Why so much hatred for 4x4's & SUV's?

MrsE_2

http://driving.timesonline.co.uk/tol/life_and_style/driving/features/article1381139.ece

I was looking for a car sticker about tailgating on the internet & I came across this by accident.

I drive a 4x4, I love it, I feel very safe & have a great view ahead.

Its new, so is pretty fuel efficiant & not chucking out a load of fumes like an old car.

Its about the same width as my DHs estate car (perhaps a smidge wider) & quite a bit shorter, its higher than a normal car, but this does affect road space

One of my collegues at work said to me, do you not have a problem where a road narrows into one lane after lights or a junction of people tearing away to beat you to the gap
I said it not exactly as gas guzzler but its jucier than my last little car so I don't try & burn anyone off at the lights;) , I'm nice & light on that gas pedal;)

Why the big problem with 4x4

Why don't middle aged men going through mid life crisis's with big powerful (gas guzzling) sports cars get the same agro

Why don't people who have vans they use as cars or big cars they don't fill get the same agro

What about big people carriers with one person in it

I really really don't understand it.

No I don't take mine off road.

But I do feel better on narrow (often muddy edged) country roads with my big tyres than I would/did with little ones.

I'm paying for it, not the state/social whoever.

I'm legal, licenced, taxed & insured. Whats the problem, I really can't understand how one style of car (so loved by its ownes) generates so much hate from loads of others.

Even my hubby slates people in London who drive them
I feel if they've bought them with their own money & are road legal, then its up to them

zeon999

People dont like them cos they are so pointless for normal road use, why have a big 4x4 off road vehicle to go to work and back, go shopping ect ect, absolutly pointless.

If your a farmer who goes accross fields and stuff then cool it is being used for a perpouse but otherwise its an expensive non eco friendly dangerous weapon, think about it if you have an accident with a little vehicle or hit a pedestrian, tests have showen just how dangerous they are.

I personally think we should ban 4x4 vehicles for normal road users and you can only have one if you have a permit of some sort due to the job you do. I am sick of seeing all these mums on school runs in there 4x4's and normal business men going to work on A roads in 4x4's

Atleast people with sports cars it makes sence as they go fast, although now I have growen out of that age where racing round on the road is fun also find sports cars pointless dangerous weapons that should be banned now too.

I have gone though the stage of going street racing every other night and being a danger to everybody else on the road and having a huge emmissions output, thing is I now realise it was very selfish of me to do this, other people have to use these roads and other people actually want the world to last so there kids have a planet to live on.

They are just very expensive to run and also are not helping the cause when it comes to emmissions. You say your emmisions are not to bad but yet a Land Rover Discovery the lowest CO2 out put they have is 244 yet something like a Ford Focus 1.8 TDci has as little as 119 less than half the emmsions output. Look it up, you checkout your emmissions compared to other sensible vehicle options out there.

Problem comes in that when people buy cars they are thinking what will make me look good, they are a fasion item to most normal road users. Something thats got way out of control in a time when we know that we have destroyed our planet and we are now taking quite drastic mesures to try and make up for it we still have people going round in big 4x4's just so they can look good and feel safe even if it means they are more dangerous to everybody else.

4x4s are very selfish vehicles IMO a danger to everybody else but the driver of it, I think I have covered this and why you either love um or hate um.

MrsE_2

You assume they are all big.

I have already said mine is a tad wider than my DHs car, but quite a bit shorter.

If you measured the whole girth of both cars, I'm pretty sure his would be bigger.

MrsE_2

zeon999 wrote: »

People dont like them cos they are so pointless for normal road use, why have a big 4x4 off road vehicle to go to work and back, go shopping ect ect, absolutly pointless. I've addressed the size issue below.

If your a farmer who goes accross fields and stuff then cool it is being used for a perpouse but otherwise its an expensive non eco friendly dangerous weapon, think about it if you have an accident with a little vehicle or hit a pedestrian, tests have showen just how dangerous they are.

I personally think we should ban 4x4 vehicles for normal road users and you can only have one if you have a permit of somesort due to the job you do. I am sick of seeing all these mums on school runs in there 4x4's and normal business men going to work on A roads in 4x4's

Atleast people with sports cars it makes sence as they go fast, although now I have growen out of that age where racing round on the road is fun also find sports cars pointless now too. Why have a sports car, the speed limit is 70 MPH, if you don't use them on racing tracks, should you not be banned from owning one?

They are just very expensive to run and also are not helping the cause when it comes to emmissions. You say your emmisions are not to bad but yet a Land Rover Discovery the lowest CO2 out put they have is 244 yet something like a Ford Focus has as little as 120 half the emmsions output. Look it up fella you checkout your emmissions compared to other sensible vehicle options out there. I get 27.4 MPG on average,

Problem come in that when people buy cars they are thinking what will make me look good, they are a fasion item to most normal road users. Something thats got way out of control in a time when we know that we have destroyed our planet and we are now taking quite drastic mesures to try and make up for it we still have people going round in big 4x4's just so they can look good and feel safe even if it means they are more dangerous to everybody else.

4x4s are very selfish vehicles IMO a danger to everybody else but the driver of it, I think I have covered this and why you either love um or hate um.

Well should sports cars be allowed if you don't use them on race tracks?

Its not just 4x4's that are under used to their full purpose.

System

MrsE wrote: »

its higher than a normal car, but this does affect road space

Which means that the strike point against a human body is higher. This results in the body being pushed back and the vehicle going over the top of it rather than a bumper at knee level pivoting the body up on to the bonnet where injuries would be less.

zeon999

Yeah I totally agree sports cars should not be allowed for normal public roads either, I was just editing my last post as you were responding to my last post, I was just trying to make it clearer that fast cars are just as bad.

MPG is not important CO2 output is whats important. Although MPG will give you a good idea on how good or bad the CO2 output is.

Put it this way a 1.6TDci Ford Fiesta does 64MPG lol compared to the 27.4 MPG of your 4x4.

You would be less dangerous to other road users, have half the running costs if not less and would be helping to try and make the planet last longer so our kids have a planet to live on.

!!!!!! wrote: »

Which means that the strike point against a human body is higher. This results in the body being pushed back and the vehicle going over the top of it rather than a bumper at knee level pivoting the body up on to the bonnet where injuries would be less.

Exactly I carnt belive you even had to reply to my reponce saying they are no bigger, I take it you have not seen any of the crash tests done with 4x4's then?

They are extreamly dangerous to all other road users and pedestrians

MrsE_2

zeon999 wrote: »

Yeah I totally agree sports car should not be allowed for normal public roads either, I was just editing my last post as you were responding to my last post, I was just trying to make it clearer that fast cars are just as bad.

MPG is not important CO2 output is whats important. Although MPG will give you a good idea on how good or bad the CO2 output is.

Put it this way a 1.6TDci Ford Fiesta does 64MPG lol compared to the 27.4 MPG of your 4x4.

You would be less dangerous to other road users, have half the running costs if not less and would be helping to try and make the planet last longer so our kids have a planet to live on.

My CO2 emmisions are 210 (I don't know what that means:o )

The MPG are what the little car read out tells me I get, its actual. Its probably a lot less than what the makers quote. The figure you got for a Fiesta is probably a makers quote, rather than real life.

MrsE_2

Yes I've checked the offical stats for mine are 26.9 urban, 37.7 extra urban (?) & 32.8 combined. I do a lot of country roads, but short stopping & starting roads & journeys & I'm not a fast driver so theres not many roads I do 56 MPH (max economy) on, even if I do go on those sort of roads, its not for loong before I turn off. So even though I don't do much urban, I think my style is almost urban, as is most stopping & starting journeys.

MrsE_2

zeon999 wrote: »

Exactly I carnt belive you even had to reply to my reponce saying they are no bigger, I take it you have not seen any of the crash tests done with 4x4's then?

They are extreamly dangerous to all other road users and pedestrians

You edited to add this.

Yes I did reply AS MINE IS NO BIGGER, there are lots of compact SUV's that are no bigger than a medium family car.

What about Jimneys & Terrios, they are tiny?

zeon999

True manufacturer figurers are not brilliant but your still giving me poor excuse there even if we said the Fod only had 55 MPG which is knocking off way more than I would need to that is still more tha double that of your 4x4.

But this is a pointless convosation cos your are doing exactly what all people like yourself do and just try to defend yourself and jutify it when in reality there is not justiforcation for it.

You are a danger to other people being a 4x4 user no matter how you look at it.

MrsE_2

zeon999 wrote: »

True manufacturer figurers are not brilliant but your still giving me poor excuse there even if we said the Fod only had 55 MPG which is knocking off way more than I would need to that is still more tha double that of your 4x4.

I didn't buy mine for MPG.

There are LOADS & LOADS of family cars who give MPG similar to mine.

Some people buy for MPG alone, but not all, otherwise there wouldn't be so many large cars, sports cars, hot hatches, ect on the roads.

No SUVs are not great for MPG, but neither are lots of normal cars:rolleyes: