People LUV their SUV

I don't have a problem in the world with people driving as big an SUV as they want. However, I would qualify this statement with one caveat: If you drive a vehicle that gets poor fuel economy, don't complain about the price of fuel. I take that back, complain away, but don't expect anyone (i.e. the government or oil companies) to do anything about it. You made your bed, now lie in it. The government pays for goods and services with tax revenue (well, it is supposed to) paid by US citizens. I don't feel that my tax dollars should be used to subsidize cheap fuel so people can realize the "American Dream" of affordably driving a Hummer/Escalade/etc. To be perfectly honest, my eyes light up with dollar signs each time I see a single occupant luxury SUV or a lifted and chipped diesel being flogged through the stoplights. This sort of display warms my heart and greatly increases my odds of early retirement. CHA-CHING!

I find it amusing that many folks who would otherwise consider themselves "conservatives" in the traditional sense of the word are crying for the government to meddle with the market so that they can be comfortable. There are of course many people who will genuinely suffer due to high fuel costs, but most will be able to cope by living within their means (something that has fallen out of fashion in the US).

 

Sometimes I cringe at the prices but i don't get all upset and out of shape about the prices. It is what it is and I deal with it.

I changed my driving habits a bit and basically that consists of shifting at 2,000 rpms and no heavy pedal accelerations.

I think the truck stock is rated at 15 city and 19 hwy. My average miles per gallon the last two fill ups has been 19.3 and 20. I consider it pretty good for a truck that is 9 years old and has 110k miles on it. It's been paid for about 2 years now and I just do the routine maintenence on it.

I've cut back my driving quite a bit, Rather than just driving around just for the sake of driving I just run errands, Go to work, And hit some trails in the summer time. I don't thrash on it but I trail ride and check out scenery. I tread lightly!

I might sit back and figure out when my breaking point will be to find a car to go to and from work.

Yes, People drive larger vehicles just for the sake that they can but show very little use for them. But, it's they're pocket book thats killing them right now. I still see H2's around but not very many like I did two years ago. Are they being wasteful? I'd say so....

 

I'm still wondering why you are here?

 

Way to take it to the extreme. I'd expect no less. lol

Jimmie, those polluting and wasting fuel are violating human rights.

 

i'll admit it, i miss a few things on my SUV. 4 wheel drive for michigan winters, huge trunk with liftgate, but past those 2 things, i cant find anything else id want back. i'm paying half of what i used to for gas, and going twice what i used to. 4x efficiency, hellz yeah

 

I liked this post. Very entertaining.

I own a PRIUS but I also have a Honda CRV. I don't love the SUV but I use it for practical tasks, so I do like it when I needed it.

Fortunately, I only use the CRV for home improvements and hauling big things around. You'd be surprised what this little thing can carry using the luggage rack: dry wall, ply board, etc. It has a 2" tow bar for pulling a trailer or our JET SKIs.. Year to date, we have the same tank of gas in the SUV. I had to put stabilizer in the fuel system to keep it from gumming up.
It is also used for my 60 mile commute in the winters when the snow is too much for my PRIUS.

 

Ny_biker, I borrowed my friend's raised-up Silverado once to drive on the freeway - it was SIGNIFICANTLY more unstable compared to my Corolla, while at 70mph. It might fair better in a car-to-car collision based on mass, but the car wouldn't have ended up causing a collision in the first place.

Jayman, not a day goes by that I don't think about how many people in our society are clueless about how technology works and would NEVER survive if they were the last humans alive. I worked construction part-time when I was in college. I learned a valuable lesson: houses don't just exist; people have to build them! Same with everything else in our society. Today, I have a degree in biochemistry and I work as a pharmaceutical researcher. To get that degree, I had to take a lot of math and physics classes, in addition to my chemistry and biology classes. On the side, I took the time to learn the basics of engineering. It fascinates me how little the general public knows, and how helpless the would be if they ever ended up in a situation where they had to do some of these things themselves. Not only would they be back in the 1800s, they probably wouldn't even know how to farm. It's sad. I see "soccer moms" driving luxury cars that are quite a work of engineering! and electonics! and yet these people have no appreciation for the work that went into building that car. Often, when new cars come out or I am at the autoshow, I will spend twenty plus minutes looking (analyzing) one car, and the salesmen will look at me and say "gee. are you an engineer," and I reply "no" because I am not. I am just fascinated by how things work and the beauty of engineering that we have in our modern society. What pisses me off more than anything is when I ask the salesman a question about a car and THIS IS SUPPOSED TO BE HIS JOB!!!!!!!!!!!!! and he doesn't know the answer. Sometimes it's a BASIC question like "how much does the car weigh?" THEY DON'T EVEN KNOW THAT !!!!!!!!!

Jimmie84, semi-trucks are very unstable in accidents. Even a small disturbance can cause them to tip over or jack-knife. The bigger the vehicle, the less stable. So, sure if we ran them head-on, mass wins, but most accidents aren't head-on. I'll bet you money that if you ran a car into a semi-truck head-on, the semi-truck would lose control and jack-knife, tip over, run into the barrier wall, or who knows ... and I'll bet you the driver of the semi-truck won't be walking away from it. About the F350 .. read the very fist paragraph of this post.

Also, on the issue of gas prices and "government minimum fuel economy standards," all countries in the world have trade tariffs for a reason: to protect the stability of the national economy; and thus, national security. National security comes before all other considerations. If fuel prices are threatening the stability of America and therefore the nation's security, then the government will intervene. America is not a democracy - from July 4, 1776, we have been a "Democratic Republic," and for a good reason! There are MILLIONS of ignorant, unwise people in this country. We need educated, wise, experienced professionals to make certain decisions. Yes, this country has had it's ups and downs, good times and bad times, but in the LONG-RUN, we have prevailed compared to the rest of the world. (note: the Bush administration is not "the long run." It is 4 years out of our nation's 232 year history) If you make a pessimistic reply that "look where we are today," ... I'm sure the people that lived during the Great Depression said the same thing. Our country lives and learns and we become stronger as time moves forward.
(for the record: I believe STRONGLY that we live in a free country and you should be able to drive whatever vehicle you want!!! ....unless national security is being jeopardized)

Codyroo, "6) Collisions. Mass is your friend. However most people are in the mindset to avoid them. Buying a car because you want to be safe in a collision is a poor choice for most people (the same people in the mindset of avoiding accidents...that is). However, if you try to "avoid" an accident by swerving away from the vehicle trying to involve you in it, your higher center of gravity is working against you" I agree. I have avoided many accidents by swerving over the years. I am thankful that I have always had an agile vehicle with a low center of gravity. I didn't always though. At one time, I had a full-size pickup truck. It was fun to drive, but I always kept my distance from others because I knew that I could not swerve "on a dime."

Ewhanley, "The road to hell is paved with linear approximations." When I earned my A in calculus, I knew Taylor polynomial approximations by heart .. but in biochemistry we were forced to downgrade to "linear approximations." BASTARDS!!!!

Jimmie84, I am glad to see that you have found that adjusting your driving habits is working for you. Cool.
The other day, I drove to work during rush hour, and as I accelerated slowly, a gap formed in front of me. Soon I was up to speed of 25mph, but I leveled off there and drove constant. Soon enough, the cars in the lanes next to me were at a complete stop and were so close, they could not swerve into my lane. Me and the row of cars behind me drive right by them. A little later, they sped past me, only to repeat. The cars behind me did not honk, tailgate, or get impatient. They were supporiting me. I averaged my best ever ... 43.6mpg! Half of it was coasting in neutral. At the end of the day, when I drove home at a constant 55mph on the same highway, I only averaged 35mpg. I learned that I can get even better mpg during rush hour by going a constant speed and having the mentality that it's okay to allow a gap in front of me. The drivers behind me loved it every time we passed the stopped cars in the lanes along side us. I'll bet you could get your truck up to 25 to 29 mpg if you tried for it.

Minkforce1, "i'll admit it, i miss a few things on my SUV. 4 wheel drive for michigan winters, huge trunk with liftgate." If we had a 4wd Prius, would that work? It has a lot of room in the back too ... how about a liftgate?

Vuapplepudding, people have been doing just this for decades! I have known many people that have driven cars 95% of the time, but owned a 10-year-old pickup truck for when they needed the hauling capacity. Same concept, new times. Enjoy!

 

As some one has already brought up, some of us need the big SUV drivers to keep using them in their daily driving to maximize the returns on energy and commodities investments....

Example... the Vanguard Energy Fund:
1 year 33.08%
3 year annualized 32.28%
5 year annualized 33.86%

There are other funds that out perform this one....

Certainly there are valid uses for trucks and 4x4 vehicles.. At one time they were owned only by people who used them for what they were actually designed for, usually stripped down work or off road vehicles, and not the luxo boats once they became the fad..

I have an 8 year old 4Runner that we use now only for occasional heavy hauling and trips out in the boonies with off roading involved.. With proper driving the 4Runner can still get 21mpg..

But the Prius is the daily driver, can't resist the 53mpg on our local driving...

If Toyota would build a 4 cylinder, hybrid, high clearance 4x4 vehicle I would buy it... Something like the new RAV4 with 4x4, 4 cylinder/hybrid.

The Highlander Hybrid has been yuppy-fied too much.. too much power, too expensive, too big an engine to get the mileage I want..especially now a days..

Regarding safety, the Prius uses UHS steel (up to 6 times the strength of mild steel) in all the body longitudials, framing around the door and roof structures and the doors themselves. It was the first production vehicle to use this steel. VW, Mercedes, Volvo, and some of the newer passenger cars are using it.

Quote from this source http://www.autosteel.org/AM/Templat...ATE=/CM/ContentDisplay.cfm&CONTENTFILEID=7263
"Prius body makes extensive use of super high-strength steel in the center pillar and
high-strength steel sheet in many areas. All the major longitudinal members in the
vehicle, as well as the door skins, the entire front door surround and the majority of the
rear door surround are pressed from hot stamp, high-strength steel or super highstrength
steel sheet."

I seriously doubt the large SUVs and trucks have anywhere near the roof strength, especially since their manufacturers are fighting proposed standards for increased roof strength from 1.5x to 2.5x the vehicle weight..

1.5x is nothing when you consider the tumbling and increased g forces when a vehicle rolls at speed on hard pavement.

 

Not to start any kind of war here. But here are some crash test photos I found @ 40 mph which one would you rather be in. (Same test)

Toyota Prius



F150


Interesting facts
"The Toyota Prius, the first hybrid car ever to have been tested by Euro NCAP, passed the stringent crash tests with flying colours. Its 34 points equalled the highest score ever awarded in its class and ensured a maximum 5-star rating.

Furthermore, Prius was awarded 43 points in the new Child Protection Rating, the highest score ever recorded. "

"From a very early development stage, large number of computerised crash simulations were conducted to develop a bodyshell which offers the optimum balance between low weight and crash protection. This enabled the engineers to take the right direction in the development process since the start of the project.

To achieve this all-important balance between weight and resistance, some 45% of the Prius body is constructed from High-Strength Steel. In addition, in a global car industry first, Ultra High-Strength Steel in key areas such as the B-pillar is combined with a hot-stamping manufacturing process, making this material 2.5 times stronger than conventional High-Strength Steel."

 

So let them pay. Enough of them will switch to smaller cars, or buy a small used car as a 2nd or 3rd car. Gradually, there will be a downsizing of the transportation fleet.
It can't happen overnight. The car manufacturers need a couple of years to adjust.

 

Oh I don't know, the dummy in the effy looks OK to me.

 

Oh yeah, we will find out what we truly need soon enough. I am no hater but we are stuck on stupid and asleep at the wheel in this country.

Financial Sense - Uncommon News and Views for the Wise Investor

Listen to their news hour. I listen every week. It is funny the environmentalist "wackos" and the "greedy capitalists" are all on the same side yet we are still paralyzed by inaction.

 

That was the older model of the F150. yes, It was horrible much like the S-10 I drive. Ford redesigned the F150 in 2004 and is A LOT safer than the previous model. The S-10 was also done in 2003 and in 2004 The all new Colorado was proven to get better fuel economy with an inline 5 cylinder engine and much safer.

Here is the older model

Here is the S10. This is the 2wd model I have the 4x4 ZR2 off road package model.

Here is the all new Colorado.

 

Well, I’ve said it before: you can thank several generations of the Boob Tube and well-meaning but idiotic Do Gooders who didn’t want to subject children to the harsh realities of the Real World

Heaven Forbid if a child was expected to listen, be subject to discipline, not have every trinkity little piece of s*** out there, and one day have to work for a living. Their precious little minds could suffer irreparable psychological damage

As a result, we now have the vast majority of folks under the age of 30 who are completely clueless, selfish, whiny little snots who are far more up to date on Idol than on geopolitical events

 

How about this one?
I can only guess "the other guys" are the back seat passengers.

 

Yeah what he said!

Good example of STUPID, almost everyday on my daily drive to work I will see at least 4 or 5 morons sitting at the end of their drive in their SUV or minivan, wasting gas waiting for the school bus with their child in the car. Hey stupid, if its cold, put a jacket on the kid, if its raining give him/her an umbrella. It isn't that hard! When I went to school we didn't have school buses, we had to walk, and our parents made sure we were dressed properly for the weather, it was up to us to stay that way of course. Another thing I see that totally blows my mind, school bus stops. Instead of having a designated pickup point in a neighborhood, the bus is stopping at nearly every driveway to pick children up. All the fuel wasted by doing this is moronic.

Every time I see some moron in their SUV speeding by me, only to be next to me again at the next light, I think, what a moron, you aren't saving gas or time.

What gets me today though is the high cost of diesel fuel, first off the cracker, highest at the pump. Thankyouverymuch China. I own an F350 and love driving it, and unlike what some here think, it is very stable on the highway and handles quite well for an 8000 pound 6 passenger 1 ton hauler. I seldom ever drive it anymore because it costs well over $100 for half a tank of fuel, granted I can get 700 mile out of a tank, but it costs a small fortune for 38 gallons of diesel. I only use it now if I need to get something the is either heavy or too big for the Veracruz. In fact last time I went to use it I had to put the charger on the batteries because they were too weak to start it from lack of use and only starting it to pull it out of the garage.

I bought the Prius last April, good car, great fuel economy, but for a family of 5, 6 when my Mom goes along, too fricking small. I traded it for a Hyundai Veracruz which fits us perfectly, but as a daily driver for only the two of us and the two smallest children, it didn't seem practical, plus there are times when my wife needs to drive herself to work, so I got a 2009 Camry Hybrid. Perfect car for us, enough room for all 5 for short trips, longer than 30 minutes the Veracruz is a must, the teenager will have problems if he sits between the car seats for too long, he barely fits between them and cramps up after a while. As a daily driver it is working great, and I really like it, where the Prius was it's OK, but I prefer driving the truck. The Prius needs leg room, and about 4-6 more inches of width, then it would be a perfect car. If it had a telescopic steering wheel that would solve the leg room problem. I wholeheartedly agree, an SUV in todays market is a perfect waste of money, especially when the majority have only one person in them. The commanding view of the road is only because so may others are driving them that you cant see S**T in a car anymore.


If you speed beyond a certain means (IE 50 in a 40 zone, but 65 on the Highway is OK as most cars get their best MPG at that speed), race to red lights, jackrabbit at a green, and drive big gas guzzling trucks and suv's for no reason other than I want to see the road, and sit at the end of your driveway with the motor running so your kid doesn't get wet, well, you have no right to complain about the cost of gas.

OTOH the envirowackos opposing building of new refineries, or drilling of oil here where we can get away from foreign oil, thankyouverymuch for helping the cause of rising fuel, food and heating costs. A new refinery is proposed in south Dakota that will convert sand tar into fuel, and is going to be one of the cleanest refineries built is being opposed by enviro groups. OK heres one for you enviros, because of the rising costs of fuel, those of us with diesel engines have found alternate fuels to burn, one of which is used motor oil, burns quite nicely and gives plenty of power, and I love the smoke it produces! So go ahead with your cause, it isn't helping anything but if it makes you feel good so be it.

 

Unfortunately, here in Pinellas County, FL the overbooked school bus system was doing that until two children got killed crossing streets getting from the dropoff point to home. As a result the "drive to the doorstep" is now required to a greater degree. There have also been multiple cases of abductions at bus stops, so usually most all pickup/dropoff points now have parents present. There are stupidities to be fixed....but parents taking measures to protect their kids is understandable.

 

There are some points where children gather and at least two adults are with them. That should be how it is. The road I am referring to has a 25 MPH speed limit on it as well, which makes it safer for gathering points, yet there aren't any.

As for those who feel that being with the kid at the end of the driveway in their SUV, well, get off your butt and stand there with the kid while waiting and stop wasting gas.

 

If larger equals safer, why is it so many semi drivers die in crashes? According to you, they should be the safest people on our roads, which is not the case.

Semis handle about like SUV's and pickups: like crap.

A decent car will easily outmaneuver SUV's and pickups, and can avoid accidents the evil-handling larger vehicles cannot.

Have fun with your gas hog.

Harry

 

Why are you blaming China? The US is responsible for buying a huge amount of goods from China, what do you think they were going to do with our money, but spend it on the great American lifestyle which means cars and lots of them. Car sales are increasing annually at 15-20% in China right now. That's a lot of gasoline to burn.

Uh, you must not have filled up in a while, because it's probably a lot closer to $200 than $100 to fill up that 38 gallon tank with diesel prices well over $4.50/gal over most of the country.

You do realize that even if we pumped out all the domestic oil available to us in the USA in untapped reserves, that would last us less than a year at our current rate of consumption? I'd much rather us save the oil for other non-transportation uses than to burn it up in one last big hurrah before thinking "oh crap, now what am I going to do?".