What's with all these crossovers/SUVs?

[Paul_B]

Years ago family cars were saloons or hatchbacks. Then estates were the one to get. Then MPVs came along and suddenly families bought into them. Now it's these SUVs or crossovers or whatever they're called. What's that about m fashion?

The reason I ask was because I went to check out second-hand cars at a main dealership. Most, as in about 90% were SUVs. You've got b-maxs and ecosports with 1 litre engines based on fiestas. Kuga and c-max based on.focus. Then s-max and edge based on the mondeo. However you rarely see the base car they're based on. Why? Surely a mondeo estate has plenty of space, why get the extra bulk of an edge? S-max is a 7 seater as is the galaxy so they've.got.a reason to exist. The others really aren't that special.

So is this just the latest fashion? When will it end?

 

[richy3333]

They're all wanna be Discos. Buy one or just buy a normal car. It's like pizza, with all the fancy toppings and stupid bases!

 

[Janne]

xxxxxxxxxxxx

 

[Robson Valley]

They are all a bunch of wanna-be GMC Suburbans. I'm old and creaky enough that steps to get in suit me fine.

 

[Robbi]

it's the Janne and RV show again

 

[Janne]

it's the Janne and RV show again

 

[leaky5]

I have a 2.0L Diesel Yeti and my wife has a 1.0L Ecoboost Ecosport. Don't knock the 1.0L Ecobboost unless you have tried a car with one of these engines.

The main thing for both of us is the high driving position and ease to get in and out of.

 

[mrcharly]

It is partly fashion and partly brought about by the change in law for child seats.
The legal requirement to have children in seats and booster seats, plus the change in size of these seats (they are nearly double the width they were 15 years ago) has meant that a 'family' car needs to be larger now than previously. Pushchairs are also larger.

 

[Stew]

My C-max is nothing like a wannabe disco! ��

 

[Duggie Bravo]

I have had a Disco, awesome could put the pushchair in without collapsing it.
I have also owned several SUV.
Scenic Rx4, it was a 4WD slightly chunkier panelling, but the same size as the normal Scenic, I think it looked better and with the chunkier tyres was better in the wet and winter.
Tiguan, was higher and easier to get into, but I never trusted it, it came with summer tyres and it felt loose in winter.
Now I've got a Ssangyong Korando.
Solid, car handles fine and I want to see how it is off Road, boot feels small, but I'm not sure it is, more likely that I have reclined the rear seats a little bit more than normal.
Overall I want, eventually, to go back to a full size 4wd in the meantime a SUV gives me the additional height, ease of getting in and the confidence of 4wd.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[Paul_B]

We got a Hyundai one as a courtesy car once. It had the same engine size and similar power as our mpv seat but jeez it seriously lacked something. BTW I'm tall and felt like I climbed into it. I never noticed the benefit of this. It's overrated IMHO. Hated the car and was glad I didn't drive it much. Still on the bright side it gave me an incentive to commute by bike. Those days when you look out and feel like driving on.never happened until we got our car back.

If all suv cars are the same as the Hyundai I'll stick to estates. As long as I can still get them.

 

[Paul_B]

1 litre petrol? Actually there's been a trend for some years for smaller engine sizes with similar power specs as the previous, larger engines. 20 plus years ago my dad chose an alfa Romeo 33 with a 1.5 litre engine. He chose it because it had better feel, drive and performance than 2 litre petrol engines he had driven before and after. In those days bigger engine = better performance. I think now things aren't so cut and dried in that respect. Anomalies exist such as a mates audi 2 litre diesel with such low carbon emissions to warrant zero VED rating.

 

[Robbi]

You're right Sir, estate cars are the way to go.

 

[wales1]

For some, maybe a fashion thing.. However, I do feel I have to defend the suv drivers amongst us and express the fact that for some, it's practicality. A blend of space for the kids and gear, decent ground clearance for the really rubbish tracks that they call roads around here and the fact it has decent roof rails for the canoe, coupled with the fact that the fuel economy is better than a full on 4x4 like a disco or shogun.
Not really seeing what the issue is, I guess the same argument could be made for people that own discos or shogun that do not spend the majority of their time off road (before counter arguments are made, I have in fact owned both prior to concluding that they are completely unneccessary unless I spend most of my time off roading
....) healthy debate no doubt!

Steve

 

[Janne]

Xxxxxxxxxxxx

 

[Robson Valley]

What's functional for where you live? What sort of climate have you got? Mine, by contrast to yours, is brutal for
temperatures and snow in the winter. 36" overnight does happen. -30C does happen.
Have you ever needed to consider running synthetic/jet engine lube instead of oil in the engine? I have for years.
How many block heaters have you got installed? Just one in each bank.
Can you be arrested and fined and your vehicle impounded for not running genuine snow tires from October to April?
I've had to have 2 sets of tires and rims for the past 35+ years. It's what we do.

 

[crosslandkelly]

RV, we don't have those extremes here, but we do occaisionaly get snow and ice. In defense of the SUV, my elderly neighbour has driven them for years. She likes the cargo space, the higher driving position gives her a better view, entry and exit are easier on her arthritic knees, and she also feels safer with AWD system when we do have the odd freeze. Crossover/SUV, they are just another choice for us, if you don't like them don't buy them.

 

[C_Claycomb]

In many cases an estate gives you more space for cargo than an SUV. My parents run an old Honda Civic Estate, and there is more space in that thing than in the Kia Sportage I hired for driving around the US last year. Certainly the SUV has more height in its storage area, but my experience is that length, then width, then height last are the more important factors in fitting in cargo. The storage space in my friends Honda CRV and Landrover Freelander were un-impressive compared to that in a Mondeo estate. I am not sure about width, regarding child seats. Seems a moot point in many cases. Regular size saloons and estates will take two child seats, but unless you get a really huge people carrier thing you would struggle to get three into an SUV. The higher driving position is nice, and not having to climb down into the seats is good too. Again, my folks' Civic is really low to the ground and is starting to be a problem for my dad in his 80s.

I think it is largely fashion. There are some real pros and cons which some people may find to be significant, but most people are just following the herd with what looks like a good idea and has flashy marketing.

 

[underground]

I've got a Superb Estate with a 1.4 petrol engine and it's amazing, such a big car with better performance and loads quieter than the 2.0 diesel it replaced.
Ive at least 2 friends who bought '4x4s' based on the SUV body shape and were subsequently dismayed to find that they got stuck at the first sign of snow in the midlands. Because they were both 2 front wheel drive cars on normal summer tyres.

 

[slowworm]

I have a normal car and a 4x4 so experience the differences all the time. I live in the country so we have narrow lanes, high hedges, large potholes, floods, gaping holes at the side of roads due to the farm traffic etc. The 4x4 is much nicer to drive as you can see more, worry less about swerving about to avoid holes and worry less about the flotsam in the middle of the road taking your exhaust off!

Admittedly I expect most of the SUVs don't venture out of the towns much but some places obsession with speed bumps etc also makes driving a SUV more appealing.