Really wide, or not?
06/29/2018
Certainly, a Cadillac Series 62 from 1959 had an impressive size, its width was 203.7 centimeters, which was almost unimaginable at the time, as a VW Beetle was just 154 cm wide and a Renault 4 CV (rear, Crèmeschnittchen) only 143 cm.
Today, 70 percent of all newly registered cars exceed two meters in width! The ADAC has measured this on 200 modern vehicles. An Audi Q5, for example, measures 2.145 meters, a BMW 5 Series 2.13 m, a Fiat 500X 2.03 m, the Mercedes V-Class 2.255 m and the VW T6 Multivan even 2.3 m.
This is not the data you will find in the vehicle brochure, as it is measured without exterior mirrors, which makes a VW Golf 1.799 m wide, which then becomes 2.03 m if you include the two ears. The police, however, measure with mirrors when it comes to deciding who is allowed to use the overtaking lane if it is width-regulated. With the "maximum two meters" sign, only 30 percent of newly registered cars are allowed to use the overtaking lane.
And what was different in the past? Well, the mirrors were much smaller, which is why the Cadillac pictured above was probably no more than 2.1 m wide including the mirror, which is sometimes narrower than the Q5, 5 Series and V-Class. Even a Beetle was the same width with and without mirrors, as was the Renault 4 CV. That's why it's so easy to get through everywhere today, especially with 40- and 50-year-old oldies.
