While driving to work this morning I ended up behind a large black SUV (no, the government isn't after me this month). I discovered that the mini reflected quite nicely its very large tailgate, so much so that I could see myself and all the dirt that has collected over the last 2 weeks.

Never thought I'd say it but I guess there's a good thing about having these monsters on the road .

 

Hahaha I ALWAYS look at myself in the reflection of big SUV's too.

 

I admire Molly when ever I am behind anything that is shiny enough to exude a good view!!

 

I get a crap load of SUVers nodding at me as to acknowledge that I'm the smarter consumer.

 

Had a SUV driver come up to us at the petrol station yesterday and ask about our MPG. That made our day

 

I parked next to an H2 at Target this weekend.... just so the owner could see there was really no need for that thing. I was hoping he/she would catch me loading my MINI. I always get a kick out of SUV drivers who watch me load. I can tell they think it wont fit. They always look disappointed when i get out of their faster then they do.

 

There will always be a need for SUV's.... now granted how many people actually need them... My wife drives an 08 Tahoe, it gets 22 on the highway. but we have two dogs, a kid on the way, and two 4 wheelers in an enclosed trailer. That plus if we go out with friends and family we generally all drive in one car.



My Mini is still on order, but seeing that I just got rid of a TDI Jetta, the Mini's mileage in not a huge concern for me

 

A couple of weeks ago someone at work brought 4 of those non collapsable aluminum chairs to work to see if anyone wanted them. I told him I'd take them. He has a full size Ram pickup and said he'd drop them off at my house. I told him that's OK, I'd take them in the MINI. He couldn't believe they all fit in the back of the car.

 

Not to slam on SUV'S, damn I own one. But they make for good drafting.

 

I love our SUV.

When I've had an adult beverage or 3, it's good to sit in the back with my daughter and watch movies in the giant sized comfy chair while getting driven to my destination.

 

Ha ha...this is the question I get most often when I get out of my car

Them: "What is your real MPG for your car?"

Me: "Well driven like a sane man...30-32 mpg. Driven like an insane man...27-28 mpg"

 

I come from the days when SUV-type vehicles were for contractors and not for families, and so to me they never made much sense. So much so that I barely even enjoy seeing the reflection of my MINI is it's gargantuan backside.

Any revulsion I might have felt, though, has long been relaced by pity as I have found myself refueling next to SUVs at the gas station. Very sad.

 

Hey, we all had a cassette player in our cars at one time, didn't we? And many of us had SUV's too. Their time has come and gone (for the most part). Stay tuned for seeing that bottle-blond 40 something driving around Snottsdale in a Mini, complete with the classic Razr sandwich (left hand, Razr, left ear)! Goodbye Escalade.

 

They (large useless vehicles) are dinosaurs whose death is finally at hand....

 

Ah SUVs, my favorite virtual punching bag. I have several issues with them but it all pales in comparison to the amount of gas they guzzle (and they are exempt from the gas guzzler tax) which is why I fondly refer to SUVs as gasholes.

 

Back in 1994 my wife and I got a Volvo station wagon (black with tan interior) because our kids were 12, 9 and 4. It handled well, had a tight turning radius, and was pretty peppy when floored as we merged onto the highway. Solidly built too. We didn't opt for a mini-van or SUV as we always considered them impractical gas guzzlers for our part of over-suburbanized Jersey.

Got 260,000 miles on her before she got totaled when a guy ran a red light and took off the rear bumper and turned our car 360 degrees.

My wife got an '07 BMW 328xi (black with gray interior) and absolutely loves it. I got an '07 MC and can say I've never, ever, felt this way about a car. From speed to handling to styling, there's nothing like it.

 

Don't get me wrong I wasn't bashing all SUV owners, I um kind of own one myself. It's a 98 Rodeo 4x4, that I only use for hauling stuff. My problem with SUV's is when they are being used as commuter cars instead of utility vehicles.

As an update I got behind a transfer truck with a bright shiny metal trailer this morning, I almost, ALMOST, didn't pass him. Ferris is just so darn good looking.

 

In the news today ...

GM is closing 4 truck plants, and might even discontinue the HUMMER.

 

I hope they are not surprised...it was never a great idea anyway.

 

While they're at it they might as well lose Pontiac, Buick, Saab, maybe Saturn.......they have some serious dead weight in their lineup.
And Ford revised their 2nd quarter projections based on gas prices rising: they're gonna lose their shirts, because they only make money on trucks/SUVs. Now that's company I want to own some stock in (buy low, sell lower)! Seriously, when gas hits $5 next year the big V8 trucks are gonna be at yard sales with the tape decks- you wait.

 

On ABC News tonight they were presenting a piece in regards to the Big3's drastic sales loss in May. As they presented they talked about the shift from the big SUV to smaller cars. In the video clip that they were using during the voice over showed a PW with Black racing stripes driving next to a Chevy suburban. HAHA, not much of useful post but I was excited!

 

True, SUVs do have there place. But I would guess 90% are never used for their intended purpose. You pull a toy trailor or a boat, more power to you.

My girlfriend also drives a Tahoe... only the most work its ever seen is at CostCo... and a MINI would work just as good

 

The other vehicle in our family is a "Big SUV". However, it pulls its weight for its intended purpose - hauling our hobby stuff, and being the family truckster also:



Edit: As an added bonus, any MINI's passing us may admire themselves in the reflection as long as they wish.

 

I arrived in Denver this morning for a two-day business meeting. When I went to pick up my "compact" rental car, I was surprised to find a monster white Ford Explorer in my designated stall.

I didn't think much about it since I've been assigned substitute vehicles before, until my coworkers and I started comparing notes at the meeting. There were 12 people who had traveled to the area on either Federal government or supporting contractor (compliant with Federal travel regulations) travel orders. (Under these regs, you cannot rent anything larger than a compact or full unless you're some sort of Senior Executive). Amazingly, EVERY SINGLE PERSON of the 12 who had traveled to the area had their originally requested rental replaced by a full-sized SUV or a full-sized pickup truck! This was true even though folks had used several different rental car companies.

It's pretty clear that the car rental companies are blatantly ripping off the government for the difference in fuel costs. Certainly the SUVs are in far less demand for rentals now because of fuel prices, but they are playing on the fact that they know the government travelers get reimbursed for their fuel expenses and so they can push these road hogs off on them. If I can find the Fraud, Waste, and Abuse hotline and someone on the other end of the line who cares, I may just call this in.

My rental Explorer is a real experience after driving my MINI. I swerved to avoid some ripening road kill and about rolled the dang thing over...

 

My complaint has never been with people that use the
monster truck to make a living or because they have
a real and legitimate need (like that monster trailer above).

My complaint has always been well complaints
1. they smash you off the road with wanton disregard.
2. grossly inefficient
3. cant see around, beside, or even under them.
4. they clog traffic. (i figure it this way, 1 monster truck
being used for a ride arounder goes through a red light.
that same red light can let 2 regular cars through, or 3+
compact cars.

gasholes. i like it.

I feel sorry for all those people at the plants getting shut down.
It wasn't them that did it. It's the fat cat bean counters wanting
to make their golden parachutes in 10 months instead of planning
for the future.

It seems to me its been a regular occurance in my lifetime.
The k-car pops into my mind. WTF with a car that was designed
to completely break 2 minutes after the warrenty is up? (I didn't have
one but i watched it happen to others with a regular occurance)
But that's a whole nuther thread, eh.

I was watching dan rather last night (dont normally watch him I
dont support commies) but they had a special on gas prices.
He was interviewing 'experts'. The days of stable gas prices
are long over. I'm just parroting what was on the idiot box i've
not looked into it myself. But this guy is saying in 18 months gas
could be 2.25. But back to $5 in 24 months. But it won't be
stable again. I wonder if gas spiked back down for 6 months
are people so short sighted they would run out and buy a
monster truck [for commuting purposes].