BigPapiC (CraigInNC) posted this shot at the Cohort. His comment: Took this one week ago. No less than 8, yes eight SUVs in driveway. Midweek daytime did not appear to be a party or anything going on. SUVs were a mixture of GM, Jeep, import. I hate to ask what is in the garage.
I hate SUVs, When I lived in Santa Barbara, I called the 101 “The SUV Canyon Freeway” – especially when I was driving my CRX to work! Everyone bu me had one or so it seemed.
I have only ever been in one SUV my real estate agent had an Acura RDX I think… ‘hated it’! lol
I like small hatchbacks – ;-j
I’ve counted upwards of 9 SUVs in a row while at stoplights. Maybe their owners know something I don’t, or have circumstances I haven’t appreciated, but I cannot fathom what their appeal is for folks who spend most of their driving time on dry paved roads. Here in Tucson, flash floods will wash away a 4WD as easily as anything else.
Spen King, the late designer of the Range Rover, was disgusted at how it became a status symbol.
It’s just as annoying to those of us who used to like SUVs. There aren’t many left with true truck strength and capability. Almost all have turned into utterly worthless CUVs.
I don’t get it either.
SUVs got popular because cars got wimpy. I could see the appeal of having a big 6 or V8, full frame, RWD or 4WD vehicle in a sea of over-downsized and complicated CAFEmobiles 20-30 years ago. Plus back then there was some honest capability. Now a days the self-absorbed buyers just want their high up captains chair perched atop a mundane car chassis. Ridiculous.
From a practicle view, I don’t get the CUV hate. Close to the same MPG as a comparable footprint car yet way more utility. We don’t all need an extra transmision (tranfrer case w/4lo) to be able to get to a cool trail head or camping spot but your sports/familiy sedan ain’t gonna cut it with its 4 inches of ground clearence and a punny trunk.
Also, owning both a “real” 4wd truck and an AWD CUV, I will take AWD any day over 4wd here in Colorado winter road driving.
Last I checked, you can still get a real SUV (Wrangler, Xterra, FJ, 4Runner), but why when a 4 door pick is so much better.
The current Jeep Wrangler is the last true SUV with an axle in the front and a manual transfer case with low range. Even the new Cherokee and Grand Cherokee have gone soft with IFS all around.
Nissan & Toyota Twins have gone soft in the front.
What’s not to like? Taller, more upright seating, easier to maneuver kids in the seats, cargo holds a shitload of life’s minutia like huge strollers.
Plus it tames my jackass driving urges…..
@Ian; GM trucks and even the H1 manage just fine with IFS. Sure a solid axle is better for the rock craller and lift-kit red neck crowds I quess.
The Wrangler is a great off-road vehicle but can’t tow or haul much. The Exterra is outdated and small. The FJ is also not all that practical. The 4Runner is maybe the only true Sport Utility Vehicle left. Off road capable, reasonably roomy and comfortable, decent towing. The full size SUVs have lost their ground clearance and skyrocketed in price. Those are the reasons why I have a crew cab pickup now, which works great for a lot of things, except hauling luggage and supplies in an unheated bed when it’s below zero.
The only advantages of CUVs are seat height and in some cases AWD. However in 20+ years of driving in Minnesota I have always been able to get around just fine on the street without that. A lot of new CUVs have ridiculously short cargo areas with sloping rooflines that severely limit usable capacity. I would argue they are usually no roomier than a car with a similar footprint while providing significantly less economy and much higher overall costs.
But it’s not that I hate CUVs so much, despite my rant here I really don’t care what other people drive. It’s that I hate what they have done to the industry. They have killed the domestic minivan and SUV markets, which are the markets I’m most interested in at this point of my life.
Ian, not quite – the Land Rover Defender and Toyota Landcruiser 70-series are still available with solid front axles, even if not in North America.
FYI, cargo volume across several vehicle types:
http://www.consumerreports.org/cro/2012/01/best-in-cargo-capacity-and-fuel-economy/index.htm
Looks like a meeting of the moms… Is it a home daycare?
Another Pleasant Valley Wednesday?
Hey hey we’re the mommees… 😉
What made me grab that picture was that usually when guests arrive, they park in the street especially when there are a lot. When they are three deep like that there is usually a live-in situation. But unlike the more typical low-income/transient population shots we have seen with various older disjointed vehicles, these are all newer vehicles, and all parked very nicely. Given average MSRP that is over $250K of product in the driveway.
Dealer
Maybe a small-scale used car dealer?
That’s my guess. Possibly operating from home, but more likely just storing them there for some reason. Maybe recently acquired and not ready for sale, or overflow storage because the lot isn’t big enough.
Anybody know if Steve Lang is reading here? He might have an insight…
An Insight? I doubt it.
In suburban Portland I’ve seen half a dozen newer cars parked in and around a house full of new college grads, usually Asian, working at Intel or the like. Is this in the high-tech RTP area, Craig?
Or it could be Las Vegas week for the ladies, who all took a limo to the airport rather than pay parking.
Unless it’s a reunion of the Bush energy task force.
No, I live normally in the greater Charlotte, NC area but I also own what was once my grandmother’s last home in far Cleveland, OH suburbs. Most of the homes are mid to late 60s builds and moderately priced usually $90-120K. Its more of a blue collar area not a lot of high tech and heavily domestic (especially GM) based on casual observations of what is in the driveway and on the road. So yes, this picture was interesting in many ways, the number of cars in the driveway, the choice of cars, etc. Based just on casual recollection, in that area, SUVs beyond Tahoes and Suburbans are a much lower mix of the car population that elsewhere. Seems like around there most people drive either conventional cars or bedded pickups. Foreign make SUVs are as rare as hen’s teeth. To even see a Volvo SUV like that is noteworthy since the nearest dealer is well over 30 minutes away.
Reminds me of this shot I took years ago.
Connecticut plates… I’m not surprised at all!
“I hate to ask what is in the garage”
You might be surprised.
I never saw it in Cleveland…and I’m a sort of native of the area…but when I lived in the suburbs of Buffalo, a common practice among older people of European immigrant roots…was to put a screen over the overhead-door opening on the garage; throw a rec-room carpet down and put a Barcalounger and TV stand in. Roll the door up, on a warm summer night…next best thing to a screened-in fly in the yard. Better, actually…got outlets, television and stereo, and nobody’s going to be bothered if you’re drinking a brew behind that screen wall.
Whether it is or not: I have to wonder, would this have been remarkable if it were all, oh, say, ponycars there? Or all broughams? SUV hatred sometimes takes subtle forms. A large family, all the kids grown, all of them outdoors types…this would be entirely logical on a Saturday night or holiday gathering.
Oh there is truth to that. My grandmother died at a very ripe age in 1994 and continued living in her house until the bitter end. Her house was a two car garage but with a single door but sat on a fairly steep incline located across from a three-way intersection in the neighborhood. The house was not originally equipped with air conditioning (even though it was built in 1965) and a favorite past time of her and my grandfather (who died much before that) was to sit in the garage and sit with TV trays and watch the cars go by. Sort of the northern version of the southern porch sitting thing. I do not remember them having a net, but they had a glider in there, several lawn chairs, portable TV trays, a bug light, sometimes a small TV and radio, and the floor was covered with usually brown outdoor carpet you bought by the yard at the hardware store. They kept the “FIRST” car in the garage while the “SECOND” car was parked along the side of the house or in the driveway. In the winter time they would pack everything away and both cars would go into the garage. My grandmother’s sister married a guy they could play music and often would come over and play music that was clearly not country. People would come over, plenty of basic hearty food served usually whiskey mixed drinks was served of course a lot of people smoked way back then. It was so very stereotypical back then. Especially for someone who grew up on a farm in North Carolina where you were basically just black or white without any further differentiation.
You are looking at Car & Driver’s new headquarters. When this was shot, the staff was just about to finish a meeting before going out and doing measurements for the Gigantic SUV Comparo to be seen in an upcoming issue. 🙂
Do I see a GMC Envoy XUV in front of the Volvo XC-whatever or do my eyes deceive me?
I thought that was an Avalanche, although on second look I really can’t tell. I really like the concept of those, but the narrow bed and high price turned me to a Crew Cab pickup instead. I was sad to see them discontinued because I love that midgate.
I liked the XUV in theory too but not so much in reality. Too many compromises I suppose.
Looks like the school parking lot in the morning. Moms running late, driving a billion miles an hour- cigarette in one hand, cell phone in the other. The Suburban is threatening to force lesser vehicles off the road so the little kiddies can make it to class just as the bell rings.
It also reminds me of the folks with nice addresses, who brought their SUVs into the shop for cheap ass coupon oil changes. The owners, clothed in name brands, sporting the latest expensive accessories had trouble “affording” any basic maintenance or repair.
“What do you mean transfer case fluid? I think you’re trying to screw me.” Or: “My tires can’t possibly need to be replaced, they’ve only been bald for the last 15,000 miles. I don’t need new ones, I have 4wd.”
Well, to be fair, a lot of the “cheap ass coupon oil change shops” do try to screw people. Even dealerships usually try to insist on scheduled maintenance with much greater frequency than manufacturer recommended intervals.
But yeah, some people are like that. They will spend $50K on a Suburban they use to haul groceries and 2 kids around in but won’t maintain it. Stupid people drive all types of vehicles though.
Absolutely true, although much of it depends on the technician looking over the car.
A guy with a half a million dollar address in Eden Prairie brings his 2yr old SUV to our shop for a brake noise after his daughter’s boyfriend “fixes” it to save them money. Probably would have been fine if he installed the pads the right way. In the end it cost Mr. SUV Owner twice the cost of a standard brake job because he tried to cheap out.
Sigh…I remember when people drove cars.
…me too…back when cars were larger and got worse mileage than this collection.