Breakdown of Im Kofferraum finde ich alte Schuhe, die mir nicht mehr gefallen.
in
in
dem
the; (masculine or neuter, dative)
ich
I
nicht
not
Questions & Answers about Im Kofferraum finde ich alte Schuhe, die mir nicht mehr gefallen.
Why is im used instead of in dem?
im is simply the contracted form of in dem, used for masculine and neuter nouns in the dative case. You could say in dem Kofferraum, but im Kofferraum is more idiomatic and common in spoken and written German.
What case does Kofferraum take in im Kofferraum and why?
Kofferraum is in the dative case here because the preposition in, when indicating a static location (answering “where?”), governs the dative. Hence dem Kofferraum, contracted to im Kofferraum.
Why is alte Schuhe not alten Schuhen or another form?
Alte Schuhe is the direct object of finden, so it’s in the accusative plural. With no article present, the adjective takes a strong ending -e for plural accusative, and the noun remains Schuhe.
Why does the sentence use die at the start of die mir nicht mehr gefallen?
That die is a relative pronoun referring back to Schuhe (a plural noun). In the relative clause, Schuhe are the subject of gefallen, so the pronoun is nominative plural—i.e. die.