I don't car who ya are...that's pretty funny!!!

 

Exactly - which is why my rants are directed against people who use SUVs for their own single daily use.

 

Borrowed from whom? Someone's gotta own an suv/truck in order for it to be borrowed. The amount we use our suv it'd be more expensive to rent one (not that I would rent one in the first place). And yes, we do help people move/cart things around when needed.

I am not trying to sell you an SUV - go ahead and rent one if you ever need it. But also please realize that some do own them for valid reasons. Of course, some do not as well. But, like everything in life you can't control what other people do. A lot of things are owned for not-so-valid reasons.

So it goes something like this "A darn SUV cut me off today and I hate them, assuming they own that SUV just to own and not using it for any other reason. That sedan that cut me off earlier is okay by me because it's obvious they need that car for something else, so I'll just complain about the SUV"

 

I do realize that *some* people own them for valid reasons, but please also realize that they pose more of a danger then cars and other passenger vehicles and that is a valid reason to dislike them.

I personally have actually avoided renting or borrowing SUVs, I have not needed to tow and vans do the job of hauling stuff and people well (and really, renting can be pretty cheap). The SUVs the dealers have stuck me with as loaners, a Durango and an X3, were not fun to drive, even the BMW wallowed and made me feel queasy :P

 

I don't have anything nice to say about those particular SUVs to begin with. The fact that SUVs are "dangerous" is kind of a fact of life. It isn't like we're all driving around like chickens with their heads cut off ramming into things. They may be more dangerous, but also people like me are more cautous when driving them - thus less likely to cause an accident in the expedition vs the MINI.

 

Exactly! My wife is extra careful when driving the 'Lade. When I drive it, I'm the slowest right-laner out there. Here, in AZ, SUVs and trucks and the majority. When I get my MINI, I will be in the minority but I will still be in the right hand lane enjoying my drive time watching "the show" in the lanes to the left of me!

Maybe I'll just start riding my wife's horse to work. Nah, somebody in here would complain about the road apples he leaves behind!

 

For the sake of answering your question, I offer the following:

Did you mean to say, "superior size" (of your Expedition)?


Can you see where I would have gotten the impression that you fit the stereotype of the young woman who feels invincible in her giant vehicle, barreling down the road and everyone else better get the hell out of her way, or else? She's safe (she feels), and that's all that matters.

I wasn't able to quote the part about "averaging" (averaging?!?!?) 120 mph on a trip from Seattle to L.A. (presumably on I-5, one of the busiest freeways in the West, and full of big-rigs) because it's been edited out of your original post.

In reading through all of your posts again, I do see that you mention in several places that you do not drive the Expedition as fast as you used to drive the Laser, and try to keep to 80 mph or less. And I certainly share your frustration with people who drive slow in the left lane, and at times am guilty of trying to "shove them along", either to get them out of the way or to create enough room for me to get around them. Not something I am especially proud of (and I do try to just go around people if it looks like they're not going to move over), but I admit that I do it sometimes.

I'm just saying that the quotes above create a certain impression. It may not be accurate, but it's a pretty vivid mental picture.

I won't dispute that sometimes tourists suck, but why do they suck (and you don't) when they're using an SUV for the same exact reasons that you are? Just asking.

 

AHEM Why don't you NOT take these items out of context? Most of the quick (actually all, as I just went back and re-read my statements) driving anecdotes refer to me driving in the MINI. The only place I talked about driving the Expedition quickly was when I mentioned those driving around or under the speed limit in the left lane. Before that, sure I was a big heavy footed driving my first car, the laser, down I-5 10 years ago. And yes, I did purchase the car initially because I felt more secure in it if someone decided to continue their parade on my life by totalling my car.

my statement about tourists in SUVs is generalized (gotta love that word at this point) to the people who do not usually drive them at home, have NO clue where they are going (usually tourists do not know their way around), and when they are unaccustomed to a larger car they may endanger themselves and others by driving erradically. Touristy driving happens often here, in Newport, and yes, SUVs are much worse in these situations due to their superior size (mmm did you call my car superiour? sweet...just kidding...)

 

Actually most SUV's are so inefficent that you could drive the 4 people to your destination 100 miles away, drive back to your point of orgin, get another 4 people, and drive another 100 miles (300 miles total) and about break even with the SUV for gas consumption . This example would work a lot better for an around town trip rather than a 100 mile freeway trip. (Using a new MINI, figuring 14 MPG on the SUV and 36 on the MINI).

There's two elements to understand here.

SUV's: Large (You can break this down into more damage in an accident, difficult to see around, parking issues, etc), harder to drive, unable to make quick turns or avoid accidents, often times require 50-60 additional feet over smaller cars to stop.

SUV Drivers: This is where most of the sweeping generalizations come in. I live in LA, we have more SUV's here than you guys have people in your state... I drive 70 miles a day (In stop and go traffic going about 5 mph) to and from work. I have PLENTY of time to observe all things automotive . In general yes, cars do stupid things too, but many SUV drivers are under the impression that their car is bigger, so we better get out of the way, or if they crash, whatever, it's huge, i'll be fine (You said it yourself!).

In your original post (Before you edited it) you included many of the generalizations of SUV drivers in your description of yourself. Regardless of what car you were driving when it was done. To AVERAGE, 120 MPH on a 6-7 hour trip... that means you never dipped below 100 mph for more than a few minutes. Considering i've top ended my last MINI (At speeds approaching 150 mph) and realizing how long it takes to slow down once you get to 100+ (Tracking my car) you're OUT OF YOUR MIND if you drive 120 MPH on public freeways. 60-0 in most cars takes ~130 feet. 100-0 takes double that, 120+, you may have gone 500 feet (1/10th of a mile) before you come to a complete stop.

We don't have snow out here (Not that snow is a legitimate reason to own an SUV, there are plenty of cars that handle much better in snow than SUV's). People don't take long family trips towing boats, the vast majority of SUV owners out here commute to and from work, or drive to the grocery store in their SUV's.

Regardless of your driving ability, you simply CANNOT get out of the way in a large car.

Not to point any fingers with your accidents, but fault has nothing to do with ability to avoid an accident. Just because your insurance charged the other guys insurance doesn't mean you couldn't have gotten out of the way if you had noticed someone swerving into your lane, etc.

I've had a few accidents in my years of driving too, none of them my fault, but I always think about how I could have avoided them. Someone backed into my car while it was parked. Not much I could have done there. Someone else made an illegal left in front of me with about 20 feet of maneuvering room. In the 1/4 second I had to make a decision, I made a judgement that I needed to get my car away from the pedestrian in the x-walk. So I let the guy hit me. I could have swerved left instead of right, and risked a headon (My fault) with another driver, but I made my decision.

We're always getting better at what we do as humans. You'll be a better driver in 10 years than you are now, just learn from mistakes, and be logical. If someone broadsided you before in a small car, how does having a car 3x the size help the situation? You won't even SEE him changing lanes.

People here have brought up great points and shared their experiances, you asked for our opinions, if you're not interested because it's not what you want to hear, then don't ask! This is a MINI forum, not a monster truck forum, the demographic of drivers that drive a MINI Cooper is a bit off from the demographic that buys enormous SUV's that weigh 2-3x as much .

There are bad drivers in all areas and with all types of cars, but if some kid in a modded civic hits you broadside at 40 mph in your MINI, you'd have a much better day than if a 9300 lb Escalade did .

 

I agree, every kind of car has its purpose. SUVs are good for carrying stuff and people and I have no problem with people having them if they feel they need it. My problem is that the majority of people get in an SUV and drive it like they would drive a car. For a good (but admitedly biased) article see:

http://www.gladwell.com/2004/2004_01_12_a_suv.html

Everybody's situation is different, but I think that there is an overall lack of social responsibility among many Americans and the SUV craze is one symptom. It seems like there are a lot of people pimping freedom but where is responsibility?

For example, my friend recently bought a Toyota 4Runner. She is single, with no children and she drives about 20 miles each way to work every day. Another friend of mine and I tried to disuade her from getting such a large car, but her response was that she has wanted one for a long time (which was probably when gas was less than $1.50/gallon) so she was going to get one regardless of the price of gas or the fact that like many cars, the 4Runner has greatly increased in size over the years. So is it socially irresponsible that she owns such a large car or should she have the freedom to drive whatever she wants without criticism?

It's a difficult question to answer. But my response is that she is free to drive what she wants but I am free to be critical if I think she is being socially irresponsible.

 

Wow, everyone has an opinion, that's for sure.

We now own the Mini, Ford Shelby Cobra GT500, and a Ford F150. They each have their place in our family.

I agree with so many of the rants here. Since recently getting the GT500 and the Mini I've realized that way too many SUV drivers are reckless to the hilt. I just didn't realize it as much when I was sitting up there high with them. But with an open mind I must say that it can seriously be said about so many other drivers. In the past few months, driving around in lower cars has made me see just how interested drivers are in everything but driving. It's like, how many other things can we do while we are having to get from one place to another. This is not just an SUV issue as we all know.

 

I do appreciate everyone's opinions and statements given. I do not, however, appreciate it when people (again) make generalizations for no apparent reason.

I do consider myself a good driver, and I do not appreciate it when people assume that those accidents could have been avoided in the past. 1, I wasn't driving in the first place. 2, I was in a left turn lane with a car to one side and cars driving down the opposite side of the road. I didn't realize cars could fly or else I suppose I could have air lifted the car out of the way. 3. Someone broadsides me heading down a street and I'm in the right hand lane and they're behind me. First off, no I didn't even see them before they hit me and I was wondering WTF happened. Secondly, even if I had seen them I'd have much rather had them hit me than me drive onto the sidewalk and hit pedestrians that freqent a usual city sidewalk during the middle of the day. Again, to everyone out there, stop making assumptions where you don't know the facts. If you had watched the accidents on tape, and found a flaw, then I'd have no problem hearing what I could have done differently.

That matter aside, I feel very sorry for you and your daily commute. One reason I'd never ever move back to LA. I would hate every car, especially SUVs if I lived there and had to drive alongside them daily.

 

I'm sorry, as the gentleman posted earlier your posts have given some indication otherwise. You're a victim of your own success in that matter

 

Yes, America in general is socially irresponsible. Many people own SUVs that don't need them. But also many people do other things that are a lot worse. I agree with your sentiments here though. Freedom comes with responsibility. I don't appreciate SUV drivers who do have the freedom to spend $80 and the gas station and then drive like they own the road. But I also don't appreciate quick little cars that think they need to speed in and out of traffic. I don't know the last time I saw an SUV doing that, but almost every day I see some little sports car doing it. (Or a motorcycle for that matter, but they are just going to kill themselves...)

Too true. The point is that it is not JUST SUV drivers at fault here, so why focus on them?

I honestly have no clue as to what you are referring...

 

Very true. Driver aptitude in the U.S. is attrocious. I'm constantly amazed at how many traffic jams are caused by wreckless and stupid moves. It seems like people can't even perform simple maneuvers like merging or maintaining a safe following distance. No skill is required to obtain a license and instead of improving driving skills all we are doing is making cars bigger and heavier by requiring additional passive safety standards so that when we do crash it won't be as bad. Every time I'm on the freeway, I am tempted to move to Germany where they at least have skilled drivers.

 

Again, just saying that a lot of what you said creates a certain impression. Yes, a lot of what you said also disputes that impression. You asked what generalization I thought you fit, and I was saying that "this is the impression I get, and these statements are where the impression comes from." It's not clear from the posts quoted above that all or some of the, um.... driving behaviors were behind the wheel of the MINI and not the Expedition.

I'm not sitting here gritting my teeth, cursing at you through the screen and banging out my replied on the poor keyboard - I don't want you to think that there was an implied "you stupid b&%*#!!!" at the end of my post, because it certainly wasn't meant that way.

 

Yes that is a rant that can be said about anyone, no matter the car they drive, and one in which I will agree whole heartedly

Thank you for the mental picture.

And I will make it clear then, I do not drive my expedition over 80 (I don't know if it could handle it anyway teehee) and do enjoy taking my MINI when and where I can and don't mind pushing a few stragglers in the left lane over if need be.

 

1) They're large and stick out.

2) Their gross effect is much higher than that of an average automobile. Honda vs Honda in a collision is a much different excercise in physics than an Expedition vs Honda.

 

I need to read threads faster. Still 80mph in an SUV - lemme know where you drive if you are still in WA

 

Don't feel sorry for me, I have no problem with my daily commute. We have some of the best weather in the world here, some of the best canyon drives, the beach, ocean, etc. I love driving, and I love my job, so who cares .

 

Glad to oblige.

 

Arggh, 70sPop...and now, from your taking things out of context I look like I am driving the expedition around unweilding and crazy like a maniac. Lovely.

rustyboy
Glad to hear you love driving in LA traffic. Ugh. I didn't say anything about LA or the surrounding area, just the driving there. I can feel sorry for you if I like. :P

John I think we've been over that enough for me not to go over it again. Thank you for your opinion though. I can understand why you do not like SUVs considering you may not take other items into account when thinking about them as a whole. Stay away from them and they may not hit you. Although since all SUV drivers out there are erradic and plan to drive around hitting hondas just so they can get out of accidents without a scratch, they may seek you out.

Hey let's all hate large animals while we're at it, just because if we fought them then they'd probably win. How about we make all the bears, elephants, lions, gorillas, etc extinct so they can't hurt us?

Or semi-trucks too?! They caused my car to be totalled. Damn them all. Let's stop world trading so that we can get them off the road as well.

 

Holy cow....:impatient <insert beating a dead horse emoticon here>

 

I do apologize...but you asked the question. I just answered. I'd gladly stay away from them if they didn't consist of a sizeable (pun intended) portion of the traffic on the road. I take plenty of items into account, the big picture is what I see...can you say the same?

I don't discount the occasional need for a large vehicle. I do discount the need for a large vehicle utilized on a day to day basis for the reasons that a majority of those who utilize them.

fuh2.com says it all...and can be applied to multiple large SUV's.

 

I think his problem is it's hard to stay away from them since there so many of them. It's not like a Hummer that you see one every 30mins.

http://phaster.com/road_trips/stupid_urban_vehicles.jpg

from http://phaster.com/road_trips/suv_re...they_suck.html

I absolutely hate driving behind an SUV. I also understand it's hard for most to afford a second car and have an SUV but i plain don't get the rationale for small families buying an SUV.

Have a lot of people to haul? Get a minivan? Mazda5? ScionxB? Honda Element?