Cars are getting bigger and bigger. Today the current generation Civic is bigger than an Accord used to be. The first and second generation Corolla started with a weight under 2000 lbs --- lighter than a Mazda Miata. The current Corolla weighs over 3000 lbs.
If I take the example of Toyota, the Corolla is now the smallest Toyota you can buy in North America other than the Prius. But in other regions there is a strong drive for even more economical vehicles that's under the Corolla. In my view the North American car market has gone insane. They can cancelled cheap, efficient vehicles like the Toyota Yaris and Honda Fit and then the prices of gas and commodity inflation all shot up. The average new car price in the US is over $50k and used car prices have all shot up.
In other regions there are all sorts of economical and efficient vehicles with engines from the 1.0 to 1.5 liter range.
Here's an example.
Doing the conversion rates, wtf that's a vehicle that can carry 7 people, sips gas like a Corolla, and costs under $20k USD. Repeat after me, a 7 seater for USD $20k.
Like wtf we don't have of these vehicles in North America. They're cheap, efficient in fuel and space, yet they don't lack in features. They are referred to as a category of vehicle called MPVs or Multi Purpose Vehicle. Sometimes they are also referred to as AUVs or Asian Utility Vehicle.
What is an MPV?
This is the first clear genre to arise since the SUV and since the Cross Over era. While I feel that the NA car market is distorted beyond rationality, in the Asian car markets, the MPV genre is proving it can hold it's ground against SUVs and crossovers and win, perhaps even heralding a new post SUV era.