Europe
In Europe, cars equivalent to North America's mid-size are generally known as D segment or large family cars. For comparison, the 1998 Ford Taurus weighed around 1,500 kg (3,307 lb), had a 2,757 mm (108.5 in) wheelbase, and was powered by a 3.0 L V6 engine, whereas a 1998 Ford Mondeo weighed around 1,300 kg (2,866 lb), had a 2,704 mm (106.5 in) wheelbase, and was often powered by a 2.0 L I4. European "large family cars" are often offered in sedan and hatchback form, usually with front-wheel drive.
As elsewhere, upsizing has blurred the distinction between types, with models that and are considered compacts in North America, such as the Ford Focus and Opel Astra, approaching the mid-size category by growing larger and fitting more powerful engines with every iteration. However, it is usually thought that the categories grow along the years rather than the cars switching categories. The Opel/Vauxhall Omega/Cadillac Catera, which had dimensions right on the border between the North American categorizations of full-size and mid-size, was marketed as a luxury full-size car in Europe and a mid-size car in North America.
Some compact executive cars fit into this size category.
Read more about this topic: Mid-size Cars
Famous quotes containing the word europe:
“Is not our role to stand for the one thing which means our own salvation here but with which it will also be possible to save the world, and with which Europe will be able to save itself, namely the preservation of the white man and his state?”
—Hendrik Verwoerd (1901–1966)
“What passes for identity in America is a series of myths about one’s heroic ancestors. It’s astounding to me, for example, that so many people really seem to believe that the country was founded by a band of heroes who wanted to be free. That happens not to be true. What happened was that some people left Europe because they couldn’t stay there any longer and had to go someplace else to make it. They were hungry, they were poor, they were convicts.”
—James Baldwin (1924–1987)
“The city is recruited from the country. In the year 1805, it is said, every legitimate monarch in Europe was imbecile. The city would have died out, rotted, and exploded, long ago, but that it was reinforced from the fields. It is only country which came to town day before yesterday, that is city and court today.”
—Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803–1882)