Why Drive an SUV in Los Angeles (Malibu, Lincoln: transporting, landscaping)

[shannon94]

Originally Posted by CLQ

It's a family car alternative to the minivan. Plus, they are safer than a smaller car if you get in an accident. We were T-boned in an SUV and the car barely budged. A friend's mom in a similar accident driving a sedan had major surgery and car was totaled. She is lucky to be alive. If you get hit by one and you are in a little car be careful. Plus, there are many big rigs on the road. If you can't beat them, join them. I agree they should be more fuel effiecient and they will be soon. I read somewhere the bigger SUV's are going green in 2008. I don't think people should get one if they don't need one but it is the best choice for our family.

Cars can get out of the way faster....I've done it!! They are not necessarily safer. So someones SUV hits a small car...the person in the small car gets killed...but MR. SUV is ok....so that's all that matters to him!! What's so safe about killing someone else with your extra large vehicle???
Just a thought.

[ness]

Originally Posted by James T

I cannot believe there are still people purchasing brand new SUV's in Los Angeles, despite all the negative publicity these vehicles have received lately. Is unnecessary air pollution, extra wear on the roads, obfuscating the view of people driving more environmentally responsible vehicles, etc., really worth whatever function SUV's have in Los Angeles that smaller vehicles do not? Do people still invest in these things because there's a slight chance of a freak snow storm in Los Angeles that could cause somebody to miss going to work a day, or perhaps people are concerned the La Brea Tarpits will bubble over onto Wilshire and render passenger automobiles impractical for travel in L.A.?

Why own an SUV in Los Angeles:
1. Some people actually use them as they were designed and take them off-road into the desert to camp on weekends, the snow in the winter, etc.
2. Some people live in areas like Malibu were flooded roads, rock slides, and the like make owning an SUV with 4wd a necessity to get to work and/or school and/or pack up all your belongings during fire scares. Believe me I've been through them all.
3. It is difficult to find a vehicle that will hold three kids, two 100 pound dogs, camping gear, a husband, etc. and be able to navigate mountain roads in the snow, go over large rocks etc. when doing outdoor activities. So people that need those things and can't afford two cars get an SUV.

Now...if you're talking about people that drive from Brentwood to Beverly Hills and back and never touch dirt then you are correct that they don't NEED an SUV.

But....let's be honest. Is LA about people buying what they "need" or buying what they "want" and justifying the purchase later? Not saying I agree with this frame of mind, but just saying it exists.

Do people really "need" 5,000 square foot houses that are artificially cooled and heated? SUVs aren't the only extravagance that's bad for the environment.

Also.....why attack only SUVs when there are plenty of sports cars out there that aren't much better on gas mileage. Should we boycott Ferraris?

I am happy with the trend now to build more environmentally friendly SUVs and hybrids, because as much as people like to throw stones many SUV owners do care about the environment and want to have more environmentally friendly choices that still meet their needs.

[sberdrow]

Originally Posted by shannon94

Cars can get out of the way faster....I've done it!! They are not necessarily safer. So someones SUV hits a small car...the person in the small car gets killed...but MR. SUV is ok....so that's all that matters to him!! What's so safe about killing someone else with your extra large vehicle???
Just a thought.

Its not my fault the other guy bought an unsafe car or truck

[CBaillo]

Originally Posted by missionhome

I think many people that hate SUV's don't have kids or haul anything around. I could see how you would think an SUV is impracticable. But my wife drives an SUV because there aren't many cars out there that will allow her to: drive our three children around (plus the twice weekly carpool), the kids friends, their backpacks, the dog, soccer equipment, the mountain of Costco food, an Easy Up canopy (for our kids soccer games and cross country meets), that new table we bought, etc. So if there is another type of vehicle that can fit stuff like that in it, the please make me aware. I think the Costco food alone makes a regular sedan impossible. My car can't fit the Costco stuff without it overflowing over into the passenger seats, but my wife's SUV can. Until then, I think my family needs at least our one SUV. Are there people who don't need SUV's- definitely. But many people need a vehicle this size.

i own a toyota sienna...way cheaper to insure, awesome mileage, toyota reliability, and easier to handle, and less likely to lose control, and it has a lot more TRUE space. SUVs are just covered trucks, not much true space. I can seat up to 8 in my van comfortably, and still have enough veritcal space in the back to stack everyones luggage. Or fold down the 3rd row, and partially fold the 2nd, and i have enough room back there to haul a couple small kayaks. But I guess everyone automatically thinks of SUVs because no one ever wants a van. I love mine to death. We put a dvd player in it, and its the perfect road trip vehicle for me and the fam.

[shannon94]

Originally Posted by sberdrow

Its not my fault the other guy bought an unsafe car or truck

Ha ha I knew that one was coming!! So now all cars are unsafe except an SUV!! Check out the latest safety/crash statistics.

[shannon94]

Originally Posted by missionhome

I think many people that hate SUV's don't have kids or haul anything around. I could see how you would think an SUV is impracticable. But my wife drives an SUV because there aren't many cars out there that will allow her to: drive our three children around (plus the twice weekly carpool), the kids friends, their backpacks, the dog, soccer equipment, the mountain of Costco food, an Easy Up canopy (for our kids soccer games and cross country meets), that new table we bought, etc. So if there is another type of vehicle that can fit stuff like that in it, the please make me aware. I think the Costco food alone makes a regular sedan impossible. My car can't fit the Costco stuff without it overflowing over into the passenger seats, but my wife's SUV can. Until then, I think my family needs at least our one SUV. Are there people who don't need SUV's- definitely. But many people need a vehicle this size.

So what would you do if SUVS didn't exisit? Not have kids?

[gnubler]

Originally Posted by monti

JerZ

I was rear ended while stopped at a stop sign with my mother in a small 89 honda civic. The driver was named Al Jalalabad or some nonsense, and he took off immediately (no insurance, no green card, no drivers licence).

Jalalabad is my family name and it isn't nonsense - what exactly are you insinuating?

[sheri257]

I drive an SUV for safety, plain and simple. Not image or anything else.

Why? Because since I've lived in SoCal ... I've been rear ended FOUR times ... one time by a big rig. The SUV was the ONLY thing that saved me.

Image has nothing to do with it. I'd love to save on gas but, it's not going to do me any good if I'm dead.

We've all passed those horrible car crashes on the freeway ... which cars are wrecked the most? The small ones. I just can't take that chance.

If I lived in Europe where everybody drives small cars and trucks ... and the odds were even in a crash ... then, I'd be happy to drive a small car.

But since I live in SoCal ... forget it. I've got to be prepared for those lunatics who hit you for no particular reason ... I now even have side air bags in case I get T boned also.

[missionhome]

Shannon,
My wife would just have to drive even more than she already does. My children's school is close to our Costco so it is convenient to go there with the kids. She would have to drive twenty minutes home, then twenty back to the Costco, then twenty minutes back home. She would have to drop the carpool and drive just our kids too. We probably could put the canopy in the car, just have it pass through one of the seats (in which case the whole family wouldn't fit). We could tie the dog to the roof-Just kidding...
I'm curious to here what everyone has to really suggest because we are in the market for a new car. My wife's Expedition is a few years old and we she would like something different. We were looking at some crossover types like the Volvo XC90 and Acura MDX that still seat seven, but are much smaller and drive better than a regular full size SUV. At the time we bought her current car, there weren't as many crossover and alternative types of "people movers" (besides the minivan which my wife thinks is the plague). Any ideas?

[James T]

Why is it also that SUV drivers tend to do the most talking on cell phones? If SUV drivers have such an adamant concern for safety, wouldn't the first action be to hang up and pay attention to driving conditions?