http://money.cnn.com/2007/12/17/mag..._suv.fortune/index.htm?postversion=2007121815 I guess those who are small down there will have to stick with sports cars.
I do not know but Volvo replied later that there is an XC90 successor after the news about it killing off went online. Also, BMW is offering a new X6 on sale next year that sorta looks like an X5 mixed with a Hummer soft top - i.e. it has a slanted rear window from the rear doors to the back of the car (which effectively cuts the already small cargo capacity by 1/3) and it's also a 4 seater, not a 5 seater. But SUVs like the Wrangler, FJ, Hummer H1, and I suppose *some* Discoverys and the Defender 100 of course ... those that are used for off-roading will live on. They're simple to build, repair and are robust.
As long as people keep buying them, carmakers will keep building them. We will probably see a lot more Hybrid SUV's coming down the line, but I don't see them killing it just yet. It's a cash cow.
I guess the author has never really looked at US vehicles sales. Although sales of many SUVs are down YTD, still lots of people buy them (even though I suspect they don't "need" them). Take a look at GM's and Ford's November 07 US sales for example... http://media.corporate-ir.net/media_files/IROL/84/84530/sales_production/Nov2007Deliveries.pdf http://www.theautochannel.com/news/2007/12/03/072308.html For some perspective, here were the top 20 selling vehicles in the US thru November 07 http://www.reuters.com/article/marketsNews/idCAN0364405520071203?rpc=44.
The big auto corporations trust what the bean counters say first and formost, then take what the marketing types say next. (There are virtually no engineers or environmental oriented senior officers at these levels.) The resulting stategies match what we see: 1) Making hybrid SUVs is a natural thing to do. It allows the cash cow to be milked....and claim that the cow is green...with no profit loss since paying very high prices for SUV is expected. 2) Make "hybrid" cars with an absolute minimum change to the existing body styles and power trains (hint: BAS). Great stopgap measure while they wait out the market to see if gas prices stabilize, or people tolerate somewhat higher gas prices, or the hybrid surge fizzes out. 3) Initiate the "Green" marketing campaign. Meanwhile an electric car picking up where the EV1/RAV4EV left off is needed to allow the next lesson to be learned. One thing that does get old is all the blame being placed on the corporations. They alway follow the money. Period. It's everyone that has been buying Prius's for the last 8 years that is making the difference, not any corporation.
toyota must have missed the memo about SUV's being dead or even being made smaller. Toyota Announces Pricing for All-New 2008 Sequoia
