Keep in mind that modern safety features add both size and weight. Increasing the maximum engine displacement (last done in 1990) and size (last done in 1998) i

Keep in mind that modern safety features add both size and weight. Increasing the maximum engine displacement (last done in 1990) and size (last done in 1998) is necessary in order to keep speed and interior volume consistent with new safety features. In fact, I'd argue they haven't increased enough—safety tech has improved by leaps and bounds since 1998, and anyone who's been in a modern car compared to a 1998 car can testify that there's much less usable interior space now in a car of the same external dimensions as one from 1998, and you can thank all the extra airbags, crumple zones, etc. that have been introduced since then.