The chart above shows the widths and lengths of the ten best-selling vehicles in the EU and the US. As a whole, the best-selling vehicles in the US are considerably longer than the best-selling vehicles in the EU but the same does not hold true for width.
Findings
- The difference between the longest best-selling vehicle in the US, the Ford F-Series, and the longest best-selling vehicle in the EU, the Skoda Octavia, is 47.94 inches (1,217.72 mm) or nearly four feet longer (or just over one meter).
- The Ford F-Series has 1.26 times the length that the Skoda Octavia does.
- The difference between the widest best-selling vehicle in the EU, the Volkswagen Tiguan, and the widest best-selling vehicle in the US, a draw between the Ford F-Series and the Chevrolet Silverado, is 2.64 inches (67 mm).
- The Volkswagen Tiguan has 1.03 times the width that the Ford F-Series or the Chevrolet Silverado do.
Caveats
- All figures are rounded to the nearest hundredth.
- EU and US data come from different sources.
- EU vehicular dimensions were obtained from https://www.carwow.co.uk/ and US vehicular dimensions were obtained from https://www.cars.com/.
Details
It is a bit surprising to find that European car models are slightly wider than American ones, but that could be due to the way that width is measured in the two regions as well as the different sources the data was obtained from.
It is also interesting to note that the five best-selling vehicles in the US are either pickup trucks or SUVs whereas in Europe they are either MPVs, hatchbacks, or sedans which is a contributing factor to the size disparities.
The mean width of the ten best-selling models in the US is 74.26 inches (1,886 mm) and the mean width of the ten best-selling models in the EU is 77.98 inches (1,981 mm) for a difference of 3.72 inches (95 mm). The median width of the ten best-selling models in the US is 72.70 inches (1,847 mm) and the median width of the ten best-selling models in the EU is 78.39 inches (1,991 mm) for a difference of 5.69 inches (144 mm).
The mean length of the ten best-selling models in the US is 196.60 inches (4,993 mm) and the mean length of the ten best-selling models in the EU is 166.40 inches (4,226 mm) for a difference of 30.20 inches (767 mm). The median length of the ten best-selling models in the US is 187.70 inches (4,768 mm) and the median length of the ten best-selling models in the EU is 163.80 inches (4,160 mm) for a difference of 23.90 inches (608 mm).
Sources
Business Insider. 2018. "Best-Selling Cars and Trucks in US 2017." Accessed August 1, 2018. https://www.businessinsider.com/best-selling-cars-and-trucks-in-us-2017-2018-1#2-chevrolet-silverado-585564-19-19.
Car Sales Statistics. 2018. "2017 (Full Year) Europe: Top-Selling Car Models." Accessed August 1, 2018. https://www.best-selling-cars.com/europe/2017-full-year-europe-top-selling-car-models/.