American reacts to 4 things Americans get WRONG about Germany!

[@julezhu1893]

When studying in the USA my Economics teacher showed us a graph about tax rates across the world. From this she somehow derived different types of markets. Germany was categorised as a socialist free market. She then explained to me that once I worked a lot of my hard earned money would be taken away by the government and that in the USA this wouldn't happen. I told her that I was fine with that because I was sure that I would go on to University after graduating without my parents having to worry about fees. This was senior year and many of my classmates in this rural Texan High School were struggling to get sufficient funding for college. Needless to say my teacher did not appreciate my answer.

[@Traumglanz]

Good point, but some even better point would have been: You go get a decent pay from all that tax money as a teacher in Germany.

[@julezhu1893]

@@Traumglanz True 😆 My teacher was slightly pissed anyway and I was rebuked for talking back (Open classroom discussions were not part of the curriculum)

[@erbauer456]

@@julezhu1893 😳 There should be a lot more of open discussions so that everyone can try to make their own point of view to the topic. Maybe your teacher should be here for a few years and then when she goes back to USA review her experience that she got from here.

[@julezhu1893]

@@erbauer456 I think it's the entire system...why have classroom discussions when exams are standardised multiple choice tests? You are taught to tick a predefined box, not to discuss or explain a certain view.

[@gillescallens8267]

For some reason a lot of people in the USA can't accept that other county's might be great. So they tell lies or just part of the truth so it benefits their narrative.

[@wrgsf13]

Calling the German administrative system efficient is a hot take 😄

[@mats7492]

Compared to the US it’s amazing

[@elanjuli8992]

@@mats7492 I am afraid to ask, how bad it is in the US.

[@alihorda]

@@mats7492 given how terrible bureocracy is in Germany (experienced first hand), I'm terrified to think how worse American can be

[@rtn_lucky9506]

It’s not bad it’s slower because we got a law for everything. There is a saying: the mills of justice are slow but they are grinding.

[@TridoS]

The truest truth of all the truths. Except maybe when people think Deutsche Bahn is punctual.

[@MrsMedicate]

Yo, stationwagons are always in demand. The ability to have 4 people AND luggage comfortably in your car to drive to a week long festival? Thats the shit

[@Traumglanz]

And they still get you to your Festival in a fast way as they can go with 240km/h on the autobahn with the added bonus and not looking like a tank. Pickups are ... well not well regarded in Germany.

[@meamzcs]

@@Traumglanz Because Pickups are a super shitty choice for the vast majority of people. A station wagen makes 1000x more sense for the vast vast majority...

[@baronvonjo1929]

That's why people buy crossovers these days. People around the world literally just don't like wagons. Europe is pretty much the last hold out.

[@lethfuil]

@@baronvonjo1929 Crossovers with what? Also...huh? What are you trying to say? The world hates wagons? O.o Whut?

[@lethfuil]

@@Traumglanz Yeah, Pickups are too big in day to day life and have fun with nicer luggage, clothing, etc in an open back when it rains.

[@martinaklee-webster1276]

Every Time, you go shopping at Ikea, everybody is glad to have a Kombi. Greetings from Germany

[@lennartstockl5826]

My mom went with her friend to buy chairs for our home. They fit 5 fully assembled ones in the back and had space to squeeze in a bunch of groceries.

[@SchmulKrieger]

As true.

[@forceberlin]

Germans often think efficient, you can just transport a lot of stuff in a Kombi…especially beer crates! 🤘🥳

[@JohnDoe-us5rq]

One of the most common arguments against the SMART back in the days was like, 'the trunk is so small, it'll only fit one or two crates'. 😃

[@dirk2349]

@@JohnDoe-us5rq 6 cases of beer, it really fits 6 cases in the trunk of the Smart. Three on the bottom and three on top ;). And if you want, one in the footwell of the passenger seat and two on the passenger seat. What the police say about it... ;)

[@DSP16569]

@@JohnDoe-us5rq With a little bit squeezing 4 standard crates in the back, one in the footroom of the passenger seat and another one (or a 30Liter/8Gallon barrel on the passenger seat. No problem when driving without passenger to the party.

[@DSP16569]

@@dirk2349 If secured correctly - no problem :-) - Was it a newer Smart? - I have had the original Model 450 and there only 4 crates fits into the back.

[@karl-heinzdauben39]

@@DSP16569 I dont need a Kombi, I have a Trailer hitch. So i must not drive allways with a package. If i have more to load, i take my (small)trailer oder a bigger trailer. i can select.

[@kaneki18-d1t4]

The reason why there's such a big range of the tax percentage is because the tax system in Germany has several kind of tax groups. It depends on your life status like if you're married or are single, if you've got kids or not, if you're a single parent, if you're widowed and stuff like that. It's pretty complicated to explain

[@frankishempire2322]

Hat damit nichts zu tun. Die Steuergruppe ist eher wie ein Abschlag zu sehen. Die Abrechnung kommt mit der Steuererklärung und da wird kein Unterschied gemacht. Einziger Vorteil ist verheiratet zu sein, Da wird alles zusammengezählt und durch 2 geteilt.

[@Springflut_]

@@frankishempire2322 Nein?! Es gibt in extrem viele Abstufungen und die Steuern können abhängig von mehreren Faktoren deutlich schwanken/ voneinander abweichen!

[@frankishempire2322]

@@Springflut_ Doch, er hat vom Steuersatz gesprochen, du redest von der steuerlichen Last, die sich errechnet aus versteuerndes Einkommen und Steuersatz.

[@Springflut_]

@@frankishempire2322 ganz richtig, und Grade dieser Steuersatz fließt da mit ein. Ich habe versucht es möglichst kompakt zusammenzufassen und einf. nochmal darzustellen das es starke Abweichungen gibt/geben kann wenn es ums Thema Steuern geht. Denn das ist in Deutschland und vielen anderen ländern so, auch wenn es hier wohl mit am stärksten ausgeprägt ist.

[@madremoja]

No, the range of the tax percentage comes from the progressive tax system, depending on your income. So with 50.000€pa you have a higher tax rate, than with 40.000€pa. After the tax free income range you start with 14%. The higher your income the higher percentage. Until you reach the 42% (don't know the current number, but should be somewhere around 58.000€. If you earn more, it will stay at 42%. And only if you are really wealthy(high income sth above 270.000pa) it increases another time to 45%. For married couples the tax rates do not change. The income is just calculated differently by taxing the medium of both incomes and taking the amount times 2. So you only have an advantage if both incomes differ and at least one would be taxed below 42%.

[@c4l977]

All of my coworkers are German. One day we were talking about how often we get paid. I get paid twice to three times a month. They get paid monthly. One guy looked me dead in my eye and asked if we had trouble managing our money, since we get paid so frequently. 😥

[@Sofia-Lala]

😂😂😂

[@dnocturn84]

This is a thing??? Why do you get multiple payments per month? Is there a special reason for that? I'm German and also don't understand this concept.

[@sinusnovi3826]

@@dnocturn84 the concept is hire and fire. In US if you fire an employee in the first week of a month he will only get payed for this week. This weekly labourer concept is not common in Germany since some decades.

[@dnocturn84]

@@sinusnovi3826 I see. Thank you for the explanation. But "some decades" feels like playing things down quite a bit. I'm not that young anymore and never heard about the existence of labor practices like this, ever. If similar things existed in Germany (which they propably did in our past), then this must be more than 40...50 years ago. Being somewhat/relatively well educated in German labor laws, propably more than 60 years ago. Eventually immediately after WW2, but changed quickly afterwards.

[@sinusnovi3826]

@@dnocturn84 as I remember day labourer was more common than week labourer.

[@JonathanMandrake]

Important note: Cars like Pickup Trucks are pretty much never used, and SUVs are not as common. The streets and parking spots are just not as acommodating, making driving in smaller cities and parking a hassle.

[@markusschmitz6056]

SUVs are super common in Germany, where do you live?

[@JonathanMandrake]

@@markusschmitz6056 Not as common as the US is what I meant

[@gray_commander]

@@JonathanMandrake thats right, but Germany is 3rd Place Worldwide - in Percentage - Car registration when it comes to SUV... So they are not as common, but still super common as Markus wrote...

[@JonathanMandrake]

@@gray_commander Okay, I didn't know that

[@bananenklops9738]

@@JonathanMandrake Yeah and I would say its getting more and more common. Well, I really don't like SUVs. For me it's putting the same space in a bigger car. So you don't fit anywhere anymore, need much more fuel, but have the same space as you have in the base version that is not a SUV (for example the 5er BMW is the base version of the BMW X5)

[@briddl1305]

The combi is the sports care you can justify to your wife. "look big trunk and room for the kids" That it has 200 hp and a need to know bonus.

[@TVTransmo]

the RS6 got 590hp ;)

[@EstViking]

Yep. Most of the german combis have over 200hp...

[@HappyBeezerStudios]

Now I'm reminded of that Top Gear clip "SEVEN LITRE V8 MOTOR" with 200hp. "how do they get so few horsepowers from a vee eight moudurr"

[@Br-bs1xe]

@@HappyBeezerStudios Me too an we Germans think a 4.0L-V8-Biturbo-TFS with 600hp is just about enough for Kombi

[@A7x_Forever]

It's a niche, but they do have their uses! I'm a German car guy and I absolutely hate SUVs. If I wanna see something tall and fat, I'd look in the mirror, not at my car. But sedans on the other hand only have a trunk, which is less practical than a tailgate (which you get in a hatchback/SUV/"Kombi"). So in short: If sedans aren't practical enough for you and you don't want some ugly ass soccer mom SUV that's even uglier than me, a "Kombi" is the only way to go. It's like a middleground between a practical SUV and an exciting design akin to a sporty sedan. Plus, they're kickass sleeper cars.

[@JonaxII]

Kombi being "a Corolla with a bit more storage space" is pretty much it. It's what the combination in the name stands for, it combines a small to middle sized passenger car with an actually useful storage trunk, usually with easily removable seats for more storage.

[@alexgrimm354]

Not removeable but foldable

[@HappyBeezerStudios]

taking a sedan and have a big trunk that extends the roof to the end of the car.

[@jtinz74]

A lot of Kombis nowadays are just sports cars in disguised as family friendly cars. You buy them if you want a fun to drive car and your wife has to agree with the investment.

[@JohnHazelwood58]

German "Kombis" are sports cars ... kind of! The BMW M3 for example: From 0-100km/h in less than 4 seconds and max speed, limited for safety reasons, at 280km/h. Joy to drive, though! :)

[@Ilias_Goddess]

ah that Wasn das fürn kombi meme

[@hypatian9093]

Regarding languages: If you see how many native English speakers confuse "their / there / they're" in written language, they shouldn't make fun about other languages ;)

[@berzerk1450]

When I was younger I had an Opel Calibra, which had a very small trunk. When it was scrapped, I bought a used BMW station wagon and thought to myself "now I'm old", but after a while I realized how incredibly practical it was for shopping.

[@swanpride]

You don't need a station wagon for that. I drive an Opel Corsa, a model which is known for being as small as possible while still offering a lot of trunk space. That is actually my main criteria for a car, it has to be as small as possible because I mostly drive city traffic, but I need to be able to transport a christmas tree in it if I have to.

[@Eve221986]

What even some germans don't understand: the actual Lohnsteuer (tax) isn't that high. But you have the Sozialabgaben or also called Lohnnebenkosten (health care, pension, unemployment insurance etc. ) which are a lot higher but doesn't count as taxes.

[@helloweener2007]

Yes but when Amercians say tax, they mean tax. They won't add up how much they have to pay for the health insurance, unemployment insurance and so on. When you add the Lohnnebenkosten than you should also add the share of the employer and what he pays. In the end it makes no difference if he pays it or would pay it to you and you pay it all. So the wages would also be about 20% higher.

[@Eve221986]

But some germans also count the Sozialabgaben as tax.

[@helloweener2007]

@@Eve221986 Yes, they the talk about what they have left for the month. In the US it will be more but you also have to pay much more from it. And the Sozialabgaben is not a tax. I know it makes now diffrence how it is called it is "lost money" for the employer. These fees have a direct use. taxes have not. When you pay tax the money could up end in road service, the military, schools and so on. The money for the health insurance will go there.

[@lamonaoml335]

It‘s actually the exact other way around. germans usually just look at brutto and netto on their payroll. Brutto is without any deductions, netto on the other hand is the amount of money yout get after ALL (tax+healthinsurance,etc.) the deductions. We dont have to pay these our selves, our employer has to do the math an pays them directly to the government. So we dont distinguish between taxes all we see is the final amount. While americans do never add all their insurances etc. to their callculations talking about salaries. When adding them and maybe your co pay costs for healthcare as well the republican math wont add up.

[@rushinroulette4636]

Yea, but those are the things so many US people also forget to calculate on their own side when they are comparing US/European taxes. If they were to add what they pay for their various insurances plus the co-pays that they have to shell out for whenever they actually need to use health insurance services, then the calculations nearly always look completely different and European expenditures are lower. Its all a question of how much you need to use the insurance or not in the US, where as in Germany you have steady costs with steady income and varying situations.

[@TommyFlo05]

I have never seen a car with wood on the side in real life but I would definitely make fun of someone driving such a car.

[@jackybraun2705]

The Morris Traveller in the UK in the 60s was quite common. Rather cute.

[@odostolzfu7775]

Looks kinda look though!

[@dan_kay]

Then you haven't spent any time in the US yet :)

[@reinhardbien]

today this would be a classic car and probalby rare and interessting....

[@kennethmasters9329]

When I was growing up my parents had a baby poop green station wagon with fake wood sides and fold down seats in the back my sister and I used to love traveling in.

[@anjal7041]

I remember a discussion with an American about "Gossi". The American was surprised that I , as a German don't know who that is. After a while i realized, that he means "Goethe". The pronounciation in German is completely different compared to the English pronounciation. It was impossible for me to convince the American that the pronounciation is different and the German one is the correct one :)

[@emmasly123]

Because us Germans do not know our own language. 🤣

[@xxJOKeR75xx]

Why would a German poet and scientist pronounce his German name in a German way? Ridiculous!

[@lethfuil]

@@emmasly123 We also wrong with thinking Austria isn't full of kangaroos and called Österreich.

[@jasperzanovich2504]

Same goes for Van Gogh. While in german you pronounce it like "Fun Goch" in english they pronounce it like "Van Go".

[@em0_tion]

München, Rammstein, Knipex... Hearing those pronounced wrong is like nails on a chalkboard for me! 😡🤣

[@Eve221986]

Americans love their SUVs but the streets and parking spaces in germany are a lot smaller than in the US. So if you have a family and need more space in the trunk for all the stuff you need to carry around, you buy a Kombi. It is just common sense. And they absolutely don't look like american station wagons 🤣🤣

[@beepinger]

German language, different pronunciation. "umfahren" is a funny word. If you pronounce it "umfAAhren" with a long A, it means "drive around (someone)" with your car for example. But if you pronounce it "uMfahren" with a short A and a hard M, it means "run over (someone)" with your car... so, same word, the way you pronounce it, it could mean the exact opposite.

[@njordholm]

Da wird gar nichts anders ausgesprochen! Umfahren ist umfahren in allen Bedeutungen. Guckt man im Duden, gibt es 2 Bedeutungen: a) um etwas herumfahren / fahrend ausweichen Beispiel: Ich umfahre den Stau, indem ich eine andere Route nehme. b) fahrend umrunden Beispiel: Der Kapitän hat die Insel umfahren. Dann gibt es noch den 'umgangsprachlichen' Ausdruck von umfahren. 'Der Autofahrer hat den Fußgänger umgefahren' bedeutet soviel wie, er hat ihn mit seinem Auto überfahren oder überrollt, nicht nur angefahren. Dabei hat sein Beifahrer ihn noch gewarnt, indem er sagte: "Achtung, du fährst den Fussgänger gleich um, oder möchtest Du ihn umfahren?" -> In der Frage zum Schluß legen einige hier - vielleicht - die Betonung von umfahren auf das UM, um damit zu verdeutlichen, das überfahren gemeint ist, NICHT ausweichend drum herum fahren, aber sonst wüsste ich nicht, dass es anders ausgesprochen wird. Man beachte im Allgemeinen die unterschiedliche Verwendung in den Vergangengeitsformen! Ursprüngliches Beispiel: Der Kapitän umfuhr (umrundete) die Insel... Ergo: Der Autofahrer umfuhr den Fußgänger, er fuhr ihn also nicht um, sondern fuhr um ihn herum. Man kann auch sagen, der Autofahrer hat den Fußgänger umfahren. Im Gegensatz zu: Der Autofahrer hat den Fußgänger umgefahren, er hat ihn mit seinem Auto überfahren/überrollt, bzw. er fuhr über ihn hinweg. Edit: Weiteres Beispiel wie sich das mit dem UM verhält, wann es vorangestellt oder als zweites Wort dahinter geschrieben wird in der Gegenwartsform in einer Aufforderung. Der Fahrlehrer weist den Fahrschüler an: "Umfahre den Fußgänger, fahr ihn nicht um!" Deutsche Sprache = schwere Sprache, da so viele Möglichkeiten sich auszudrücken 😅

[@Berkrathes]

@@njordholm Echt? Dafür schreibst du so´n Roman :-) In den YT Kommis LOL

[@njordholm]

@@Berkrathes Na ja, hoffe er hatte Mehrwert, was ich bei Deinem anzweifel.

[@RagingGoblin]

@@njordholm Es wird nicht gleich ausgebrochen. Der Akzent (Betonung) liegt liegt klar anders.

[@Loki.Leviah1337]

@@njordholm Mit "anders ausgesprochen" war doch nur die Betonung gemeint.. was du selbst in deinem Kommentar beschrieben hast, dass man es meist auf das UM legt.. wenn man von Überfahren spricht.. oder was hast du dir unter "anders ausgesprochen/different pronunciation" vorgestellt? 👀

[@lucamitsambuca]

Try learning German with Duolingo in one of your next videos, would be interesting to see! :)

[@jancleve9635]

He will go made with the genderspecific articels. Der/Die/Das = the

[@HappyBeezerStudios]

I feel like duolingo is great if you already got the basics down, like as additional learning tool. But as a pure starter to learning a language I don't think it's a good solution.

[@rushinroulette4636]

I think the one of the first "Kombi" (station wagons) that really got peoples blood boiling was the Audi RS2 from the early 90s. Looked sort of stock from the outside if you did not know what to look for, but underneath it was the station wagon version of a hot hatchback sleeper. Kitted out from the factory with a Turbo Porsche motor churning out 315 horse power and Porsche brakes to be able to handle the drivetrain, it sounded and drove like a bat out of hell on steroids after downing a double shot of Red Bull.

[@AGWittmann]

There was once a time in Germany, when the german Citizen were bragging, who paid more taxes, was the time between 1880 to 1919. My Grandma remember such a scene, where her Grandpa was bragging to another man, that he was paying this amount of money and was proud.

[@jan-lukas]

It's an indirect way to tell others how rich you are, and that you follow the rules. So I can totally understand the reason for it!

[@lotharschepers2240]

Older native German here about the car type "wagon" in germany we face the unique situation that parts of oure interstsate freeways (the Autobahn) did not have a speedlimit. In my position I'm a father and still a son. So every month I pick one Sunday to visit my father. At these sundays I got up at 6 in the morning take a shower and a walk with our dog at 9 am. I could eat breakfast with my father at his kitchen table because we ( my Family and I) could do the 180mile ride in one and a half hour. Because a wagon is still more fuel efficint than a SUV is especially at higher speed.

[@maxlevel9509]

I wish more americans had such an unbiased view of germany without blindly trusting the media

[@ajeettv]

It's not a media problem. It's an educational one.

[@simmylein81]

@@ajeettv It's both...

[@hanskubel4704]

I always get a bad feeling when people in the US tal about different "races", because : There is only ONE human race! Its unbelievable for me that this is still a debate, esp. for me as a german who has been thinking and discussing that topic for as long as i can think.

[@donuts564]

​​@Dave The word "race" is very controversial in Germany because it's translated as "Rasse" which also means "breed". Talking about humans like they're dogs is obviously not ok, not to mention that during the Nazi regime people who were Jews were labeled as a race, and even those who only had jewish ancestors or looked similiar to how jews were portrayed in Nazi propaganda (hooked noses, etc) were included in said "race". Dividing people into races is seen as a pseudo science at most.

[@felixmustermann790]

yes theres only 1 human race, but different species exist

[@SamVimes27]

@@felixmustermann790 there were different human species. Now there's only one left. Homo Sapiens is the species. We have different colour variants and that's it. The whole fixation on skin colour is nonsensical. In an alternate universe, it could be the colour of your eyes or your hair. Those have the same genetic significance.

[@felixmustermann790]

@@SamVimes27 then explain to me, why do we segregate tigers bears and basically any other animal that way but not us , differentiating them solely based on their fur color, different look or geographical habitat ? is it because we are better ? thats a very shaky ground to stand on... is it ou hubris ? our own arrogance ? well that doesnt defeat my point, so what will your argument be ?

[@SamVimes27]

@@felixmustermann790 you can differentiate those different animal races easily by their skeleton. They can be easily differentiated by means other than the colour of their skin or fur.

[@Twinnomadicflowa]

Ryan I really take my hat off to you for you trying to learn more and improve your knowledge. Well done!

[@Yotanido]

As a German native speaker, I can confirm that German is indeed a very intuitive language. I don't need to think about it at all! Jokes aside, English and German are pretty close, both being Germanic languages. English had a lot of foreign influences between when it was purely Germanic and now, but half the vocabulary is still Germanic. You will find many cognates between English and German. Some are pretty obvious, like house and Haus. Some may be a bit outdated like swine and Schwein, or hound and Hund For some, you might need to know how pronunciation changed. Like light and Licht, or knight and Knecht. (Replace English gh with German ch. Works for quite a few words, but not the majority)

[@Cliohna]

knight and Knecht might have the same roots (I don't actually know), but the meaning differs greatly nowadays. Knight means Ritter. And a Knecht is a servant.

[@Yotanido]

@@Cliohna Yes. I only said this is a good way to find cognates, which it is. I never claimed those cognates necessarily have the same meaning. As you can see with knight and Knecht, the meaning might well have diverged.

[@cucumberblyat]

@@Cliohna there were groups called Waffenknechte, they combine both worlds :D

[@Cliohna]

@@cucumberblyat Thanks for letting me know

[@trecma8748]

Hey Ryan, I'm a viewer from Germany and I really need to say I love your Videos!! awesome Content!. There is also something I need to make clear. So I as a northern German think Bavaria and southern Germany isnt really the Germany I know and many many more think so. Southern Germany and especially Bavaria have huge differences compared to Northern Germany. There is a different culture, different food and nearly a different language, because of the strong acent. We actually do have trouble understanding each other lol. While southern german culture covers Lederhosen, Sauerkraut, Sausage and Pretzels or the greeting "servus", we have "moin" as a greeting and have typical food such as "Steckrübeneintopf", "Schnüüsch", "Birnen Bohnen und Speck" or "Franzbrötchen" the last one is a very delicious dessert comparebale to cinnamon rolls :). I just wanted to point these few things out in the name of most northern Germans. Would be nice if you'd do a video about it :) Greets from Germany :)

[@KitsuneHB]

You've forgotten Fischbrötchen and Grünkohl! :D "Die im Süden essen Stäbchen und wir essen Lachs"

[@sinusnovi3826]

@@KitsuneHB Fehlt da nicht noch Pinkel?

[@Chili_667]

You forgot to mention our excellent beer! Greetings from Bavaria

[@skirren2549]

@@Chili_667 and guess, who showed you to brew good beer.... yes, the northern Germans :-) Nevertheless, I love the bavarian beer, greetings from Northern Germany 🙂 (I definetly need some Andechs beer...🙂)

[@lethfuil]

@@skirren2549 Oh? So you knew it once and then forgot how to do it? Sad. ;)

[@philippschell5246]

Greetings from Berlin! U should come here! I will pick you up with my combi😂

[@klausm.9284]

Yep! And then bring him to the Christmas Market on Breitscheidplatz and show him where one of your beloved and well integrated migrants killed 12 innocent people with a stolen 40t truck after he killed the driver. And also show him the Görlitzer Park where you cant make 5 steps without beeing molested by migrants selling drugs. And finally show him Neukölln and dong forget to mention that 45% of welfare payments go to migrants who are just to lazy to work. Berlin is the shithole of Germany and the very last place I would recommend to visit.

[@ErSieEsMax]

As a german myself i can approve this doesnt get more german😂

[@fliplefrog8843]

I recommend watching City walking vids. Where ppl walk around in german cities, to show off the cities. The Cars u see there, are typically used/driven cars in germany :)

[@ellewelle401]

I think this is the third Hayley video I've seen you react to, and honestly, these are my most positive experiences. (I subscribe to her as well, been for several years, and I find her mix of humor, ability not to take herself too seriously and still delivering a whole load of information instead of being just empty emoting very satisfying)

[@Traumglanz]

Combis are useful, usually pretty fast and practical and perfect first car choice. Now adding a sports car for fun is fine, you need two cars anyway, right? Well or not, technical you don't need even one car in most cities anyway. But in rural areas that used to be pretty common, a a combi/station wagon and either for bigger families a van on top or for normal families a Porsche or BMW or something like that for Mama to go shopping alone when the kids are in school or for daddy to drive to the pub to meet with his friends in the evening. ;-)

[@JimbalayaJones]

Greetings from 🇩🇪! The black Forest Family has created two wonderful videos with a lot of work for comparing taxes.✌️

[@aphextwin5712]

There have been essentially five generations of the Audi RS4 (the highest performing version of the Audi A4), first appearing in the second half of the 1990s. Except for the third generation which was available as a sedan, station wagon, and convertible, all other generations were/are only available as a station wagon. I’d say it is likely that the RS4 helped establish the category of the performance wagon and thus made wagons even more popular beyond their practical aspect.

[@JustLiesNOR]

There were things like the M5 touring and Mercedes E63 wagons as well.

[@LexusLFA554]

"You don't eat Beer Cheese with Pretzels". He remembers xD In the german number system the . and , are swapped: 1.000.000,00 = 1 Million I think the coolest 4 wagons are: Cadillac CTS-V Sportwagon. It has a V8 and a super charger. And it is god dang fast. Audi RS2. The OG 5-cylinder turbo wagon. Great sound, and Porsche tuning. Volvo 850 BTCC Wagon. They could have sent any car they had, and they sent a wagon. Quite a fine one too. Any of the Skoda Octavia RS Wagons. They have 2.0 Liter 4-Cylinders (both petrol and diesel), make quite a lot of power, but are still very practical, and they look awesome imo. You can also buy the Octavia with the "Scout" trim for AWD and a lifted suspension. The difference between an Estate / Station Wagon and Hatchback is that the Station Wagon has a third pillar before the hatch goes down. You will usually not find that on a Hatchback. 18:10 This is either a Volvo V60 or V90. They look almost alike from the outside, but the V90 has a better interior.

[@kurthoegerle8559]

Not few of my co-workers are (or should I say have been refugees). Never had prbolems, all of them are nice and polite, and some even I'm calling friends.

[@becker1264]

According to to police statistics refugees/asylum seekers were the suspects in 7,4% of all crimes in 2020. But only around 1.7% of the population are refugees/asylum seekers. So while im sure your friends are great you should also not make the mistake of projection this to the overall situation and turn a blind eye to it

[@jancleve9635]

20:49 A friend of mine has an mg lotus sports car. You sit pretty low in it, combine that with 230 km/h on the autobahn and your field of view becomes very narrow. It was fun but even at crusing speed (130-150km/h) the low pov is shit. For every day driving I prefer a Kombi.

[@kennichdendenn]

Station wagons are just so efficient - like not far off from the sedan version with the same motor etc.. But much more space for your stuff. Its surprising what you can fit in there.

[@jancleve9635]

8:36 I know a guy who intoduces himself as "der schwarze Swab" /the balck swabian. Swabia is in south germany next to bavaria and the dude has a very thick swabian accent. I nearly died on laughter the first time I meet him.

[@melina9366]

Suggestion for a future video: search for something about the German language, especially on how we construct words and how we have a word for (almost) anything I heard in an older video of you that you where wondering about why our words are always so long. Well, we are able to construct our own by just putting words together. And quite a lot of our day to day vocabulary is built like that - resulting in long words. I think it‘s truly beautiful and quite amazing, you should definitely check that out. And as a German it‘s always kinda strange for me not to have words for rather specific things in other languages, it feels like I‘m just not fluent enough. Most times it turns out that there really is no word for what I want to say and that I actually need to describe it. I don‘t want to give examples so I don‘t spoil you, because I really love to see your genuine reaction. HUGE recommendation here

[@petrmilota6398]

My first car - Ford Mondeo Estate (Turnier) MK4 and I could almost fit a smaller car in the trunk.. love it

[@noobster4779]

"Why do young people want a combi?" Well you see there is a classic problem to be solved when you life on the countryside here. The next proper club is in usually in a city above 50.000 people, so you and you village friends need to drive there. As most want to drink in a club for obvious reasons you want to limit the number of drivers to the bare minimum. So you get a combi because you can cramp your friends into it (if necessary some get put into the trunk, fewer cars means fewer drivers means more people can get drunk :D). If you are that one guy in your friendgroup that got a two seat sports car, while everybody will praise you for it beeing cool, when it comes to moving your gropu of friends from a) to b) you are the problem. You cant offer to drive people and always have to rely on others driving....this really sucks for everyone. Fewer potential drivers means less driver rotation each weekend means somebody is sooner or later getting pissed he has to drive all the time (and stay sober). So you see, if everyone has a combi, you dont have this issue and your friedngroup can enjoy going to the club the proper german country bumpkin way :D PS: By the way, how the heck do americans solve this issue? Does everyone drive to the club on his own and then drive home compleatly wasted in the night (which must be illegal and a major traffic danger), do you get rooms to sleep out until your sober again or do you get brought by the parent taxi to the club? I cant imagine you just throw your mates on the back of your pickup in the open whiloe they are potentially drunk as fuck :D

[@emmasly123]

I have a Ford Mondeo Turnier - it is a Kombi. I love the space. All my shopping goes in there easily. So does my big dog.🙂

[@michaausleipzig]

It's always the same question. What do you want your government to do/care for/spend it's money on. Yes, our tax rates might be a littler higher. But nobody graduating from a german university does so with a 6-digit debt. And if given the choice between those two I know what I'd prefer. 😊 And yep, Germany is "Kombiland". Without Emma Stone or Jesse Eisenberg though 😅 Imo kombis are just the perfect combination (hence their name) of large storage space and a small enough car to safely travel european city centers. They are great for families and really pretty much anything else you'd ever need a car for. And they just look cool. Sedans look clumsy, SUVs are just a giant waste of space, Kombis are the perfect middle ground. 😊 I drive a Volvo V60. Sure you know Volvo but do they even sell their V-Models in the US? Pitty you guys still think of wagons to look the way they used to when you stopped making them...

[@TheMeleas]

I loved my VW Passat Variant from 1984 😍😂. Not only more space for the legs but behind the back seat to transport simly everything and when putting the backseats down one can sleep in it 😆😅😂

[@pedadiyeah2385]

To understand why Kombis are so nice you have to watch: Was denn das fürn Kombi 😂

[@HappyBeezerStudios]

Yes, we do like our cars to be practical. station wagons and hatchbacks are pretty much the most common cars, depending on how much space you need. Especially smaller cars are super useful in cities. a VW Golf or Audi A3 or Renault Megane or Seat Leon have a much easier time to find a parking spot. For the bigger ones, the Kombi gives more space than a limousine without any additional length. Even subcompacts like the VW Polo, Renault Clio, Ford Fiesta or Toyota Yaris are a common sight.

[@dan_kay]

Regarding the refugees: We simply don't know who is a refugee, who is an immigrant (there's a legal difference) or who is a tourist. And even if we knew - what would change? Taxes: For an annual income of 10,400 euros, the average tax rate is 0.5%, 40,000 euros: 20.4%, 60,000 euros: 26.4% 100,000 euros: 32.7% Including everything you get for your money in Germany (which is by the way NOT provided by the government, but paid for by us, the people), I'd say that we're better off in Germany, even with slightly higher taxes. Station wagons: Kombis are no station wagons, but hatch backs, as you have noticed correctly. How am I supposed to travel with my three dogs, luggage and my fishing stuff in anything else than a hatch back? An American would maybe say, "get a pickup truck, dude", which doesn't even make sense to a European who pays 2 euros per liter (not gallon!) of gas. So, hatch back it is :)

[@CorgiBum]

"Kombis are no station wagons, but hatch backs"... I'd say that's extremely debatable. Kombilimousinen are hatchbacks in that the rear door is hinged at roof level. This category includes what is commonly referred to as Kombi (namely Kombinationskraftwagen) but also cars such as the Smart car... and noone in their right mind would call a Smart a Kombi.

[@McGhinch]

@@CorgiBum That is correct, there are -- just for example -- BMWs that are hatchbacks and there are station wagons like in the BMW 5 series or VW Golf and VW Golf Variant. Most hatchbacks are just too small to make them a station wagon. For the Golf the wheel base has been extended to to accommodate the longer body and to make it a station wagon .

[@dan_kay]

@@CorgiBum Alright, alright then. I stand corrected :)

[@ChristineBecker]

Hey Ryan, I love your videos. :) It's interesting to see Germany through the eyes of an American guy. And besides: I love our station wagon. It drives at 240 km/h and is therefore typically German: a fast and at the same time very practical car.😊

[@ThomasETurm]

Well many words are simillar to english in german. this is because both languages have the same germanic roots. but both languages took different ways of influences. So sometimes it is a little far away but still close like in Berg for Mountain which you still can find in English in iceberg (germ. Eisberg) even the same pronounciation.

[@kosta_k_86]

19:23 With a "combi" you can drift better...it behaves calmer and is easier to control.....specially in winter time.....in snowy conditions....

[@CarstenGoldschmidt]

21:00 I you have a Baby and a stroller ..., and grocery, try a german station wagen, after that test - you will never drive something else

[@CrazyIcecapLG]

Station wagons are pretty convenient here in germany. They offer lots of space and are still pretty agile. I drive a Mazda 6 Sportkombi, with 6-speed manual transmission, and i love it!

[@nomaam9077]

2:19 - For you as an English speaker, German should actually be easy to learn, because (Platt) German is the basic language of (Old) English. A lot of the words you use every day are from German. If you don't know what a German word means, just think about whether there isn't a similar word in English, in most cases there is. Anglo-Saxon → Old English → Modern English

[@jannisboll8390]

Greetings from Northern Germany. I porsenatly find it wery cool, that you look stuff to inform yourself about germany. Keep it up

[@jaydi1549]

I would highly recommend you check out the differences of the health Care systems germany vs USA I swear this stuff will blow your mind

[@SlowpokeRodriguez80]

LoL... you click on first picture of the Astra station wagon and its sporting KL license plates... that's where I'm from... 😂😂😂

[@MegaJJ1968]

Haley is indeed the Queen Office German . And her comments about stagion wagons in Germany are absolutely true.

[@RatorLP]

i love my Kombi. During normal driving it's very efficient with about 4 liters / 100km (58mpg), but when i go pedal-to-the-metal on the autobahn it can reach a top speed of 220km/h (~137mph). The price of the car was "only" 10.000€, it can comfortably fit 4 people + luggage, or 2 people + lots of cargo. It also has a trailer hitch :) What's there not to like about it? I mean sure, i'd love a slightly bigger engine with a bit more torque, but i wouldn't NEED it.

[@bananenmusli2769]

When I first started playing GTA 5, i noticed that there were no station wagons. I thought it was only a GTA specific thing, now I know why that is.

[@MaticTheProto]

yeah :(

[@00Galvatron00]

yes , german station wagon are nice ... I´m from 1974 and my favorite car is my first car , the BMW 320i ... Typ E30 , black with spoiler and side skirts ... top speed was 230 km/h (little bit tuning) ... greetings from Germany (NRW) ... stay healty and have fun

[@llleiea]

Just imagine the convenience when transporting a stroller with a Kombi

[@weinhainde2550]

und HoDaKos (Hochdachkombis, z. B. Citroen Berlingo) sind noch besser, besser als SUVs allemal

[@drstefankrank]

Yes, you can fit 2 of them in there, side by side.

[@Traumglanz]

A stroller and a dog on the autobahn with 240km/h. I mean, you could do that with a pickup truck, but in the end you want to have an enclosure and than you are already very close to a combi anyway.

[@himmel-erdeundzuruck5682]

A Kombi has a lot of space for luggage. You might have triplet babies and go three weeks on vacation and have everything with you without any problems. It's also big enough to move from one place to another for one person, and you don't need a truck. You can also do your shopping for a whole family for two weeks including beverage. Or you can spend a weekend at the seaside 600 km away and arrive at an acceptable time. Or you just use it to boast with your friends...

[@emiliajojo5703]

Crime rate is on a all time low,intentional death rate is almost 4 times higher in the US. The whole discussion is that 9/10.

[@arnodobler1096]

yes Emilia, from Statista: Homicides in Chicago (2.746 million inhabitants) in 2020: 800 (FBI) in Germany (83 million inhabitants) 2020: 245 (BKA)

[@Tragantar1310]

@@arnodobler1096 another victory for the 4th amendment. MURRICA

[@lethfuil]

The US has roughly 4 times as much people and about 30 times as much homicide. Wowie...

[@elrabiator5104]

Haley is great. She is always straight & right. Love her and her BF!! Great Show!!

[@timofuchs2777]

Want to see how fast Station Wagons in Germany can be? kzbin.info/www/bejne/raHWkKqGqJ2NmKc ( Audi RS 6)or a Porsche messing with another Audi kzbin.info/www/bejne/g5rYfamCpMd0qZY

[@iron_side5674]

Kombi´s are quite popular in Europe that is true, but they are also so damn convenient to have, either that or a minvan is what i´d want for my first car, because you can do anything with it. Everyone in germany who knows someone who has a Kombi, has probably driven out into the Woods before to party. And you can fit an ENTIRE Party in a decent Kombi. Generator and Soundsystem, tent, benches, food and beer, and off you go. I know i did that many a times, they are also popular because they have a few extra Horsepower usually. Sometimes jokingly refered to as Pampers Bombers, but people often enough put body kits on them or madify/tune them in some capacity, and they can look MEAN and sound the part too.

[@Michi-uw6ji]

please react to more of her videos, you 2 are a dream combination!

[@denisemangan1413]

I love station wagons. I had a Ford 1970’s station wagon in 1993. Plus we have an Audi sedan & it’s such a sexy drive.

[@ald00I]

i feel like the "theyre not really germans" plays a bit into the "oh im actually german" thing americans do. in europe if youre born and raised in a country thats where youre from and what you are. in america apparently you can never have left the country but have a great-grandpa that lived in germany once (exaggeration) and "be german"

[@BlackDragon95912]

kombi in nature has a bigger trunk than hatchback , so kombi is practical for family with kids - big trunks are perfect for luggage , strollers , swim toys etc.

[@christianhohenstein1422]

Kraft in German means force. Not sure how the founder of the company got that name even though he had German ancestors. Never met someone whose name is Kraft here. Anyways in this case it would be better translated as power/powered. Kraftwagen = powered wagon/carriage. Even though we use mainly the word Auto(mobil) in Germany for car, it is a foreign word and Kraftwagen would be the actual German word to use for example in law texts. Kraftwagen is more commonly used in abbreviations like PKW(Personenkraftwagen = personal car) and LKW(Lastkraftwagen = load? car aka Truck)

[@vHindenburg]

Remember Hannelore Kraft?

[@christianhohenstein1422]

@@vHindenburg Oh, right. A bit embarrassing, because I lived in NRW until 2007.

[@kaph123]

My best friend's biggest wish for a car is an Opel Insignia and I always found that hilarious

[@Frame232]

HI I AM GERMAN! You have to search for "wasn das fürn kombi" You will see an porsche following an Audi Station wagon. And he thought that he could overtake the "kombi" easily 🤣 But then the kombi is overtaking the porsche^^

[@hypatian9093]

Best car video ever :)

[@Ja_nein_philleicht]

Audi RS4❤

[@eastfrisianguy]

Station wagon owners are very popular, especially when you need to relocate or go shopping in the furniture store. 😂😂My ex had a Ford Focus station wagon and we often slept in the back with two mattresses in it when we were abroad, it was super comfortable.

[@Killerpixel11]

Remember, the "tax" for Germans also includes healthcare. If you add an average American's health insurance cost (provided they have any) on top of their taxes, Germans regularly walk away with more leftover from their pay check.

[@MissLemonTea]

I am from Portugal and my Station Wagon is the Dacia Logan Stepway check it out its like a sports station wagon too. It´s not a luxury car but looks amazing and is not expensive

[@pascal_4732]

As a German, I can recommend German cultural assets to you. Search on youtube for "Was ist denn das für ein Kombi?" This Clip is legendary. It would be something like "What kind of station wagon is that?"

[@simon_wink]

Ich hab tatsächlich nach dem Kommentar gesucht 😂☝🏻

[@pascal_4732]

@@simon_wink haha Ich habe auch danach gesucht aber damals keinen gefunden also musste ich es empfehlen 😄

[@simon_wink]

@@pascal_4732 Einfach legendär 😂✌🏻

[@Dreatnought1966]

In 1990, after my VW Scirocco GTI 16 V, I immediately bought a VW Passat GT Variant VR6 when my wife was pregnant. I never had any problems loading anything with the cart, be it shopping or a stroller. I only sold it after 7 years and bought an Audi A6 Avant, here in Germany a station wagon is absolutely popular.

[@Astravall]

Well .... talking about "station wagons": here is the German Autobahn ... a Kawasaki Ninja cruising with 300 km/h ... and then is overtaken by an Audi RS6 station wagon :D: kzbin.info/www/bejne/mYHNoZypZrylpck

[@arnodobler1096]

🤮😢the Biker

[@Traumglanz]

🤭

[@TiborgSGE]

I drive a kombi (Opel Insignia 2018) and my wife drives a Smart ForTwo.When i go to our local Toom Baumarkt i can buy half of the store and still have place in my car.Also,i drive a lot on Urlaub (Croatia,Italy,France etc.) and in these cases a kombi is a must.

[@deniskramer3562]

In fact we didn´t have a "refugee problem" in Germany. We had a "refugee hater problem". Yes, between 2015 and 2017 about 1.5 million people from Syria fled from the civil war and from the IS to Germany and it did cost us a damn lot of money. But we are a rich country and that money didn´t really hurt. The Libanon had a refugee problem. They took about 2 million refugees, but had only 6.8 million inhabitants and Libanon is a poor country.

[@naftyloescher]

17:15 if you want to see nice station wagons search for: - 2022 Mercedes-AMG E63 station wagon (or T-model) or also C63 - 2022 Audi RS6 - 2022 BMW M5 Touring - 2022 Mercedes-AMG GT63 4-Door Coupé - 2022 VW Arteon Shooting Brake etc.

[@SkandalRadar]

As an American, it may be more difficult to understand since the US is an immigrant country, ultimately made up of many ethnic groups. But until around 1950 almost 99% of the people in Germany were ethnic Germans. Of course, these ethnic Germans are also a mix of various other peoples ("Völker") over the centuries and millennia, but one would still speak of the Germans as an ethnic group or people, just like the Han Chinese, Japanese, Portuguese, etc. But many people today call also immigrants with a German passport "Germans". But I would differentiate here between German citizens, who may also include immigrants, and ethnic Germans, who are of course also German citizens. Conversely, I would also remain ethnically German if I emigrated to Japan. Even if I eventually became a Japanese citizen there, I would still be German and not Japanese. Even if my ethnic German parents had born me in Japan, I would remain ethnic German and not Japanese. Obviously, I wouldn't look much like an ethnic Japanese then either. ;-) That's how I see it.

[@grandmak.]

That's probably the reason why we call them 'Germans with a migrational background'. They are Germans by law.

[@JonathanMandrake]

To some degree I agree, however there is a dangerous slope regarding this idea of ethnically german. Germany is an especially bad example of this. Our borders have changed so much over the course of history, and immigration and emigration have been so common that determining who is ethnically german is pretty much impossible. I agree that there is a distinction between citizens that have adapted to german culture and those that cling to their old culture, but even that starts to get troublesome with how diverse Germany is. And while I understand annyoance with how unwilling some people are to learn german and adapt a bit to our culture, the line between reasonable opinions and racism is a very thin one to tread. This is especially true since many of the African immigrants were those with higher education or wealth for their region, and we regularly paid ukrainian and russian workers in low pay industries beforehand, so complaining about things like that isn't really rational

[@SkandalRadar]

@@JonathanMandrake In fact, like the US, Germany is becoming more and more of an immigration country, where the boundaries between immigrants and ethnic Germans are slowly but surely disappearing. One can personally find that a good thing or not. However, it will happen (just like in most European countries) but it takes time. There are still a many Germans who have so far rejected this transformation or who cannot or do not really want to get used to it. In 200 years it will probably be like in the USA. But now it is not like that. I understand that those on the political left in particular would like to see this process accelerated, but that will not work with coercion and pressure, but over the course of the next hundred years. As always: just my personal opinion.

[@JonathanMandrake]

@@SkandalRadar Well, my personal perspective is that my mother came from a village in Romania/ex-Hungary where German emigrants settles sometime in the 18th or 19th century and continued to speak German, then most of the village migrated back to Germany, mostly to one city in fact. They were treated as foreigners both in Romania and in Germany, though that has improved over time. I think that might explain why I have such a bad opinion of the idea of ethically german

[@itsraining3000]

The "Station wagons" aka Kombis you were looking at, were really, really, ancient. Many commuters and those who drive a lot for their work use these cars. They are pretty practical and offer quite a lot of space, comfort and power. Check out: Audi RS5 Kombi Audi RS4 Avant VW Arteon VW Passat Kombi BMW 3er Touring Volvo V60 T4 etc. Edit: Never mind, she did show some examples shortly thereafter.

[@veryincognito6776]

USA healthcare fees = included in German taxes USA university fees = included in German taxes Give your fees the real name - that are taxes. Then do the math. Your taxes would be higher then ours. Or make the total opposite: Name all of your taxes fees: Military fees, police fees, administration fees. "The greatest country on Earth: No taxes at all. Only fees !"

[@jennyh4025]

Healthcare is not part of the taxes in Germany, it just feels like it, because it’s mandatory and (most of the time) taken directly from your pay check - like taxes.

[@veryincognito6776]

@@jennyh4025 When German Chancellor Otto von Bismark introduced health insurance, pension insurance and unemployment insurance in the 1880s, he deliberately called all three "insurance" because he knew the Germans well. If he had called it "tax", there would have been riots. But he knew the Germans love insurances (insurance world champion). In Scandinavia, you can call these things "taxes" without people going rebellic. That's why taxes are even higher there. At the same time, they are the happiest people in the world. Als der deutsche Kanzler Otto von Bismark in den 1880er Jahren die Krankenversicherung, die Altersversicherung und die Arbeitslosenversicherung einführte, nannte er alles drei absichtlich "Versicherung", weil er die Deutschen genau kannte. Hätte er das "Steuer" genannt, hätte es Aufstände gegeben. Aber er wußte, die Deutschen lieben Versicherungen (Versicherungsweltmeister). In Skandinavien kann man diese Dinge "Steuern" nennen, ohne das die Leute gleich an die Decke gehen. Deshalb sind die Steuern dort noch höher. Gleichzeitig sind es die glücklichsten Leute der Welt.

[@jennyh4025]

@@veryincognito6776 and you are still missing the point, tax money can be used by the government and is (pretty much never) tied to a certain cause, the fees for the health insurance go directly to the not-for-profit „companies“. That’s the main reason, why I refuse to call them taxes, even though they feel like it.

[@drstefankrank]

Healthcare isn't a tax in Germany, but you pay it like a tax.

[@materiaparticulata]

As a German, I had to skip that refugee part. You can't believe the cruelties, going threw our communities. For the rest, I love your reactions!

[@maramau2485]

I think germans actually love it when people joke about their language. It gives them the opportunity to explain something about it to you. Explaining and teaching is kind of a german love language 😄

[@RagingGoblin]

No, actually these stereotypes are just annoying by now. It's really the lowest form of wit to make jokes that (falsely) confirm a bad bias. That videos like 'SCHMETTERLING' get so many views is at least as sad as it is upsetting.

[@Byr0nicHero]

greets from germany. iam driving a "kombi" as well. an opel insignia 2.8 v6 sports tourer with 325hp and i love it.... reaches up to 260km/h ~162mp/h. self tested. ^^

[@colingregory7464]

Some of the older station wagons (estate cars) could take whole sofas and close the door, in the 80's Volvo were touring car racing with station wagons against the saloons and winning

[@teacup3000]

I was laughing when I saw what kind of search results you got when looking for a station wagon 😂 it‘s like a 20 year time travel

[@robfriedrich2822]

"Kombi" means estate car. Has more trunk space and you could add the backseat space.

[@manimustermann749]

Ford Focus Turnier MK3.5 Facelift ST(-line) I drive my dream car. Stationwagons are are just the standard for men around 25-45. some will drive a SUV but thats just the worse version of a stationwagon. With a stationwagon people get scared if I come up the left lane and move out of my way. I can transport 5 people comfortably. I got enought space to transport nearly everything (160cmx100cm trunk). also if you crash with it (rear or front) there is a lot of stuff to get destroyed before you even get close to the other car in your seat.

[@ClaudiaG.1979]

All my cars i ever owned were station wagons.. the modern ones, not the one with the wood on the side.. The reason is simple, i need space for a wheelchair, grocery bags and more.. Of course i could buy a pick up truck but the gas prices are currently close to 2 Euro per liter and German roads are way smaller than american roads so one would have a hard time driving in small rural german country roads. A modern Kombi works best for me.

[@bansheemopar]

Kombis come in different sizes. A Kombi based on a VW-Golf is not a lot more practical that a normal golf, but the hatch is bigger, the cargo-floor with the rear seats folded is longer and flatter, there is normally no to almost no hump in the back, where you have to lift things over. AND Kombi is a form factor, like sedan or SUV, so it comes in different sizes. Hatchbacks are are quite small, but a proper A6 or E-Class Kombi is like an SUV just without the exterior height, so better in tight cities, less fuel consuption, more stable at high-speed

[@petergajewi5184]

When the road is clear, the RS6 accelerates effortlessly to about 180 miles per hour (290 kilometers per hour). From there, the speed increases more slowly. Something interesting happens at an indicated 324 kph (201 mph). The speedometer shuts off and spins back to zero. The car keeps accelerating, though. According to the GPS, the Audi hits 198.2 mph (319 kph) before the driver starts slowing down. This is an impressive speed for a vehicle that's still able to haul a whole family and carry all of their stuff.

[@grischakugelmann2660]

a Kombi is almost a flat Pick Up with enclosed rear-room, it has much better wind-channel results, uses less fuel (very expensive in Germany) and is much faster because it is not as driving a wall against the wind. My Kombi is just a normal one nothing for a race but it is 118.06 mp/h fast and needs only 2.11 US gal lqd gasoline average (if i drive this fast, if not it is more like 1.72 US gal lqd). And a 4 person family including 4 times travel equipment will fit inside, we may add roof mounted cases for skiing, roof ceiling for bikes or rear ceiling for bikes. Very efficient and streemlined. cheers

[@dalilah84]

My host family in the US askes me how I was doing living under a dictator like Hitler. They also thought they had to explain to me how a fridge worked ... so much about what Americans think about Germany.

[@ChristoAbrie]

the RS6 Avante is probably my fav station wagon

[@intraxx88]

What is good about kombiwagens, is their aero against lateral forces. Yep, on high speed. It is just an arrow, that flies through autobahn, where sedans and even SUVs starts to shaking. That's why when you have choice of one car model in different body types, wagons are looks and drives better. Place 2 are hatchbacks, because small cars for cities, but not that ridiculously small Smart things

[@jlpack62]

My favorite car of all time was my VW Sportwagen TDi. Unfortunately the diesel scandal was the end of that car as I sold it back to VW. Then VW stopped making the small wagon altogether. I am bummed. My friends all made fun of me when I bought the car, but then they all came to love it with his full cabin glass roof and it's hauling ability. Trust me when I say that it became everyone's favorite "Ikea run" car.