Is this the end of the huge SUV?
 

An interesting article on MSN

http://moneycentral.msn.com/content/invest...70.asp?GT1=7159

Not only have SUV sales slowed down, but small Japanese car sales have shot up.

Two main reasons--sales "hangover" from this summer of "employee pricing", and high gas prices.

Are big SUV's doomed? NO WAY. Two trends I'll predict for the large SUV's are hyper-efficient turbo diesels that return locomotive-like torque and good gas mileage, and gas engines that shut off one bank of cylinders when in cruise mode--already a reality with Mercedes and the Dodge Hemi.

A recent study of SUV drivers in this country found that SUVs in the lower priced half of the market are more likely to be over 50, overweight, and over aggressive; while SUV drivers in the top half of the price range are mostly over 40yr old women who use the vehicle as a children mobile.

Is there a testosterone deficiency pre-requisite for driving SUVs?

It will morph like any other segment of the auto industry. New models by the same name plate will be based on different platforms with different engines and marginally more fuel efficiency. I expect to see more truck-like all wheel drive minivans, called by some non minivan name. They will "boast" about getting 22 mpg.

All of this is too little and is happening too late in the game. Consumers have driven up the weight and performance of the typical automobile/truck. Based on a thread I started some months (or years) back, most of you are very happy with all of the weight your cars are lugging around because you all want the saftey and convenience features that add to the tonnage. In the not so distant past, there were a great many cars to choose from that weighed under 2500 pounds. And by my personal standards, I thought they were on the heavy side. Now my 330i, the successor to the BMW 2002, weighs in at almost 3,500 pounds. The model has gained over 1200 pounds over the years. And the 330i is the lightest weight car in this segment.

At the same time, advances in engine technology have all been used to increase power output while maintaining about the same mileage, again to the delight of the consumer. The very same technology that is used to produce 240 hp in our S2000s could be used to produce 1 litre engines of 100 horsepower. such an engine would probably return about 60 mpg in a small, 2200 pound sedan and still give reasonable performance. But the American public will continue to shun such vehicles until it is truly too late.

Unfortunately no. Given the widespread fascination with huge and thus irresponsible SUVs, the only way to see an end to these monstrosities would be for the congress to raise fuel standards to, say, 25mpg. Doing so would go along way towards reversing global climate change, ending our dependence upon foreign sources of oil and thus save the lives of thousands of soldiers. But given the highly plutocratic nature of the US Congress, none of this is likely to happen. So be sure to have your fun before the whole shithouse goes up in flames.

I'm not overweight, but I'll find out about the other stuff soon :hello:

Except we'll be driving a Toyota Corolla etc.....not the Rav4 :o

[Note on further Int'l s2ki Cooperation: LittlePenguin is hosting Kathy and me in Christchurch...only 2 weeks to go! :thumbup: ]

the survey needs to survey other people.

I'm now officially over 50, not overweight and I drive a Jeep Liberty. Not a huge SUV, but an SUV none the less.

So where does that put me? :LOL: :LOL:

.....in not-so-big trouble :spank:

I think there is a dimension to this that everyone is missing. As much as anything else, the big SUV is a fashion statement. It is quite possible that the life or death of the SUV has very little to do with efficiency, practicality, usefullness, economy or safety. It may all boil down to whether or not the SUV is politically correct and whether it is a fashion statement that is in vogue.

It is possible that the big SUV may die from simply being out of style.

There is a "fashion" component to owning an SUV, BUT nearly every other day I use my small SUV (Mercedes ML) for things that have no chance of fitting in the S2000.