Are small cars getting smaller?!
Discussion
Sounds like a strange premise but I've been looking at some new/nearly new Focus/Golf-sized cars recently to replace my ageing car and as they were a bit over budget, I thought I would consider some vehicles in the class below. I looked at a new Fiesta, Kia Rio and Nissan Juke at the weekend and was pretty shocked how cramped they were inside and how small their boots were. Also, I wasn't too impressed with their levels of refinement compared to the larger vehicles. Exterior dimensions of small cars seem to have got bigger in the last 20 years but a lot of that space seems to be in front of the driver. Crash regulations? I spent a lot of my late teens and early 20s driving around in and riding in small cars (Metros, Novas, Fiestas, 205s etc) often 5-up and the new equivalents don't seem any more spacious now than they were then IMO. I'm only 5 foot 8 but with the driver's seat in the Fiesta set to where I would want it, my knees were touching the back of the front seat when I sat in the back. It also looked like 3 children wouldn't fit in the back, let alone 3 adults. People say that the Fiesta is the same size as the Escort/Focus used to be and the Focus the same size as a Sierra/early Mondeo etc but I find that difficult to believe! I did own a 2008 Polo TDI for nearly 3 years a few years ago and don't remember it being cramped and unrefined. I drove 60 miles per day in it and moved house with it twice. I also seem to remember that Renault boasted that the "new" Clio (the old shape one) was more apacious than the contemporary Megane (Megane II).
Is my memory playing tricks on me or are small cars less spacious than they used to be?
Is my memory playing tricks on me or are small cars less spacious than they used to be?
andburg said:
yes!
Thicker steel, bigger posts, crash protection systems, electric motors all take up room
These days everything has a centre console with storage.
Cars have come along way for 2 seats with a handbrake between them and a bench in the back
Yes, I guess I can say that. I just assumed that the Fiesta is now the UK's best-selling car that people were downsizing on the family car but I don't see how it could be big enough for most people. Was my Polo (2008) smaller than I remember then? Cars like the Golf are noticeably bigger inside than they used to be though. Thicker steel, bigger posts, crash protection systems, electric motors all take up room
These days everything has a centre console with storage.
Cars have come along way for 2 seats with a handbrake between them and a bench in the back
typical PH moan
man goes to look at cheap small cars
and complains when he finds that they are cheap and small.
Cars have not actually gotten especially bigger, there are some exceptions, where the current models are in a different class as where they started, eg golf and mini, but in general they haven't grown anywhere near as much as people make out. If you look at the dimensions, yes they appear to have grown, but they have actually just got a lot rounder.
If you look at the the dimension diagrams of a mk1 fiesta the front and back are almost flat, if you look at the latest one, they are almost a semi circle. So although on paper it's grown in length by nearly 40cm, it's actually only the protruding middle parts of the bumpers that have.
man goes to look at cheap small cars
and complains when he finds that they are cheap and small.
Cars have not actually gotten especially bigger, there are some exceptions, where the current models are in a different class as where they started, eg golf and mini, but in general they haven't grown anywhere near as much as people make out. If you look at the dimensions, yes they appear to have grown, but they have actually just got a lot rounder.
If you look at the the dimension diagrams of a mk1 fiesta the front and back are almost flat, if you look at the latest one, they are almost a semi circle. So although on paper it's grown in length by nearly 40cm, it's actually only the protruding middle parts of the bumpers that have.
ging84 said:
typical PH moan
man goes to look at cheap small cars
and complains when he finds that they are cheap and small.
Cars have not actually gotten especially bigger, there are some exceptions, where the current models are in a different class as where they started, eg golf and mini, but in general they haven't grown anywhere near as much as people make out. If you look at the dimensions, yes they appear to have grown, but they have actually just got a lot rounder.
If you look at the the dimension diagrams of a mk1 fiesta the front and back are almost flat, if you look at the latest one, they are almost a semi circle. So although on paper it's grown in length by nearly 40cm, it's actually only the protruding middle parts of the bumpers that have.
Fair point. Small yes, not that cheap though!man goes to look at cheap small cars
and complains when he finds that they are cheap and small.
Cars have not actually gotten especially bigger, there are some exceptions, where the current models are in a different class as where they started, eg golf and mini, but in general they haven't grown anywhere near as much as people make out. If you look at the dimensions, yes they appear to have grown, but they have actually just got a lot rounder.
If you look at the the dimension diagrams of a mk1 fiesta the front and back are almost flat, if you look at the latest one, they are almost a semi circle. So although on paper it's grown in length by nearly 40cm, it's actually only the protruding middle parts of the bumpers that have.
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