A case for big cars/trucks

[FPAlpha]

Personally, I would *like* to have a relatively small car that gets great gas mileage, but then reality sets in. I have to have enough room for my family (wife + 3 kids), be able to carry my drums to practice and concerts, and be able to get myself to work safely, which requires some highway driving. Put all that together, and I need *at least* an SUV or a minivan. It would be nice to be financially comfortable enough to be able to afford a car for every occasion, but that's not going to happen. I would imagine that a great many of the people in large vehicles are in that situation of needing a vehicle for all occasions.

@Miss Chicken: I would *love* to be able to ride a bus (or train) to work so I wouldn't have to drive, but the vast majority of the US doesn't have decent public transportation.

I doubt that.. just look at SUVs and trucks and see how many of them are with more than 1 person and/or loaded up.

Most people buy them because having a big ass car somehow improves their ego and makes them believe they're better than all those who drive smaller cars.

To me it sounds all you need is a sensible minivan or a what we call a Kombi in Germany (a station wagon?). That someone needs a f... tank that's equipped to go offroad too yet only uses it in urban areas is beyond me.

Even if they can afford the gas when it's cheap enough why not safe even more and buy a smaller car and use the extra money saved to either get additional safety features or buy a better car with more safety options.

 

[Bisz]

All those unneeded large cars on the road are a menace and unsafe. I hate the American mindset of "I'll drive a tank to work and to the mall just down the street from my house cause its cool, hum-de-dum-de-dum", its retarded. I'm glad no one was hurt, and I hope that that SUV of yours never rolls over on your or that you never plow into someone else who's driving a sensible car.

Horse Shit.

Which part, exactly? The part about SUVs flipping over? Or the part about them being a menace to other cars? Cause, FYI, they are both true.

 

[Docbrown777]

I don't know, I don't like "I'm buying a bigger vehicle because it is safer" mentality. It just results in an arms race to buy bigger and bigger cars and trucks.

 

[Timby]

Me, I prefer a vehicle that serves as a mobile office...

Yeeaahhhh.

To be fair, it's an accurate term for certain people. A few years ago, when I was an independent video producer, my TrailBlazer served as, essentially, a mobile office. I kept all my equipment in it, along with a laptop and a rack unit to which I could dump footage quickly without needing to leave the field.

 

[cultcross]

Glad to hear everyone is OK, TLS.

Question: Why are an SUV and a Smart car your only two options?
Americans don't like middle ground, do they? A number of mid-sized cars made the 2009 top 10 safest cars list.

Oh, and my best mate was side-swiped by some Fail-to-stop jackass at 70mph on the M25 in January, he walked away without a scratch. SUV? Nope. Clio. How you come away from an accident has a lot more to do with the circumstances of the accident, conditions at the time, the skill or otherwise of the drivers involved, and sheer dumb luck.

 

[Mr. Laser Beam]

Me, I prefer a vehicle that serves as a mobile office...

Yeeaahhhh.

To be fair, it's an accurate term for certain people. A few years ago, when I was an independent video producer, my TrailBlazer served as, essentially, a mobile office. I kept all my equipment in it, along with a laptop and a rack unit to which I could dump footage quickly without needing to leave the field.

Reminds me of something I read in Popular Mechanics a few years ago. The article suggested, as that magazine is wont to do, what future cars would be like. This time, cars will (supposedly) have all the functional parts - engines and that sort of thing - in the base, and the entire body and insides of the car will be swapped out as the user wants. Apparently we will be able to make our cars look like whatever we want, and control them with whatever we want. Joysticks, push buttons, voice commands, Wii pointers, etc. They had images of cars where the inside is literally some guy sitting at an *office desk* pushing papers and controlling the car at the same time.

 

[Sephiroth]

you'll pry my camaro from my cold, dead hands before you get me into a smartcar

 

[Emher]

^Amen to that

And I guess each one to their own. Was actually a big study recently that showed that only about 3 out of 20 SUVs models currentl avaible in the US was as safe as could be. Of the others a lot had problems with roof caing in if they flipped

In any case I'm glad to hear no one got hurt.

 

[Data Holmes]

All those unneeded large cars on the road are a menace and unsafe. I hate the American mindset of "I'll drive a tank to work and to the mall just down the street from my house cause its cool, hum-de-dum-de-dum", its retarded. I'm glad no one was hurt, and I hope that that SUV of yours never rolls over on your or that you never plow into someone else who's driving a sensible car.

Horse Shit.

Which part, exactly? The part about SUVs flipping over? Or the part about them being a menace to other cars? Cause, FYI, they are both true.

Both, and they are not true...

SUV's do not flip over unless they are driven improperly, thus fault is on the idiot driver, not the truck itself...

SUV's are not a menace to other cars on the road, drivers are a menace no matter what they drive. Again, fault on the idiot driver, not the truck.


I'm 6'4" tall. I'm 435lbs... Everything that's considered "sensible" I'm not able to drive because the roof is to low, the dash is to low, or the seat cannot go far enough back.

I've also been in a family of EMS volunteers my whole life... I've seen the people who've been extracted from those cars and minivans... I will stick with a truck thank you.

 

[Trekker4747]

SUV's do not flip over unless they are driven improperly, thus fault is on the idiot driver, not the truck itself.

No. In a properly designed car it's possible to make a quick evasive maneuver without the car flipping over. In normal conditions it is virtually impossible to flip over a regular car.

SUVs are designed very top-heavy so they flip over very easily in an evasive maneuver.

 

[Data Holmes]

SUV's do not flip over unless they are driven improperly, thus fault is on the idiot driver, not the truck itself.

No. In a properly designed car it's possible to make a quick evasive maneuver without the car flipping over. In normal conditions it is virtually impossible to flip over a regular car.

I've seen accidents where cars flipped over from such maneuvers...

And I've performed such maneuvers in my old truck and never came close to flipping... Then again, I know how to properly drive a truck.

SUVs are designed very top-heavy so they flip over very easily in an evasive maneuver.

Not so much anymore... the biggest problem is the narrow ones, like the old Isuzu trooper, land rover discovery, ect, and the ones which are based on car platforms...

The suv's based on full sized truck frames, the Tahoe, Suburbans, expedition, sequoia, ect are much more stable platforms when driven properly.

 

[Trekker4747]

The suv's based on full sized truck frames, the Tahoe, Suburbans, expedition, sequoia, ect are much more stable platforms when driven properly.

Agreed on the front, but there's more than a few SUVs out there built on car frames and aren't as stable.

 

[TheLonelySquire]

It is good to hear that your family escaped the crash with only minor injuries. It is times like those that really illustrate what really matters in life, and family is number one.

Thank you Dagman. I very much appreciate your comments.

***You as well JAG.***

 

[TheLonelySquire]

Glad to hear everyone is OK, TLS.

Question: Why are an SUV and a Smart car your only two options?
Americans don't like middle ground, do they? A number of mid-sized cars made the 2009 top 10 safest cars list.

Oh, and my best mate was side-swiped by some Fail-to-stop jackass at 70mph on the M25 in January, he walked away without a scratch. SUV? Nope. Clio. How you come away from an accident has a lot more to do with the circumstances of the accident, conditions at the time, the skill or otherwise of the drivers involved, and sheer dumb luck.

Thanks Cult. Now an SUV and a Smarty aren't the only options of course. I even had a Corolla in my younger days. An SUV just serves my needs better than any other vehicle at this point. From living in New England with rough winters, work, family, sports, etc...it all adds up to a bigger vehicle for me.

 

[Data Holmes]

The suv's based on full sized truck frames, the Tahoe, Suburbans, expedition, sequoia, ect are much more stable platforms when driven properly.

Agreed on the front, but there's more than a few SUVs out there built on car frames and aren't as stable.

I agree... but then again, I've never liked the idea of an SUV based on a car platform... always seemed like "overloading the design" to me...

Now, a true car, but with the higher ground clearence, four wheel drive, and power train options of these "crossover" SUV's would be very cool... Kinda like the old AMC Eagle...


Or taken to greater extremes... http://www.4x4offroads.com/1968-pontiac-firebird-4x4.html

 

[Sephiroth]

^Amen to that

And I guess each one to their own. Was actually a big study recently that showed that only about 3 out of 20 SUVs models currentl avaible in the US was as safe as could be. Of the others a lot had problems with roof caing in if they flipped

In any case I'm glad to hear no one got hurt.

i went to a car show in Albu today and got to drive the new Camaro

 

[Alpha Romeo]

Middletown-Cromwell line. State police responded.

60+ into the woods and no FD response? Bullshit.

I'll tell my wife she made the whole thing up.

You made the whole thing up...not your wife.

 

[iguana_tonante]

Glad to hear everyone is OK, TLS.

Question: Why are an SUV and a Smart car your only two options?
Americans don't like middle ground, do they? A number of mid-sized cars made the 2009 top 10 safest cars list.

Oh, and my best mate was side-swiped by some Fail-to-stop jackass at 70mph on the M25 in January, he walked away without a scratch. SUV? Nope. Clio. How you come away from an accident has a lot more to do with the circumstances of the accident, conditions at the time, the skill or otherwise of the drivers involved, and sheer dumb luck.

But circumstances, conditions, skills and sheer dumb lack don't give the opportunity to use a possibly tragic accident to rally support for big, gas-guzzling cars and bite your thumb at enviro-pinko-freaks. Which is actually quite in bad taste, but well, not a surprise.

 

[TheLonelySquire]

60+ into the woods and no FD response? Bullshit.

I'll tell my wife she made the whole thing up.

You made the whole thing up...not your wife.

 

[Surefire]

If a small car and SUV have equal amount of safety features, the SUV occupants should suffer less injury because there is more mass absorbing the forces.

However, things can change because SUVs are top heavy and can roll over easier than low riding cars.

I tend to prefer the middle of the road, medium size vehicles (either Avalon/Venza size cars, or car based SUVs such as a Highlander) because they are easier to park than full size SUVs, but ride nicer and have smoother and quieter engines than small cars. I still say that every I4 engine I've heard sounds like a glorified lawn mower, even when they use sound absorbing material to try to quiet it.

I can see the appeal of full size SUVs for their ability to see over traffic, and I see the appeal of small cars for gas milage, but since I only need 1 vehicle at the moment I compromised with a mid size V6.