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As a reminder, the increase of vehicle size has little to do with consumer choice but rather fuel efficiency standards. https://www.resources.org/common-resour
by kyrra 3y ago
As a reminder, the increase of vehicle size has little to do with consumer choice but rather fuel efficiency standards.
https://www.resources.org/common-resources/how-much-do-regulations-for-fuel-economy-and-emissions-incentivize-the-production-of-larger-vehicles/ https://www.resources.org/common-resources/how-much-do-regul...
Increasing fuel efficiency standards has outsized impact on the price of small cars, so fewer of them are made.
- lotsofpulp 3y agoIf consumers wanted smaller cars, they would buy more of them. A car is still much less expensive than a larger vehicle. The data clearly indicates people want bigger vehicles. Anecdotally, I have personally heard many people say they want to sit up higher, or have a bigger vehicle because it is safer for them.
- eru 3y ago> If consumers wanted smaller cars, they would buy more of them. A car is still much less expensive than a larger vehicle. The data clearly indicates people want bigger vehicles. That's true to a point. In the US there are regulatory loopholes for SUVs, so that's impacting what vehicles people choose. I agree that fuel efficiency standards are pretty silly. Especially CAFE standards. They should just tax CO2 emissions (or fuel) directly, and let the market sort it out. Perhaps also have a tax on the weight of the vehicle, because that's a negative externality: heavier cars are worse for other people in a crash. But the US is a country that has effectively legalised running over cyclists, so I don't have much hope for them. See https://www.nytimes.com/2013/11/10/opinion/sunday/is-it-ok-to-kill-cyclists.html https://www.nytimes.com/2013/11/10/opinion/sunday/is-it-ok-t...
- kjkjadksj 3y agoThe cheapest car to buy and insure from any manufacturer is going to be their subcompact hatch or sedan. No, people don’t care about price now that I see a bright yellow Urus doing 70 down a local road once a week.
- Psychoshy_bc1q 3y agopaywall
- tim333 3y agohttps://archive.ph/EsAIg https://archive.ph/EsAIg
- kyrra 3y agoI think you miss my point. When CAFE standards drastically increase the price of small cars, it impacts choice. It's similar to house prices. The more regulations you pile on, the more things cost. While those things are seen as "good", it removes choice and increases cost.
- lotsofpulp 3y agoI understand what you are saying, but I predict removing or fixing those regulations will not change anything (other than increased fuel or weight taxes), because the underlying reason remains the same. People (in general) prefer sitting higher up and being in bigger vehicles.
- brailsafe 3y ago> People (in general) prefer sitting higher up and being in bigger vehicles I don't think that in isolation people broadly prefer bigger vehicles, but in the context of other people having bigger vehicles, a circular problem exists, with people feeling like they're in ever increasing danger behind the wheel if they have a small car but are surrounded by behemoths. If it weren't contextually dependent, I don't think it would be a relatively recent phenomenon, since big vehicles have always been available, and I think you'd see people getting large vehicles despite what's common around them, in terms of both geography and what's on the road. I'd prefer a larger vehicle if I was driving around polar bear country, and I think every other car on the road in North America is a metaphorical polar bear.
- dghlsakjg 3y agoI don’t. I would gladly purchase a small practical brand new kei car if I could. Given the choice between a $35k sedan and a $40k SUV the choice is going to be SUV for most people. Given the choice between a $15k sedan and a $40k SUV, it gets a lot more interesting. The US car market is incredibly restricted. You can buy a 300 mile range electric sedan for $25k in China. Why the fuck can’t we get that in North America?
- kjkjadksj 3y ago
- t0bia_s 3y agoHypocrisy of care about environment and our safety, isn't it?
- namdnay 3y agoif that were the case it would be a purely US phenomenon. Whereas increasing car size is global (relative to the initial size in each region of course)
- modo_mario 3y agoI personally find it sad to say but the US has a strong cultural dominance especially in the western world but also beyond that. From car sizes to architecture styles.
- paganel 3y agoWhich is a tragedy, it's the reason why city cars like Puegeot 107/Citroen C1/Toyota Aygo (basically the same car, different brands) are not produced anymore.