CARS ARE GETTING BIGGER
They’re called “compacts,” but when it comes to size, some small sedans are starting to defy the label. And “full-size” no longer seems like an adequate description for big pickups. ❚ How about “beast-size?” ❚ This much is clear at the 2018 North American International Auto Show going on here this week: Passenger cars, crossovers and pickups are rapidly growing in size amid cheap gas and Americans’ preferences for big, roomy highway cruisers.
“At this show, bigger is better,” said Jessica Caldwell, analyst for car-buying website Edmunds.com. And it’s no surprise. “Given our druthers, we’d pick big cars,” she added.
But unlike past years, jumbo-izing vehicles doesn’t mean compromising fuel economy or maneuverability. Engineers are using lightweight materials and improved engines to boost gas mileage, interior room and cargo space.
“It’s very simple,” Audi U.S. President Scott Keogh said. “It’s what customers want.”
He’s right. U.S. passenger car sales plunged 10.9% to 6.33 million in 2017, according to Autodata. But sales of crossovers, pickups, vans and SUVs rose 4.3% to 10.9 million.
Several automakers revealed redesigned vehicles that are noticeably bigger than their predecessors:
❚ Fiat Chrysler: The 2019 Ram 1500 full-size pickup is not only 4 inches longer than its predecessor in its crew-cab version, but also wider and higher. All of the extra space went into the cab, adding to recline space for the rear seats.
❚ Kia: The 2019 Forte compact sedan is 3.2 inches longer, as well as a smidge taller and wider than the previous model. But it gets 10% better fuel economy at 35 mpg in combined city-highway driving.
❚ Volkswagen: The 2019 VW Jetta compact sedan is 1.3 inches longer. Besides being wider and taller, it is also cheaper: VW cut the starting price by $100 to $18,545.
❚ Toyota: The 2019 Avalon sedan is 2 inches longer and 0.8 inches wider though it’s also 1 inch shorter.
The trend suggests that “passenger cars are attempting to compete with SUVs” after years of fighting a losing battle, said Joe Wiesenfelder, executive editor of Cars.com.
Adding inches with every model change hasn’t bothered automakers. At Toyota, for example, the RAV4 crossover “generation after generation became larger,” Toyota North America CEO Jim Lentz said. That allowed the company to introduce the smaller, new C-HR subcompact crossover in its wake.
But Toyota’s Lentz said there are limits to the trend of making cars bigger. Global automakers must consider the foreign-market implications of enlarging vehicles simply to appeal to Americans, he said.
In an era of cheap gas, buyers are more willing to upsize. When gas prices briefly peaked above $4 a gallon a decade ago, large SUVs suddenly fell out of style.
Now, “there isn’t a lot of pressure on fuel economy,” said Jake Fisher, director of auto testing for Consum
er Reports magazine.