Why now's the time to buy an SUV

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(CMonster @ Sep 14 2006, 08:18 AM) [snapback]319500[/snapback]</div>

Not to mention the added pollution when you torch the SUV!

 

Actually, the time to buy an SUV is when you need one. We have an SUV, and will be replacing it with another SUV. The one we have averages 19 mpg, and the new one averages 15 mpg. Our choice has nothing to do with pollution or the price of gas. It has to do with convenience of not having to drive two cars at once if we need to go somewhere.

There is no wrong time to buy an SUV.

There will always be people who want and need SUV's.

As long as SUV's serve a need, they are going to stick around, and to me that's a good thing.

No one is going to force you to buy one, so don't try and tell people not to buy one. You have a choice, they have a choice.

 

SUV's are great, just not when you're the only one in it and doing daily errands. I'd buy one if i consistently carried a lot of people or had a boat or a loaded trailer, but for now the prius works for me. Nothing against SUV's...great stuff, specially around Death Valley

 

It's always the right time to buy an suv. Why save the earth for future generations and animals when you can have more convenience and comfort now?

Humans are so selfish and short-sighted, it's probably best to just go with it and usher in the destruction and pick up whatever pieces remain after it all comes crashing down

Probably the people sharing the planet with you have some business in telling you not to excessively pollute it - but it's an ethical issue, not a legal one at this point - so have at it!

 

Don't minivans have a comparable amount of space in relation to an SUV? Don't they, in general, offer better MPG than SUV's? Like that Saturn thing? I don't really know, just asking.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Etel Rose @ Oct 18 2006, 02:36 AM) [snapback]334303[/snapback]</div>

This is a very closed minded way of thinking. No could possibly need an SUV, right?

I can't fit my family in my Prius. It's that simple. Maybe years down the road when all the kids are out of car/booster seats it will be fine. But for now an SUV fits our needs.

Convenience and comfort? SUre, but only becuase 90% of other cars don;t have enough room.

Just another example of if I don't like it it must be stupid, I'm right and you're wrong thinking.

THere will never be a law against SUV's. THey fill a need, and as long as that is true, they will sell them and people will buy them.





As for the arguement about not driving them around alone. That's fine, but after my wife or I drop off our kids and it's just the one person left in the car, then what. Should I park my Prius at the school permanently and switch cars then? I'm sure the school would be OK with assigning me a permanent parking spot. Drive home again and then get into the Prius? Well that just wastes gas. So what's the best option? Just go on to work, and have small minded Prius drivers say, "Would you look at that wasteful SUV driver all by himself. What a shame! Doesn't he realize how stupid and evil he is for killing my planet?"

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(DocVijay @ Oct 18 2006, 08:15 AM) [snapback]334363[/snapback]</div>

I have no problem with SUVs. I only wish that since the majority of them are used as passenger vehicles, they would be subject to the same pollution, safety and mileage standards as cars.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Beryl Octet @ Oct 18 2006, 09:14 AM) [snapback]334380[/snapback]</div>

That I agree with. I have no objections to this kind of idea. Maybe even some sort of tax in addition to the gas-guzzler tax and luxury tax (for those that are expensive enough), like a emissions tax. Then that tax could be used for environmental purposes (or intended for anyway).

That way if you choose to drive one or need to drive one, you can do so "guilt free" if you feel that way.

I don't feel any guilt at all, but I'm still willing to pay a little extra.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(DocVijay @ Oct 18 2006, 09:37 AM) [snapback]334417[/snapback]</div>

But why not a station wagon with about the same capacity but less weight and better mileage? My gas guzzler is a Passat wagon with AWD that gets 26 MPG. As an added bonus we do use the roof rack rather than the decorative purposes that it serves on (tall) SUVs.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(DocVijay @ Oct 18 2006, 07:15 AM) [snapback]334363[/snapback]</div>

Yep, I think that is exactly what we Anit-SUVers are saying. Precisely that!

Come on DocVijay, is sarcasm all you have left on this topic? We are adults here, aren't we? Unless........

 

Hey, everyone, lighten up! In a few years gas will be so expensive that SUVs will disappear from the roads, along with those big old antique Cadillacs, and a couple of years after that you won't see more than the odd multi-millionaire in any kind of a car. Then even motor scooters will be too expensive to run, as well as lawn mowers and leaf blowers, and we will be able to turn the freeways into bike paths.

All this indignation and sarcasm and whatnot just for something that we'll have to put up with for, what? maybe 4 or 5 more years.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Alric @ Oct 18 2006, 11:13 AM) [snapback]334442[/snapback]</div>

I have yet to find a station wagon that can fit three car seats in the back. When we bought our Volvo, we went in intending to buy the XC70 wagon, but came out with the XC90 SUV. It's far superior in many ways. Wagons are great, and I would love to get one (I repeatedly pestered Audi to bring over the RS4 wagon for years!!!), but they simply DON'T have the same room as an SUV. The Volvo offered the backwards facing extra seat in the XC70, but it was not to be used for children in car seats.

Even SUV's aren't immune. My parents just bought a Subaru B9 Tribeca, and I couldn't fit the three car seats in the middle row in there either. My son sits in the third row, which, of course, he thinks is the coolest thing ever having his own row.

Point is, most other cars just don't fit.

We could have gotten a mini-van, but it simply wasn't as nice. We tried out all the minivans with AWD (aren't too many), and none were even close to the Volvo. In the end we had settled on a Volvo or a Toyota Sienna. First problem was a long wait for the AWD version. Second was they wanted a $500 deposit so they could order the one we wanted, simply to test drive it. (As a side note, DO NOT use Stadium Toyota in Tampa, horrible dealer). When it came down to it, the Volvo outranked every other SUV and minivan we test drove. So we bought it. So far we average about 19 mpg, and that is fine with me. My family has the luxury and safety I want.

Next Year we'll probably trade it in, either for a new Volvo XC90 V8, or a Mercedes R500. The new XC90 gets slightly better mileage, and the R500 gets slightly worse. But that is not as important as the other things that I get with it. To me, the space and features you get are worth the tradeoff in mileage.

Does it mean I don't care about the environment? Not at all. I guarantee that I have done more to make my house energy efficient than most. Soon I would like to add solar and be able to not only not get power from the grid, but actually give back. I'm just waiting for Florida to update the products they have on their approved list for the state energy rebates.

What it comes down to is a car is not all about how many miles per gallon you get. A car is not simply a conveyance from point A to point B. If that were so, we'd all be taking mass transit.

Cars fill needs AND wants, and there is NOTHING WRONG WITH THAT. The last thing this world needs is people being so damn judgmental. Prius drivers are especially prone to that, as this site has shown over and over. All that leads to is resentment from drivers of other cars.

SUV's are not going away. You don't have to love them, but you don't need to hate them either. Makes as much sense as the Ford vs. Chevy rivalry.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(Alric @ Oct 18 2006, 11:13 AM) [snapback]334442[/snapback]</div>

Because we have four greyhounds who would never fit in the back of a station wagon. Two would fit, three would be a tight squeeze. Perhaps the fourth should go on the roof rack?

 

I've always wondered why people drive something big like a Ford Excursion, Hummer H2, or a Tahoe instead of something smaller like a ford explorer, toyota 4runner, or Honda Pilot???

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(g-man430 @ Oct 18 2006, 03:27 PM) [snapback]334654[/snapback]</div>

Well, one of my wife's cousins has a Suburban because they have 5 very active children. My old manager also had a Suburban because he's a train hobbyist and routinely transports a lot of equipment to shows.

Again, it comes down to needs & wants. Some people actually need the larger vehicles. Some people just want one. If it's what they want and they can afford it, that's their business.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(DocVijay @ Oct 18 2006, 07:15 AM) [snapback]334363[/snapback]</div>

A wagon offers similar space but gets much better gas mileage.

No One should deny the fact that the room and comfort an SUV provides are nice, but the fact that a particular suv gets 14 mpg (or lower) is just ridiculous. Technology exists to greatly increase that number, and should be required. Legistlation that mandates higher MPG should be inacted.

 

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(adammc @ Oct 18 2006, 03:59 PM) [snapback]334678[/snapback]</div>

Read my reply in post #14. I already answered this question.