European fridges and freezers arn't THAT small to be quite honest.
OK the types that fit a standard "unit" i.e. the size of a European washing machine or dryer are quite small but they're designed for use in an apartment / very small house.
The typical full size fridge freezer has far more efficient use of space than a typical american side-by-side unit. The insulation's more efficient and thus the sides / back and doors of the machine are much thinner. They also don't use the same method of cooling the interior. The evaporators are built into the walls of the cabinate's interior. Automatic defrost is accomplished in a totally different way.
We invested in a Bosch US-style side-by-side (made by Maytag badged by Bosch) and to be quite honest it's not all that good. The storage space is comprimised by all of the hugely thick doors / fans / water coolers / ice makers etc etc
The standard Bosch full height european fridge-freezer we already have fits things like pizzas etc much more effectively and has substantially more space in the fridge area.
There are also european 4-door freezers that are pretty huge
The other major difference between appliances on either side of the atlantic is the tendency in Europe to build everything in. The fridge and freezer space in a kitchen may be scattered around the kitchen and disguised as cupboards.
Cooking appliances (ovens and hobs) tend to be built in and split up too.
It's not unusual to have an 80cm cooking surface thesedays.
In general, I think in Europe we just have a more modular system and do tend to have a range of appliances that will fit apartments / smaller homes but if you do want something big... you can quite easily get it.
Also, in terms of clothes washers... a front loader will generally wash a large load than an equivlant sized top-loading agitator machine. The newer machines squeeze a LOT of capacity out of a standardsize cabinet.
The agitator machines used in the states tend to look big, but they don't really effectively wash large loads (I have used machines on both sides of the atlantic)
You do have vastly larger dryers though! On the other side of it, a european washing machine will spin your clothes dry at about 1600 to 1800 rpm..
At the end of the day It's all just supply / demand and different focuses in each market
Europeans are starting to look for more capacity and Americans are starting to look for more efficiency and flexbility so, perhaps we'll all meet in the middle at some stage.
There's no question though, looking at those ads, that prices have plumetted and fridges are about 4 times bigger
Lifestyles have changed a lot too.. in the 1970s and even 1980s frozen convenience food was the big thing ... hence the giant chest freezers and small fridge were ideal for many homes...
By the 1990s everyone became far more "foody" and started expecting a LOT more from their convenience food ... Suddenly the chilled ready-meal, salad in a bag, pre-prepared chilled vegetables, fresh juices etc etc became the norm and suddenly we required huge fridges..
Also, in most parts of the states the climate has traditionally meant that you guys had to refridgerate absolutely everything ... You also have some rather more scary insect life that will munch on it if you dont
[This message has been edited by djk (edited 11-26-2005).]