After looking up the size of my Fiesta last week and realising how long it was, it got me thinking about how much cars have grown in recent years, for example:

Arranged by length, also showing lowest power engine available upon date of release.

1959 BMC Mini:

Length: 3050mm

width: 1400mm

850cc 34 horsepower engine

1976 MK1 Ford Fiesta:

Length: 3565mm

Width: 1567mm

957cc 40 horsepower engine

2001 MINI:

Length: 3630mm

Width: 1690mm

1598cc 90 horsepower engine

1974 MK1 VW Golf:

Length: 3705mm

Width: 1610mm

1100cc 49 horsepower engine

1993 Vauxhall Corsa:

Length: 3725mm

Width: 1610mm

1200cc 65 horsepower engine

1995 MK4 Ford Fiesta:

Length: 3828mm

Width: 1793mm

1242cc 59 horsepower engine

2008 MK7 Ford Fiesta:

Length: 3950mm

Width: 1722mm

1242cc 59 horsepower engine

1999 MK4 VW Golf:

Length: 4148mm

Width: 1735mm

1400cc 74 horsepower engine

2009 VW Golf MK6:

Length: 4199mm

Width: 1779mm

1390cc 79 horsepower engine

In summary:

The MINI grew 580mm

The Fiesta grew 385mm

The Golf grew 494mm

The new Fiesta has 17" alloys as an option which was unheard of back in the day. Fast forward another 20-30 years, what are cars going to be like then? The current Fiesta is larger than the original Golf, are we going to see 'superminis' as long as Jaguars and fitted with 20" alloys?

People are getting larger so car makers have to make bigger cars :D

Speak for yourself, I'm petite!

Thanks for the reply. I was hoping loads of people would write back, it took me hours to look up all that info

Weight has also gone up with each model.

In fairness, it's probably a function of more stringent safety standards and customers' desire for more gizmos and options.

Speak for yourself, I'm petite!

Never mind, us ladies say that size isn't everything

Seriously, I think that the last poster is correct. My first car was a Mk2 Fiesta and when I think about how many more features my Mk7 has I'd be very surprised if Fiestas haven't got bigger over the years

Its all about safety, and what you get for your money. you get so many safety devices, strengtheners etc that need a bit more breathing space, plus, as families are using their cars more and more, they need to get more into them. I couldnt really see the average supermini, being the same size as the 1987 Mini Austin as its just not practical in todays world.

My point was: Are cars going to keep getting bigger and bigger? The MK1 Golf could be considered a family car but the MK7 Fiesta would not be considered one even though it's larger.

In Short, I dont think so (not to the standards of american cars, I cant really see any Focus being the Size of Dodge Ram pickup trucks). Nowadays, we have a lot of technology in the car, and nowadays technology is getting smaller unlike new toys when they first come out massive. Cars overall will maybe gain a few inches, but I cant see 30 years down the line everyone has a 30ft long car :P

I think the average medium sized family car, will remain "pretty much" as it is, maybe gaining some space for boot size, but the overall dimensions probably not.

We have 4x4's, Small - Large family cars, Pickup trucks, they will all vary a little in their new designs, but you have to bare in mind. When cars where first built, materials were hard to come by to sell at a reasonable price so it was a "Make do and mend" jobby. Nowadays, materials are a lot cheaper, easier to make / source, and with a lot more recylcing than we ever did before (thank you non tax payers/insurance payers, who "kindly donate" your car for crushing :P)then we can get more for our money, and so too can the manufacturers.