Almost all cars have turbos since that's about the only way to get similar performance out a sub-1L three-cylinder engine that you could get from a cheap, naturally aspirated 1.6L iron block back in the 90's. Emission and safety standards are nice, but the customer pays for it.
> cheap, naturally aspirated 1.6L iron block back in the 90's
VW sold the 2.0L naturally aspirated engine that made about 115 horsies and got a whopping low-30s mpg on the highway until 2015 in the base model US Jetta.
The same engine I had in my 1993 Jetta. Legitimately available since the 70s.
Thank goodness regulations forced that engine off the market. The only upside was it had decent torque... it wasn't even reliable after all those years!
Exactly. Same reason Europe hung onto manuals so long. Only way to make that kind of car drive good in a pre-turbo and direct injection era was to give the user the option to wind it out and shift when they pleased.
