Early 2000s big vehicles are tiny compared to modern SUVs and trucks. I work somewhere with a garage that sees mostly SUVs, and one day someone had brought in a Hummer H2. The classic monstrosity of its time. That thing parked next to a brand new Escalade or Yukon is absolutely dwarfed. Its about the same size as the average modern SUV. But compared to the average size of a 2000s sedan its huge, so people remember it as being bigger than it was

Up until recently I drove a nice early 2000s passat. That was a family car in its day, but its easily dwarfed by any modern sedan.