Why does everyone need a massive car these days?

Same. I had a Micra when my eldest was born and started noticing SO many reports of Micras getting smashed to bits in crashes with other, bigger cars, which were coming out practically unscathed. We got a small SUV instead, and I feel much safer, plus I could actually fit the pram in the boot without removing the wheels every time. It's definitely not a status thing, we're not 'car' people in the slightest, and I'm looking forward to getting something small again when the kids and their associated paraphernalia no longer need driving about.

They like to keep up with the Jones'. Most of them bought by people that live in tiny box houses too and end up parking them in inconvenient places.

We have a tiny Mazda 2 and it serves us absolutely fine.

It's an iCandy with a carry cot attachment, but I also have a dog that has to go in there too, and god forbid we should want to go on holiday and put a suitcase in there too.

We only have the one car, if we had a second it would be smaller.

And like I said in my post, I'd only consider a Kia Niro to be medium sized.

I can assure you right now, a Jeep Wrangler does not look cool 🤣

I have a small car, 2 kids in big car seats and a dog. My car is perfect, gets me from a to b and excellent safety ratings. I can park easily and you can get lots of stuff in the car if it doesn't fit in the boot.

I have never leased cars because I like to own my stuff, with kids and a dog, I fear I would damage the car and end up with massive premiums, although I'm not sure if that's even a thing - don't know enough about it to be honest.

I had a courtesy car a few months ago and they gave me a SUV type thing and I hated it. I hated that it was automatic, it was so boring to drive, it was hard to park, people seemed to get angry at you for no reason.

I have a Ford Kuga. Big enough to get my mobility scooter in the boot and high enough for me to get in without too much effort and pain.

I switched from a 4x4 to a small hatchback (Audi A1) last year. Main reason for doing it was so that I could share with 20yo DD and avoid the cost of being a 2 car household. We also moved to the city and I didn’t feel I needed a big car anymore - very short commute, no horses to look after these days, no longer doing lifts for teens etc!

When the lease is up on this car I will definitely be going back to something bigger and taller. I’ve hated having a small car - rubbish boot space for DDog, any passengers in the back are squished like sardines, far too low for someone like me with back problems, difficult to get elderly DM in/out of and my view of the road isn’t as good. Sorry eco warriors!!

I'd much prefer something smaller for town driving but I wouldn't get the pram in the boot.

I can get a double donkey in the boot of my VW up, what pram have you got?

Why does everyone need a massive car these days?

They don't. I like a bigger car so I bought one.

Absolutely this.
The weight of a vehicle makes a huge difference to how safe it is to other road users (stopping distances; weight on impact) and the damage it does to the road in terms of potholes. Both these enormous SUVs AND a lot of electric vehicles are incredibly heavy when compared to a tradition family hatchback or saloon - thus causing promotionally more damage to the roads.
The only difference is the road space and height, which makes many SUVs significantly less safe to other road users and indeed their own occupants. VED (aka 'road tax') needs an overhaul to look at weight and dimensions as well as emissions.

All heavy vehicles are a problem as our roads weren't designed to cope with constant use from such heavy cars. I'm sympathetic to the various reasons people choose either an electric vehicle and/or a large vehicle. But the elephant in the room is that for a huge variety of reasons (emissions, finite natural resources, space, wear and tear on roads and the cost to society - financial and health) private vehicle ownership is not sustainable in the long term for the majority of people in developed countries.

Whenever I see someone driving a white Range Rover I always imagine they have a crushed velvet sofa and live laugh love sign above it🤣

Except that whole post was about you justifying yourself

Well for one, they manage the potholes far better than a smaller car! I’ve had a few cars, from a Toyota Aygo, to a VW Tiguan and all sizes in between. I feel safer, can see better, can for my grandchildren in easier and just enjoy driving bigger cars. I choose to spend my money on a bigger car instead of lots of other things, I don’t look down on drivers of smaller cars (unless you're talking literally). Inverted snobbery is a poor look.

I bloody love my Range Rover and won't be apologising for it. 😁

Exactly, which car was taking up two car parking spaces at the garden centre yesterday. I'll give you a clue it wasn't a SUV or 4x4.

We own 3 cars..

2 x SUV’s and one sports car

Reasons I like my SUV (which I can drive/park)

Big enough for the kids/dogs all the shite they need. (try getting 4 people, 2 dogs and camping stuff in a polo)

I live rurally - the roads around here are absolutely terrible, the potholes are massive and in parts increasingly dangerous the air suspension on the car is definitely worth it.

Again the roads are un gritted in the winter, one of the sets of crossroads is an ice rink when it freezes - without 4x4 and the AWD we’d be screwed to get home and to work kids to school etc - admittedly this winter it’s not been too bad but when it was -10/12 it was a life saver.

I like it - own all 3 cars outright (we did have them on HP at some point) and I enjoy driving them 🤷‍♀️

I don’t have to justify myself to anyone about the cars I drive..and don’t give a shit what other drive either

Edited to I have my HGV license 🤣 so if I can’t drive an SUV I shouldn’t be on the road

Emissions is only part of the story. These cars produce more fine rubber particles which damage air quality, The weight also reduces the lifespan of roads. So you should not pay less road tax

They usually don't, people are just bellends these days.

Most don't "need", they "want" and safety of those outside their care doesn't seem to come into it.

When my DD got her own car, i happily sold my "mum car", and bought myself a MX-5. I bloody love it, it goes like a rocket and i put the roof down whenever the weather lets me. I don't think i could go back to having a big car any time soon.

But what if you made a mistake? And it was a pedestrian, cyclist, people in a smaller car - who probably would have been fine if you hadn’t been driving a tank?

It becomes an arms race, which benefits no one.

The worst parking I see comes from small car drivers.

Because I am not willing to compromise my safety or life for knobheads that dither around, speed, don’t do the speed limit or don’t know the Highway Code.

If you make a mistake I know I am probably safe and nothing will persuade me otherwise.

3 adult DC with whom we regularly do 500 mile plus journeys, plus a large dog and the occasional need to fit in a wheelchair. Plus my DB lives up a dirt track, so I would need to park and walk over a mile in winter if I didn't have a 4x4.

Supermarkets need to make the spaces bigger too. Because if you park next to a huge SUV you can't open the car door!