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crooked-v

Even Mini Coopers are slightly larger every revision now.

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One interesting question is how this trend will end. Possibilities:

- Cars get larger and larger forever until cars get abolished for some other reason.

- There's some natural limit on how large a car can get and all cars will eventually converge on that limit.

- Something happens (what?) that changes the trend and suddenly they become smaller again.

In Europe you need an advance license to drive a car that exceeds a certain tonnage (3,500 kg I believe; or at least that is my license). So for certain markets there is a hard limits. I don’t think a Corolla will ever exceed that as that would kind of ruin its whole marketing.

In the US, at least in many states, you can drive a semi truck with a normal drivers license as long as it's not for commercial use.

You need a special license to drive anything with an airbrake which most semi trucks have. Also a special license for more than some weight (18000lbs IIRC). Of your semi avoids both of those I guess you are okay, but that is tricky.

Yeah this was terrifying for me when I had to move with a family. Smaller trucks were too small. Next move I'll pay people to drive those monsters or take two trips.

> There's some natural limit on how large a car can get and all cars will eventually converge on that limit.

When everyone is driving a Hummer H1, with a mounted .50 M60, we’ll finally solve road rage too.

First of all, dont threaten me with a good time.

Second, the M60 fires a 7.62x51 round, not .50 BMG. You're thinking of the M2 or "Ma Duece".

Ah you’re right! I was thinking of the M2. Though I’m sure the M60 could clear up dawdlers just as well.

I’ll mount a ma deuce on mah deuce (and a half) and the H1s can go the long way around.

Another option is new smaller models get introduced and begin their own lifecycle of bloating. For example the Honda HRV is roughly the same size and price point as the CRV was originally.

Exactly. It's the automobile equivalent of the Shepard Tone.

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shepard_tone

> Something happens

I think that something is electrification and the limits on energy that comes with that. Aerodynamics makes for smaller is better. However the weight of the car is up significantly.

Which definition of "bigger" are we concerned about?

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