Public transit replaces short routine trips, which is exactly what those small cars are tailored for. One big difference is car infrastructure, mostly parking:

Public transit replaces short routine trips, which is exactly what those small cars are tailored for. One big difference is car infrastructure, mostly parking: in many European settlements, from most capitals to the smallest village, an unnecessarily big car is a serious inconvenience. Whereas in the US, even on Manhattan a smaller car won't improve the driving (and parking) experience a lot as everything is built to accommodate big cars, just not in unlimited quantity. This does not keep most Europeans from theoretically desiring a big car, but it makes not spending on one so much more bearable. The narrow streets use-case makes small cars common enough to make them non-exotic, non-stigmatizing also where streets are wide and parking is one size fits all.