have people coming with us, we just move the kids' seats back to the third row and the adults can use the second. The kids love riding back there anyway. I've ridden in the third row myself. It's far from great, but totally fine for short hops around town.

We went with the captain's chairs in the second row so the third row would have better access and we're thankful we did.

 

I can't remember how they take the 2nd row measurements, but many 3 row utilities have the ability to slide the 2nd row forward and backward as needed. Same with some minivans. So since you're not going to use many in the 3rd row, maybe try out the 2nd row fully pushed backwards, may require more in person testing rather than the paper specs. As others have mentioned, the seat height to floor measurement can also impact comfort, even for identical potential measurements.

 

Body
I have a drawing of four body types below from: sedan, to MPV, to SUV, to Landcruiser/LX.

All four are similar width.
They differ in height and ground clearance.

Compared to the conventional sedan on the far left, notice has the MPV/minivan has the same rolling diameter tires, the same ground clearance, but the 11" taller roof line provides a more voluminous cabin?

An excellent example is when we compare MPV/minivan to CUV/SUV, notice how both are the same height, but the taller rolling diameter tires of the Highlander delivers higher ground clearance, but at a cost to interior cabin height?
The greater the cabin height, the greater the overall interior spaciousness.

Finally, comparing the Highlander light duty off-roader to a heavy duty off-roader like a Landcruiser/LX, notice how the 9" taller Landcruiser/LX has taller rolling diameter tires again, for an even higher ground clearance - but again, at a further cost to cabin height.
A further point to note is that the Landcruiser/LX has "tall box sections" from the 2-piece ladder-on-frame type chassis that further compromise the cabin height available for Landcruiser/LX compared to Highlander.

I find that the Landcruiser/LX cabin is not as tall/deep as Highlander, but both cabins are similar in length and width; maybe the Highlander has a slightly longer cabin than the Landcruiser/LX even.
GX has not only a shallower cabin than Highlander, but GX's cabin is both shorter and narrower than Highlander - despite GX and LX appearing to be much larger than Highlander from the outside.

In short, Landcruiser/LX has 9" greater overall height than Highlander, but Landcruiser/LX actually has a much less tall cabin than Highlander.
GX an even less tall cabin again.
GX/LX have taller cabins than a sedan, but no match for the cabin height available in Highlander, let alone an MPV/minivan.

The problem with 3rd row SUV/truck is that the 3rd row lacks cabin height, and more in particular - lacks depth for the 3rd row legs to drop down.
However, even the 1st & 2nd row cabin height of a heavy duty SUV like Landcruiser/LX cannot match the cabin height of a 1st/2nd row light duty Highlander.






Seating
Because the seating position and cabin of the vehicle has very "complex" measurements, I no longer measure legroom etc with measuring tapes, due to large inaccuracies.

Soft foam cushions actually have more compression, and provide more interior space.
Low seat bases can provide superior measurements, but at a cost to comfort.
Short seat squabs/bases like ES provides a much greater feeling of spaciousness than long seat bases/squabs like GS.
Angled/raked back rests provide a greater feeling of space.

Door trims can be more "scalloped" to provide more elbow room etc.
Lexus sedans often scallop their rear ceiling beneath the sunroof to provide greater headroom.
The back of the front seat back rests can be scalloped to provide much greater rear knee room.

Rear foot space is provided beneath the underside of the front seats.
Lexus GS compromises rear leg room and rear foot room for great air conditioned multi-adjustable front bucket seats.

Have you ever noticed how "narrow" front bucket seats like ES make the cabin feel larger than wide front bucket seats?
Furthermore, three evenly sized rear seats feel more spacious than two large rear bucket seats when three passengers are seated across the rear bench!

To a certain extent, small steering wheels with thick rims can make a cabin feel bigger inside, while making the handling feel smaller.

I find that passenger cabin cubic feet measurements are a greater indication of spaciousness, however even in this case - there are large inaccuracies, as vehicles with short seat squabs like ES feel more spacious than they really are.

Thus, there is presently no concrete/objective measure of interior space, such that there is a strong subjective component in the seat of the pants feeling...

 

What are the numbers for the VW Atlas?

 

What about the Nissan Pathfinder or Infiniti QX60? They are supposed to be roomy.

 

uh yeah hah

On a serious note, the Expedition tends to provide good third row leg room at 36.1

 

Have you tried a Acura MDX? They are pretty roomy for a 3 row now. Do you even need a 2 or 3 row SUV? I am 6 foot and find larger sedans to be the most comfortable over bigger SUVs. Lexus LS, ES, or even GS are pretty roomy and comfortable, Acura RLX has big rear seat leg room for a mid size with plenty of room to move the driver seat back..

 

The lr3 and lr4, have nice room in all three rows. The head room because of its design is even better. Seating space of a minivan, utility of the SUV.

 

wow suprised Germany has the tallest on average considering how cramped their car interiors are, you figured they would design it to fit their people better.

 

I sat in a friends 2017 XC90 and loved the room in the front and 2nd row. I didn't get to sit in the third, but it looks better than most.

Front Leg Room : 40.9
Second Leg Room : 37
Third Leg Room : 31.9

 

off-topic but i notice your second row doesn't have vents in the back of the center console. i think that was added in '17, right?

geez guys, you could look it up.

atlas:
Front Leg Room : in 41.5
Second Leg Room : in 37.6
Third Leg Room : in 33.7
https://www.caranddriver.com/volkswagen/atlas/specs
that's EXCELLENT

qx60:
Front Leg Room : in 42.2
Second Leg Room : in 41.7
Third Leg Room : in 30.8
https://www.caranddriver.com/infiniti/qx60/specs
what is given to second row is taken away from third.

 

No, I don't believe it has changed for '17. The vents for the second and third row are in the headliner, near the map lights and grab handles.

 

The best crossover vehicle for second and third row legroom I've personally seen is the QX60. You're right though, a lot of them are cramped.

 

?? I'm 6'4", and while my E90 is an auto, the E46 I had before was a manual, and it was roughly the size of a Civic. With the driver's seat all the way back, I couldn't disengage the clutch. Had to slide it forward probably 4-5" from the rear stop to be able to floor the clutch pedal. And I have plenty of headroom in both cars, despite the moonroof eating some up.

 

Among whites, the Nordics of Germany and the Scandinavian countries tend to be taller than average, but are not necessarily the tallest. A group in Central Africa, called the Watusis, or Tutsi, are (supposedly) the world's tallest, a fair number reaching 7 feet (perfect NBA material LOL)...but are generally of small enough numbers that they don't skew the averages very much.