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The end of cool small cars

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Re: The end of cool small cars

#41

Post by mysterydip »

leokennis wrote: post #14
RamblingCTO wrote: post #5

Don't worry, they are disappearing in Europe as well, mostly (imho) thanks to ever stricter security standards. I read that it's very hard to design a small car that adheres to modern standards.

I love my 2010 Honda Jazz (called Fit in the US). Small, can carry loads of weirdly shaped stuff, roomy enough for two adults and two kids, unbreakable. And on summer holidays I rent a roof box for about €100/week so I can fit all our luggage.

I'm in the market for my next car (new or used), and I'd prefer something small like the fit/jazz. But I have 3 kids instead of 2, which seems like my only options from the last decade are MPVs or SUVs. I'd love to be wrong, though.

Re: The end of cool small cars

#42

Post by etempleton »

tonyedgecombe wrote: post #9
RamblingCTO wrote: post #5

Don't worry, they are disappearing in Europe as well, mostly (imho) thanks to ever stricter security standards. I read that it's very hard to design a small car that adheres to modern standards.

I think the real reason is it's very hard to make money on a small car.

To make money on a small car you have to sell volume and small cars don’t sell volume in the US compared to bigger vehicles. The top three selling vehicles every year, by a large margin, are Ford F150, Chevy Silverado, and Dodge Ram.

If the big high margin vehicles sell in volume there is little incentive to create small low margin, low volume cars.

Re: The end of cool small cars

#43

Post by adhesive_wombat »

FridayoLeary wrote: post #21
Aromasin wrote: post #7

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Same in the UK. SUVs and large off-road vehicles are taking over. The Range Rover seems to be the car of choice for every wealthy middle-aged mother on her morning school run. Just recently, one of them managed to careen hers into kids outside their school, killing a number of them [1]. Low emission zone are becoming more ubiquitous, which combats the issue to some regards, but I question why anyone but a farmer need…

Instead of punishing the middle class by slapping ulez on them, it would be far more effective and fair for the london mayor to offer free school buses like they do in some parts of America.

School children already have free bus travel in London.

Re: The end of cool small cars

#44

Post by 1231112315123 »

There's actually a new class of cars that doesn't go by the name: L7e. L7e is the EU's name for light electric cars. 90 km/h top speed, 200 km range. Cheap.

While small "cars" might disappear, I think the L7e class will see a lot of improvements.

Re: The end of cool small cars

#45

Post by r_hoods_ghost »

FridayoLeary wrote: post #21
Aromasin wrote: post #7

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Same in the UK. SUVs and large off-road vehicles are taking over. The Range Rover seems to be the car of choice for every wealthy middle-aged mother on her morning school run. Just recently, one of them managed to careen hers into kids outside their school, killing a number of them [1]. Low emission zone are becoming more ubiquitous, which combats the issue to some regards, but I question why anyone but a farmer need…

Instead of punishing the middle class by slapping ulez on them, it would be far more effective and fair for the london mayor to offer free school buses like they do in some parts of America.

Ummmm under sixteens have had free bus and tram travel in London for years. Or do you not want them to interact with members of the public and live in a sanitised bubble consisting solely of you and your nanny?

Re: The end of cool small cars

#46

Post by ranko »

FridayoLeary wrote: post #21
Aromasin wrote: post #7

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Same in the UK. SUVs and large off-road vehicles are taking over. The Range Rover seems to be the car of choice for every wealthy middle-aged mother on her morning school run. Just recently, one of them managed to careen hers into kids outside their school, killing a number of them [1]. Low emission zone are becoming more ubiquitous, which combats the issue to some regards, but I question why anyone but a farmer need…

Instead of punishing the middle class by slapping ulez on them, it would be far more effective and fair for the london mayor to offer free school buses like they do in some parts of America.

Children under 16 already get free travel on buses and trams in London, though they have to pay discounted fares on the tube and they'll need a photocard if they are 11 or over.

Re: The end of cool small cars

#47

Post by [deleted] »

redeeman wrote: post #20
dusted wrote: post #2

I've noticed a large increase in what I call "idiot cars" in Denmark too, these giant monstrosities that seem impractical in every way except for driving through smaller cars and making sure the driver survives whatever incompetence lead them to buy it in the first place. I feel it might be time to legislate this, there are perfectly legitimate reasons to drive a very large car, like, you live 100 miles from the near…

[flagged]

[deleted]

Re: The end of cool small cars

#48

Post by Paianni »

cookiengineer wrote: post #35
tonyedgecombe wrote: post #9

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I think the real reason is it's very hard to make money on a small car.

I think the VW beetle would disagree. The Avtovaz Lada, too. Opel Corsa, Mazda Familia, Fiat Uno, Trabant 601, Toyota Corolla, VW Golf, Renault Clio, Seat Ibiza... All of those the best or second best selling models of their manufacturers.

Most of those are B and C-segment cars, which are holding up ok in Europe. The real collapse has been choice and availability in the A-segment. The Fiat New 500 might be the last new offering for a while.

Re: The end of cool small cars

#49

Post by DoingIsLearning »

leokennis wrote: post #13
dusted wrote: post #2

I've noticed a large increase in what I call "idiot cars" in Denmark too, these giant monstrosities that seem impractical in every way except for driving through smaller cars and making sure the driver survives whatever incompetence lead them to buy it in the first place. I feel it might be time to legislate this, there are perfectly legitimate reasons to drive a very large car, like, you live 100 miles from the near…

Same in The Netherlands. In the last year I’ve seen several micropenis-compensating huge RAM and Ford pick-ups appearing in my neighborhood. They don’t fit a standard parking spot. For small businesses they carry less than something like a Ford transit. Horrible noise. Terrible visibility from the wheel. Terrible fuel economy. I’m severely hoping that our government imposes a 1000% tax on them or something.

They already get taxed disproportionately based on weight alone. But this meme import needs some form of EuroNCAP curbing not just emissions related.

Something like an F-150 in Dutch cities is (in my view) an unacceptable risk for any child on a fietspad or a pedestrian. The visibility is shit, and the chances of survival on impact are close to nothing. A lorry is literally safer than that non-sense.

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