Would you/ Do you drive an SUV?

[Maarchk]

This isn't to pick on people or anything, i'm just curious if you do or would choose and suv. I used to drive a toyota camry, and i moved down. Hehe i got a smaller rsx. and i think my next vehicle might be a motorcycle. Now maybe if i get rich.. hehe i might get a Jeep wrangler for camping off road and such, but that would probably be my limit. I'm just curious how you guys like them or would like them.

[speedracer120]

I see good uses for an SUV, but personally I have no need for my daily driver to be an SUV. Ocasionally, I drive a bunch of people around along with a bunch of cargo to the mountains and elsewhere, so definitely a plus to have one around, but not when I'm driving on the freeway by my lonesome.

[DarkFury]

Heh... I dunno if the HEMI counts as an SUV, but it's dayuum close.

And Yeah, I could drive one as long as I didn't live in a big city :D

[SecretIkon]

i would drive one. in mind i think driving a SUV is a lot more safer. thats just me.

[BrewMaster]

I used to drive a toyota camry, and i moved down. Hehe i got a smaller rsx. and i think my next vehicle might be a motorcycle. .

you're going to eventually end up on a unicycle or a pair of roller skates. :hihi:

i had a truck, sold it, now i am down to a toyota matrix xrs. i love it and i really don't need an suv or a truck.

[bachviet]

Yes I have one if you call the CR-V an SUV. :D

[Kevster]

Having been in an accident where the other car (and the driver being at fault) was an SUV, I can tell you that I generally hate them. Their higher bumper generally avoids smaller vehicles' cumple zones and SUVs statistically cause a higher number of deaths in accidents with smaller cars thanks to their greater mass (and thus, their momentum), higher bumper, etc.

The fact that they also avoid mileage and safety requirements due to their vehicle classification as trucks is also another reason I don't like them. If I wanted to go off-roading to a remote lake in the high Sierras for hiking and fishing, I would use my Dads 4x4 truck. I would never purchase an SUV myself.

In all honesty, nothing scares me more when I am driving in the morning than the inattentive morons I see on the road talking on their cell phone, driving their SUV and making a lane change without looking and I have to slam on my brakes to avoid being in another accident... and yes, that happened this morning. :angry:

[sizemic1]

I got both...well...a smallish SUV Jeep GC and a midsized car Acura TL.
Not quite sure where I fall in your poll :)

[Yossarian]

if i want 4x4, i'll take a truck with a bed, thank you very much...it i want seating/everyday, i'll take a car. if i want both, i'll get a full size truck

[Bires]

Noway. I like my vehicles agile and less environmentally offensive. Now if I had a tribe of 4 kids...things would change, I suppose.

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hmm...what weirdo clicked the "sex" option?

[BigJon]

Big vehicle? No thanks....not to fond of the gas guzzling. I go enough places that I don't need to fill up every other day. Honestly, with my amount of driving...I need one of those hybrid cars to save money on gas.

[kimchicowboy]

if i needed 4x4, i'd want to get a WRX, G35x, or evo. i normally don't have a lot of crap to move around. having a truck would be nice for those occassions. :)

[Cantacuzene]

I've owned one before, and probably wouldn't own one again.

[Merlin]

I don't have one but there have been times I would have liked one. I drive a pretty small car - a BMW Z3. It is a two seater with a small trunk that is only big enough to fit my golf clubs if I take the woods out of the bag. Don't get me wrong, I love the car and really think that I'll always have a car with that profile. But it is limiting. I remember once having to get a friend from the airport. His bag didn't fit in the trunk so I had to put the top down and he had to hold it on his lap. Not so good. Times like that I wish I had another option. If I want to purchase anything bigger than a toaster I need to arrange for delivery. Not bad but without a doubt a pain in the arse. I really wouldn't mind getting an old Jeep Cherokee or the like for the times my car is not up to thew task. Not an everyday driver but to have when the need arises. The real question is whether it is worth the cost for those few occasions. So far I have had better things to spend cash on.

[cheapie]

i'd like a subaru, acura mdx, or the audi allroad quattro

[WhiskeyPapa]

You forgot the "I own two or more" option.

[TERRIBLETOM]

Where does a p/u fit into the equation?

[Nija]

I want to buy a Jeep Wrangler :)

[InfiniteNothing]

Having been in an accident where the other car (and the driver being at fault) was an SUV, I can tell you that I generally hate them. Their higher bumper generally avoids smaller vehicles' cumple zones and SUVs statistically cause a higher number of deaths in accidents with smaller cars thanks to their greater mass (and thus, their momentum), higher bumper, etc.

The fact that they also avoid mileage and safety requirements due to their vehicle classification as trucks is also another reason I don't like them. If I wanted to go off-roading to a remote lake in the high Sierras for hiking and fishing, I would use my Dads 4x4 truck. I would never purchase an SUV myself.

In all honesty, nothing scares me more when I am driving in the morning than the inattentive morons I see on the road talking on their cell phone, driving their SUV and making a lane change without looking and I have to slam on my brakes to avoid being in another accident... and yes, that happened this morning. :angry:

Great points, however, people only care about other human life only as long as it doesn't get in the way of what they are doing.

This might have been a couple years ago but last I checked SUV crash tests were disturbing. I think all but a couple had excellent safty and a few FAILED and were rejected.

[SecretIkon]

if i want 4x4, i'll take a truck with a bed, thank you very much...it i want seating/everyday, i'll take a car. if i want both, i'll get a full size truck

i will go with that. that way you get both at the same time and no complaints.

[Svyn]

Having been in an accident where the other car (and the driver being at fault) was an SUV, I can tell you that I generally hate them. Their higher bumper generally avoids smaller vehicles' cumple zones and SUVs statistically cause a higher number of deaths in accidents with smaller cars thanks to their greater mass (and thus, their momentum), higher bumper, etc.

The fact that they also avoid mileage and safety requirements due to their vehicle classification as trucks is also another reason I don't like them. If I wanted to go off-roading to a remote lake in the high Sierras for hiking and fishing, I would use my Dads 4x4 truck. I would never purchase an SUV myself.

In all honesty, nothing scares me more when I am driving in the morning than the inattentive morons I see on the road talking on their cell phone, driving their SUV and making a lane change without looking and I have to slam on my brakes to avoid being in another accident... and yes, that happened this morning. :angry:

I own a suv and a larger car. Dodge Durango, and a Ford Thunderbird SC. I like them both for their specific jobs. If I am moving people, I can haul 7 to a ski resort with gear in the D, in my SC I can travel with 4/5max. So for that fact the D is great. For traveling back and forth between MD and PA to visit family my SC is by far the way I go. Come winter the SC goes into the garage to stay until spring. Having 4wd for snow, mud, un-sticking someone else’s vehicle is great asset to me because I use them on a monthly basis. Also the added ability to pull a horse trailer, 200 bales of hay, a ford tractor, boat to go water skiing is a great advantage that I have over my car. I take advantage of both and use them to their extents. I take my SC to the track, and push the car to near limits on the freeway at times, carving up the twisties on the country roads around here is great as well.

I agree with the statement about the cell phone completely, if you can't handle it let it ring till you get to a location. I have done that before, glanced at it to see the # calling to make sure it wasn’t an emergency and let it go. No need to cause someone else damage on the road including yourself. This statement should not only be directed to SUV's though, I have seen this from small Mazda miatas to large sedans to 18-wheelers.

The fact about a higher bumper is correct, but what about all the trucks on the road? They share frames some of the time, or direct derivatives of the truck frame they were designed from. The bumper is a crumple-zone; you should be worried more about the frame entering your comfort zone more than anything else. Think about all the 1/2 - 3/4 ton, 1500, f-150 trucks, they have the similar ride height and frame height as some SUVs. On a side note, some suvs even have a lower frame because they are a suv. While other SUV's share the identical frame as there counterpart truck f-250/350, and an Excursion have the same frame under both, one a suv one a truck.

I think the problem is that people need to learn how to drive their vehicle, how to manage their distractions (cell phones, nails, makeup, palms) and to do the right thing. One problem with any SUV can be the driver, not only the composition of the vehicle itself. Drivers of SUVs sometimes feel as though they are invincible or armored better than cars or minivans, sometimes this can be true, and others it is not. That’s my 2 coppers.

[Kevster]

I totally agree with you about the bumper issue. Where I live in So. California, the number of SUVs on the road is quite large. More so than trucks by far. When I was in my accident (in a Honda Accord), the bumper from the Ford Explorer completely missed my bumper and impacted my hood and engine. The forward crumple zone was deformed only slightly and the hood looked like an accordion. Had I been going faster than the speed limit at the time, it would have broken into our "comfort zone". The Ford Explorer had minimal damage to it even though I hit it (the driver ran a red light and stopped in my lane as I was entering the intersection at 35mph - they were also arrested at the scene for outstanding warrants and driving with a revoked license, but I digress).

If I lived in a different area than I do now (like where I grew up in No. California), I would probably have a 4x4 truck. That is because I like to do a lot of outdoor activities. Ones that include a lot of snow, mud, fire roads, towing a ski boat, etc. Since I live in a very urban area with few possibilities within 1.5 hours' drive, I could never justify something like that.

People do need to learn how to better manage distractions - that is why I have a hands-free for my cell phone and only answer it when I can while driving. There is a thing called voicemail after all.

Lastly, Svyn, it's nice to see you back with us - please post more often :)

[SecretIkon]

I totally agree with you about the bumper issue. Where I live in So. California, the number of SUVs on the road is quite large. More so than trucks by far. When I was in my accident (in a Honda Accord), the bumper from the Ford Explorer completely missed my bumper and impacted my hood and engine. The forward crumple zone was deformed only slightly and the hood looked like an accordion. Had I been going faster than the speed limit at the time, it would have broken into our "comfort zone". The Ford Explorer had minimal damage to it even though I hit it (the driver ran a red light and stopped in my lane as I was entering the intersection at 35mph - they were also arrested at the scene for outstanding warrants and driving with a revoked license, but I digress).

If I lived in a different area than I do now (like where I grew up in No. California), I would probably have a 4x4 truck. That is because I like to do a lot of outdoor activities. Ones that include a lot of snow, mud, fire roads, towing a ski boat, etc. Since I live in a very urban area with few possibilities within 1.5 hours' drive, I could never justify something like that.

People do need to learn how to better manage distractions - that is why I have a hands-free for my cell phone and only answer it when I can while driving. There is a thing called voicemail after all.

Lastly, Svyn, it's nice to see you back with us - please post more often :)

:stupid:

I really agree with the distractions. There is voicemail and there are hands-free for our phones. People can always leave messages and we can always call them back. If incase of an emergency phone call we have our hands-free to pick up. People should not multi-task while there driving. We will end up hurting ourselves and innocent people.

[DarkFury]

I own a suv and a larger car. Dodge Durango, and a Ford Thunderbird SC. I like them both for their specific jobs.

What year is your T-Bird? Mine is a '96 :D

[Nija]

To be completely honest, I don't think ANYONE should be driving and talking on their cellphone.

[Svyn]

My SC (http://www.thunderforked.com/dalecclark/SC/SCpage.htm) is a 92. Currently I am in the process of a rebuild. I haven't updated that page in a long time. I wish I had some time to work on the web more, real work just takes too much time! I am about 75% done rebuilding the motor, just finishing up now with the heads. Also it is kind of hard to work on as it is in MD and I am living in PA.

[DarkFury]

My SC (http://www.thunderforked.com/dalecclark/SC/SCpage.htm) is a 92. Currently I am in the process of a rebuild. I haven't updated that page in a long time. I wish I had some time to work on the web more, real work just takes too much time! I am about 75% done rebuilding the motor, just finishing up now with the heads. Also it is kind of hard to work on as it is in MD and I am living in PA.
Yeah... Ford's first mistake with the T-Bird was in it getting rid of the SC version.. Hence my total disdain for them.

I still love my V8 T-Bird LX though... but it woulda been hella nice to get a supercharger or the DOHC version of the modular 4.6L engine (like in the Mark VIII or Cobra) to make it "super" :D

Oh well... dumb decisions is what loses customers. :shrug:


Sorry to thread jack... we now respond to our previously scheduled topic. :hihi:

[Living Legend]

Edited

[Svyn]

Yeah... Ford's first mistake with the T-Bird was in it getting rid of the SC version.. Hence my total disdain for them.

I still love my V8 T-Bird LX though... but it woulda been hella nice to get a supercharger or the DOHC version of the modular 4.6L engine (like in the Mark VIII or Cobra) to make it "super" :D

Oh well... dumb decisions is what loses customers. :shrug:


Sorry to thread jack... we now respond to our previously scheduled topic. :hihi:

Actually Ford did make 3 of the 4.6L with an Eaton mn-112 blower on it. They were for the model year 96, calling it the SVT Thunderbird. From my understanding 2 were crushed and there is one left somewhere in the world. They had an article about it in a magazine but I forgot which magazine.

I can understand why they got rid of the Thunderbird, but the part I still ask myself is why they brought it back and then, made it look old school but didn’t give them anything special? Yea, we are going to throw a new body on the Lincoln LS platform and call it the Thunderbird. Styling devised from the 50’s and 60’s, removable hardtop, and portholes, great I can hardly contain myself. That may be great for the true t-bird enthusiast, but what about normal people? Can they afford a 40k vehicle to drive around on a daily basis? The least they could have done was make an affordable model, and then make a higher end SVT model for 40k. I also think Ford is kicking themselves in the knees by getting rid of the Lightning trucks. Oops, this is about SUVs. Sorry.

[Living Legend]

Edited