Can cars get any wider?
Discussion
Decky_Q said:
I'm probably wrong here but does the new 7 series BMW have a remote built into the key that allows you to drive it forward and backwards to get it into and out of a garage while you are outside the car? I was told that this was because it was too wide to open the doors in the average garage. It may be complete b
ks though.
It does have that, as does the 5 and a few other manufacturers also offer it, I think it's on the Chevy/Holden Commodore/SS as wellks though.TooMany2cvs said:
It's only with the very expensive, bulky and complicated multi-link rear ends on more recent BMWs and Mercs that RWD has gained the current rep - Merc and BMW were still using 1960s low-tech semi-trailing arm designs well into the 80s and even the 90s (E36 used multi-link, but the compact used the older setup). Even as recently as the 90s, the Mondeo was hailed as a massive leap forward because it ditched the Sierra's ancient low-tech semi-trailing arm RWD.
Although saying that people are looking back on the E30/Compact/Z3 rear setup and praising it for being more fun than the Z axle. Lest we forget it's only about a week ago Ford stopped using a live axle at the rear on the Mustang.
DoubleD said:
WinstonWolf said:
Fast Bug said:
Parked my 996 next to a 991 at the weekend. They're flipping huge!
Just curious. For those whose daily driver is a barge how do you manage carparks? I've seen L200s and Q7s in multistorey carparks that I would fear navigating round in my midsized saloon so clearly some folks have the balls to enter and go looking for a space and take the risk they might not be able to get the thing out again. But if you're visiting an area for the first time and need to park your barge how do you go about finding somewhere you can leave it? Is there a website of carparks with extra wide spaces that the rest of us don't know about, for instance?
Always had a hankering for the X350 but I use a lot of carparks in the course of my job and at peak times they are almost full and pretty tight to get around and reckon the stress of not knowing if I could park the thing at the end of a journey would kill all the enjoyment of getting there in it. And living on a road with onstreet parking both sides and no drive, if it stuck out any further than the neighbours' cars it would be run into in no time.
Always had a hankering for the X350 but I use a lot of carparks in the course of my job and at peak times they are almost full and pretty tight to get around and reckon the stress of not knowing if I could park the thing at the end of a journey would kill all the enjoyment of getting there in it. And living on a road with onstreet parking both sides and no drive, if it stuck out any further than the neighbours' cars it would be run into in no time.
TooMany2cvs said:
skyrover said:
LarryUSA said:
A friend of mine posted this the other day - he owns the Lotus!
The Chevrolet Suburban on the right is 80.5 inches wide, the Lexus LX is 77.6 inches wide.The Lotus is only 67.7 inches wide.
Suburban height 74.4" = 1889mm
Lexus height 75.2" = 1910mm
Lotus height 1117mm
Edited by TooMany2cvs on Tuesday 16th January 08:10
Good post thread this....I went from a 2005 Mazda 6 to a Vauxhall Insignia and length wise, I think there's only about 10CM in it. However, the Insignia is "significantly" (s'cuse pun) wider than the Mazda and really feels it driving around town. Coupled with the fact that it also doesn't have parking sensors and atrocious rear visibility makes it an absolute pain in the bum to park in a typical multi storey or average car park....the Mazda 6 didn't have parking sensors either, but was a doddle to slot into spaces...
I really hope cars don't get much wider. The new Civic is just massive. When I'm driving locally, I just take my Mazda MX-5 wherever possible....so easy to navigate tight spaces. Once the kids have left home, I'm getting something like an ecoboost Fiesta. Just the right size for British roads in 2018....although by the time the kids have gone, it will probably be as big as today's Mondeo!
Chromegrill said:
Just curious. For those whose daily driver is a barge how do you manage carparks? I've seen L200s and Q7s in multistorey carparks that I would fear navigating round in my midsized saloon so clearly some folks have the balls to enter and go looking for a space and take the risk they might not be able to get the thing out again. But if you're visiting an area for the first time and need to park your barge how do you go about finding somewhere you can leave it? Is there a website of carparks with extra wide spaces that the rest of us don't know about, for instance?
Always had a hankering for the X350 but I use a lot of carparks in the course of my job and at peak times they are almost full and pretty tight to get around and reckon the stress of not knowing if I could park the thing at the end of a journey would kill all the enjoyment of getting there in it. And living on a road with onstreet parking both sides and no drive, if it stuck out any further than the neighbours' cars it would be run into in no time.
You become very good at parking and judging the size of your vehicle. That pic I posted earlier was straight in first go, even I was impressed with how accurate it was hence the pic Always had a hankering for the X350 but I use a lot of carparks in the course of my job and at peak times they are almost full and pretty tight to get around and reckon the stress of not knowing if I could park the thing at the end of a journey would kill all the enjoyment of getting there in it. And living on a road with onstreet parking both sides and no drive, if it stuck out any further than the neighbours' cars it would be run into in no time.
In small spaces you have to plan before you park, do I go in forwards or backwards and how do I expect to get out. My missus panics like mad when I'm parking as you often have mm to spare but you get better at it the more practice you have.
The A8 is actually pretty easy to park if there's enough room as you can see all the corners from the driving seat.
greenarrow said:
Good post thread this....I went from a 2005 Mazda 6 to a Vauxhall Insignia and length wise, I think there's only about 10CM in it. However, the Insignia is "significantly" (s'cuse pun) wider than the Mazda and really feels it driving around town.
2005 Mazda 6 width 70.1 inLast Gen insignia width 73.1 in
would you class 3 inches as significant?
skyrover said:
I like this one...
Interestingly those RAM's are no wider than their 1970's equivalents.. American pickup trucks have not gotten any fatter in 40 years.
Yeah, it isn't really an American problem, in fact in my mind the size problem we are having could be attributed to the culture exported to us from the American Market, as well as global designs.Interestingly those RAM's are no wider than their 1970's equivalents.. American pickup trucks have not gotten any fatter in 40 years.
If you look at American cars from the 60s comparing them to yank tanks of today and the size difference is minimal, if anything American cars have gotten smaller.
However as pointed out in this thread to make the same age comparison here yields very different results.
Personally I would start offering tax breaks to small light vehicles, much more logical than on emissions as larger vehicles cram our roads putting greater stress on infrastructure. Japan had the right idea with Kei vehicles for people in cities with no parking.
The problem with Kei cars is that they do not meet European crash regulations.
Even the smart car had to be made narrower to fit the Japanese standard.
If they were sold here, they would probably be labled as quadracycles and limited to 30mph.
The other problem is that 90% of damage caused to infrastructure is caused by trucks and buses. They have much higher ground pressures per square inch than cars.
Even the smart car had to be made narrower to fit the Japanese standard.
If they were sold here, they would probably be labled as quadracycles and limited to 30mph.
The other problem is that 90% of damage caused to infrastructure is caused by trucks and buses. They have much higher ground pressures per square inch than cars.
Edited by skyrover on Thursday 18th January 07:33
kambites said:
That would naturally make them longer, but I'm not sure why it'd really make them wider? Maybe it's just a styling thing to deal with the extra length? The transmission tunnel argument would make sense if the Octavia platform didn't support 4wd models, but it does.
Transmission tunnel in Octavia isn’t for the gearbox though is it, nor is it a rear biased platform with AWD as an option. skyrover said:
The problem with Kei cars is that they do not meet European crash regulations.
Even the smart car had to be made narrower to fit the Japanese standard.
If they were sold here, they would probably be labled as quadracycles and limited to 30mph.
The other problem is that 90% of damage caused to infrastructure is caused by trucks and buses. They have much higher ground pressures per square inch than cars.
It's not necessarily damage to infrastructure, but how stressed the capacity is of it, if the majority of cars where 3.2m long, rather than 4.6m long then the size of tailbacks would be reduced, the amount of cars that can be parked on our streets would be increased, and the ability to power the cars and have them drive well with small petrols instead of mid-size diesels would increase. Even the smart car had to be made narrower to fit the Japanese standard.
If they were sold here, they would probably be labled as quadracycles and limited to 30mph.
The other problem is that 90% of damage caused to infrastructure is caused by trucks and buses. They have much higher ground pressures per square inch than cars.
Edited by skyrover on Thursday 18th January 07:33
Personally, and I know this is unpopular opinion, I think safety regulations in Europe have gone way too far, it would be better for all of us if legislators took a more pragmatic view towards safety(and emissions), rather than the, in my mind, idealistic view that they currently take. Zero road deaths is not going to happen, rather than chasing that unrealistic goal efforts should be made to make our roads run smoother, faster and with greater efficiency.
Chromegrill said:
Just curious. For those whose daily driver is a barge how do you manage carparks? I've seen L200s and Q7s in multistorey carparks that I would fear navigating round in my midsized saloon so clearly some folks have the balls to enter and go looking for a space and take the risk they might not be able to get the thing out again. But if you're visiting an area for the first time and need to park your barge how do you go about finding somewhere you can leave it? Is there a website of carparks with extra wide spaces that the rest of us don't know about, for instance?
Always had a hankering for the X350 but I use a lot of carparks in the course of my job and at peak times they are almost full and pretty tight to get around and reckon the stress of not knowing if I could park the thing at the end of a journey would kill all the enjoyment of getting there in it. And living on a road with onstreet parking both sides and no drive, if it stuck out any further than the neighbours' cars it would be run into in no time.
I drive a X350, generally quite easy to park despite the size (front PDC is great). I live in the countryside, so parking is generally easy, but have used multi-strorey carparks at airports, ect. Tight spiral inclines and high curbs are a worry, so dipping the mirrors slightly helps here.Always had a hankering for the X350 but I use a lot of carparks in the course of my job and at peak times they are almost full and pretty tight to get around and reckon the stress of not knowing if I could park the thing at the end of a journey would kill all the enjoyment of getting there in it. And living on a road with onstreet parking both sides and no drive, if it stuck out any further than the neighbours' cars it would be run into in no time.
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