How come older houses have smaller garages?

[DubbleT]

Houses in my neighborhood were all built in the fifties, most with a one car basement garage.
The length of the garage is fine, it's the narrow width that boggles me.
I have a mid size sedan that barely clears the entry by a mere inch or so on each side. When I'm tired I don't even bother trying to squeeze into the garage, too worried I'll take out one of the side mirrors.
Did those giant old behemoths my dad drove just seem huge to me because I was a kid?

[Jezer]

I used to live in a house that was built in around 1690 and it didn't have a garage.

I rented a garage that belonged to another old house. That garage was tiny but I could fit my modestly sized car in it.

I also drove an old Land Rover that usually 'lived' elsewhere, but I could only get the flatbed rear in the garage- the cab was too high.

I honestly think that garage was designed to fit a 1930s Austin Seven or the suchlike.

This all happened thirty years ago and cars over here have got still bigger in size since then.