Comment on xkcd #3167: Car Size
taco_daemon@lemmy.zip 2 weeks agonot USanian but afaik cars got so big over there because trucks (being work vehicles) have less (environmental, safety, …) regulations than cars, that’s why SUVs got so popular, manufacturers pushed them onto public. as long as the base for the vehicle is that of a truck they are legally exempt from many limits.
source: probably “Not Just Bikes” on y*utube idk
TubularTittyFrog@lemmy.world 2 weeks ago
cars are way bigger than they were 10-20 years ago. My 2017 civic is larger than my 1995 Camry.
argarath@lemmy.world 2 weeks ago
Smaller modern cars still have the same safety features, marketing has found the best way to make consumers want new and more expensive cars through the idea of big car=safe, which only becomes true if the other car involved in a crash is also big, but just like the comic shows, it becomes an arms race where it only increases the danger, as a bigger car also has bigger inertia, so a crash at the same speed has drastic different energy transference.
TubularTittyFrog@lemmy.world 2 weeks ago
people like bigger cars for many other reasons.
they are more comfortable. they are safer, they fit more stuff. they have more features than smaller cars.
taco_daemon@lemmy.zip 2 weeks ago
that’s true, but from what i’ve seen these gigantic cars really don’t offer that much more space; if space/capacity was really a concern family buses/vans whatever would be much more popular. where i live most people i see on SUVs are alone on their car, bigger families just get a Citroen Berlingo <3
but yeah people do like big cars