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How the heck did we get here? Most best selling "cars" are now superzied pickups and SUVs.
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this post was submitted on 23 Sep 2023
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I would say that pickup trucks have far more utility than SUVs! Some SUVs are large and 2 wheel drive, with a weak engine. What is their purpose?
Nissan juke for example... a horrendous car.
I have driven my mother's little Juke around the US. I, personally, find that it is a peppy little thing, though it resembles an angry frog.
I may have gotten lucky, but never had a problem with it through a couple Midwest winters.
I'm just glad she isn't driving a big ol Jeep or Escalade, which she would choose if left to her own devices. She is a small woman and thinks a big car gives her an advantage. Over what? I don't know. I guess boomers are gonna boom.
I live in the UK, and our roads are small. We had small cars:
But SUVs seem overly large without the added benefit of 4x4, or the carrying capacity/utility of a pick up truck
I hope the SUV trend goes... not everyone needs or wants a car that large!
I remember last time I was in London (in the '00s), the streets are so narrow that the bus couldn't get up the hill to the house where I was saying because too many cars were parked on the road and it wouldn't fit. So I imagine SUVs in London are a nightmare.
And this wasn't even central London, this was Harrow.
The few people still driving original Minis must have some butt clenching moment driving in modern traffic. I do love the design of the original mini, but if you get in one now you basically feel naked, as they are so low down, and there is no padding between the metal of the exterior and the interior, not to mention the lack of any modern safety features like airbags and crumple zones.
I mean, I have a motorbike - so I think an OG mini is probably still safer than that! :D
Maybe if you took a SUV, and split it in half lengthways (two passengers, one behind the other) - then the vehicle would be suitable for UK roads (and hopefully not weight 4 tonnes)
My wife has a Toyota Rav4 SUV. I don't love SUVs, but I do admit it's been really useful for hauling stuff and it is 4WD so it's much safer in the winter than my smaller Prius.
Now I like tiny cars. My Prius is too big for my comfort level a lot of the time. My dream car is an electrified Nash Metropolitan. But I do have to admit having an SUV has been useful, and with a family of 3, we can still all go to my daughter's friend's house and pick her up and take her to breakfast without having a monster-sized pickup truck.
I don't know if it's still possible, but (I think) the Lowes chain of hardware stores had rentable pickup trucks. That should be more common. Maybe it would encourage fewer purchase of pickup trucks.