[cube]

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('ORCA', '.')..
Let me give an example. I own a Chevy Surburban. Its a great vehicle with plenty of room, and I use it often for towing a trailer that a smaller vehicle could not tow.

[misterno]

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('ORCA', 'H')ello. I'm new here, having registered just today. I am always in search of new information that may assist both my family and me to weather whatever crisis awaits us due to the current energy circumstances.

I read quite a few posts chastising some people about the vehicle they are driving, like the woman who owns the Jeep.

One point that seems to get overlooked as to why owner's of these type vehicles do not trade for a newer, more fuel-effecient model is that there's currently not a real market for vehicles of this sort now.

Let me give an example. I own a Chevy Surburban. Its a great vehicle with plenty of room, and I use it often for towing a trailer that a smaller vehicle could not tow. It gets lousey fuel mileage - 15 to 17 mpg. But, it's paid for. If I were to trade it for a car/truck that gets much better mileage, 1. I wouldn't be allowed much for the trade-in, and, 2. I would be stuck with a monthly car payment (and I would still be buying gas, just not as much). I spend far less per month in gas than what a car payment would cost me. That doesn't mean I don't complain about the high cost of gas - just like that woman driving the Jeep. Maybe she has looked at this and drew the same conclusion that I did.

Just a thought.

[ORCA]

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('misterno', '')$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('ORCA', 'H')ello. I'm new here, having registered just today. I am always in search of new information that may assist both my family and me to weather whatever crisis awaits us due to the current energy circumstances.

I read quite a few posts chastising some people about the vehicle they are driving, like the woman who owns the Jeep.

One point that seems to get overlooked as to why owner's of these type vehicles do not trade for a newer, more fuel-effecient model is that there's currently not a real market for vehicles of this sort now.

Let me give an example. I own a Chevy Surburban. Its a great vehicle with plenty of room, and I use it often for towing a trailer that a smaller vehicle could not tow. It gets lousey fuel mileage - 15 to 17 mpg. But, it's paid for. If I were to trade it for a car/truck that gets much better mileage, 1. I wouldn't be allowed much for the trade-in, and, 2. I would be stuck with a monthly car payment (and I would still be buying gas, just not as much). I spend far less per month in gas than what a car payment would cost me. That doesn't mean I don't complain about the high cost of gas - just like that woman driving the Jeep. Maybe she has looked at this and drew the same conclusion that I did.

Just a thought.

[bodigami]

Demand for oil may never disappear, but supply will eventualy disappear.

[kublikhan]

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('BrazilianPO', 'A')ctually, suppose you hit someone head-on. Is it better to be in a SUV or a "normal" car (like a Corolla)? How does a Corolla goes in comparison with a SUV is a crash test?

[dohboi]

Welcome to the thread, Orca. Your plight is shared by many.

In fact you're much better off than most who:

still have many payments left on their behemoth;

can't sell it since no one is buying;

are therefore "underwater" (car worth less than the payments owed) like many home owners these days;

and can't stop driving it even though gas prices are killing them, 'cause they have no other car and they live in the country or in a suburban wasteland.

Still, I'm afraid I have little sympathy, since, as has just been pointed out, most of these monster vehicles are pretty much guaranteed to kill anyone in a smaller vehicle, but the owners didn't care about their potentially lethal affect on others, just that they themselves might be marginally safer.

But really it is the big car companies that bludgeoned us all with incessant siren songs about how wonderful these vehicles are, all so they could make more short-term profit. Well, that's pretty well over, at least.

[MrBill]

Just to be clear. The decision to pull a trailer or drive a larger vehicle is a conscious choice. New or used the choice of vehicle is 99% of the time voluntary. Trade used for used if you cannot afford a car payment.

I have owned exactly one new car in my life, although I could afford to buy any new car I want. And one car payment. Once was enough. I have also always chosen to live close to my work to minimize my commute. I paid higher rents and made sacrafices to accomodate that choice.

Since I graduated and left home I have also never owned a vehicle with anything larger than a 4-cyllinder engine and a manual transmission. Even when gasoline was $1 a gallon. My Audi A4 with a 2.0 litre engine could easily go 100 mph and still get roughly 35 miles to the gallon. And I have never felt unsafe as I drive defensively. I would choose all-wheel drive for safety over a larger vehicle.

When I did hit the ditch - on a snowy night in the mountains on an icy hill I had to hit the breaks due to an oncoming vehicle in my lane - my poor Audi crumpled like a beer can. At least the frame and the engine mounts did. But that is what it is designed to do. Had it been my 1968 Ford 100 that I drove back in high school I would have been able to drive out of the ditch with little or no damage. However, cars and trucks today are designed to save lives not come away unscathed from car accidents. That is an engineering trade-off.

Tradesmen and farmers that need to drive pick-ups and such are usually either self-employed or work for a company. As such the cost of their vehicle and fuel are tax deductable. Therefore, I see a role for higher taxes on trucks and SUVs to curb emission and raise CAFE standards. In Europe we already pay taxes based on the engine size and CO2 emissions. Those that feel they have to pull a trailer and drive a larger vehicle should have to pay for it. I think all arguments to the contrary are just self-rationalizing BS. But then again I may just be rationalizing my own selfish behavior! ; - ))

UPDATE: the habits they are a changing
$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('', 'C')ustomers are trading in their sports utility vehicles for compacts at a brisk clip.

Families with children are augmenting their vans with a second small car to do most of their running around.

Some are opting for crossover utility vehicles that offer size and space but are based on car platforms.

And hybrid cars that run on electricity as well as gas, introduced about eight years ago, are fast becoming a top choice.

[JJ]

$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('kublikhan', '')$this->bbcode_second_pass_quote('BrazilianPO', 'A')ctually, suppose you hit someone head-on. Is it better to be in a SUV or a "normal" car (like a Corolla)? How does a Corolla goes in comparison with a SUV is a crash test?