【InEurope,smallcarshavealwaysbeenmorepopularthanlargecars.IntheUnitedStates,largecarsandmidsizecarsaremorepopularthansmallcars.Asaresult,Europeanautomakersusedtomakeawidervarietyofcompact(小型的)cars】
In Europe,small cars have always been more popular than large cars.In the United States,large cars and midsize cars are more popular than small cars.As a result,European automakers used to make a wider variety of compact(小型的)cars while American automakers used to build bigger,heavier cars.However,these days,automakers in both America and Europe produce cars of different sizes.This is because most automakers export their cars all over the world.
The price of gasoline (汽油)is one reason for differences in automobile preferences.Since gasoline is more expensive in Europe,many Europeans want smaller,lighter cars that will travel a long way on a gallon of gas.This increased gas mileage makes the cars more economical to run.
Other reasons also enter into the big or little car decision.Many old cities have narrow,winding streets.In these cities a small car is easier to drive than a large one.
For a long time,few Americans bought small cars.Instead,they chose large cars,because these roomy cars were more comfortable for large families and long trips.Some people also liked the powerful engines that large cars had.Since gasoline was cheap,drivers did not mind that the large cars used a lot of gas.
But in the 1970s,there were gas shortages in the United States.The price of gas went up.Though large cars were still more popular than small cars,sales of small cars that used less gas increased.Some people also bought small cars because these cars caused less air pollution than large cars.
Today,Americans'car preferences are still changing.Though Americans are still buying many small cars,the fastest growing sales are for certain kinds of large cars.These types of cars are called minivans (微型客货车)and sport utility (多用途的)vehicles.They are very popular today.But of course,that could change tomorrow.
59.From this passage we know that cities in Europe often have___.
A.Heavier cars B.Less gasoline
C.No air pollut