Why all the hate for SUV’s/4x4 vehicles?

[FluffyRabbitSocks]

Why do so many people on mumsnet hate SUV and 4 wheel drive vehicles? I don’t think it’s a correct reflection of the UK publics preference because you see so many of this type of vehicle on the roads and in car parks these days. I couldn’t get myself so worked up about what car a person chooses to buy and drive and really don’t think a hybrid Toyota Rav 4 or Honda CRV is any worse for the environment than a diesel MPV like a Vauxhall Zafira.

Because I live on a terraced street and I hate how they have to park half on the pavement because they're too big to park normally.

I have to be practically in the middle of the road as a pedestrian before I can see if it's safe to cross.

Because people convince themselves they need the big car for 'boot space' when if that was really the case they'd get an estate.

How does my car make the world a shitter place?

Read the thread? Higher emissions, more children killed, worse emissions, knackered roads, pedestrians and cyclists scared off the road... take your pick.

Because it inconveniences a lot of people and makes driving more dangerous. People who never had an interest in getting an suv are now having to get one. The headlights are higher up so blinding smaller cars and reducing visibility. They prevent people turning right because they can't see the oncoming traffic. They clog up smaller roads and they struggle to park.

My car is ULEZ compliant. Has a much smaller carbon footprint than the average child. Has never killed a child, or scared a cyclist/pedestrian. What else?

Its large size meaning it dazzles other cars, takes up too much space on the roads, intimidates smaller cars... etc.

You may not personally have scared a pedestrian or cyclist, but the close passes necessitated by 4x4's size means the roads are getting very scary for anyone not similarly armoured.

This has a rather strong feel of 'look at what you made me do!' Buses, coaches, vans, lorries etc can all be responsible for the 'dangers' you're pinning solely on SUVs. Get a grip.

They're a PITA for wrecking other people's visibility and they drive an anti-social race to the bottom, encouraging everyone else to size up in self-defence.

If you live in rural Shropshire then sure, knock yourself out. But I've recently had cause to drive down the backstreets of Dulwich a lot, and I doubt they're hauling many sheep in those cars. If they want to flash the cash then I wish they'd just get Teslas or Lexus's.

I don't pass close - and those that do don't all drive SUVs. Whilst my car isn't the smallest on the road, its not the biggest either. How do you cope when you happen upon buses, van, lorries etc?

They are way too big. And very cringeworthy. Unless you live rurally, there’s no excuse to drive something so embarrassing.

I can only imagine SUV drivers rarely actually walk anywhere. Or conveniently don't notice other SUVs badly parked and how dangerous it can be to cross the road because of them.

But there are far fewer buses, coaches and vans than there are SUVs. Can't remember the last time I was blinded by bus headlights on an A road, or tailgated by a coach.

White vans. Well, obvs they're a law unto themselves.

I haven't fallen for electric cars. Emperors new clothes imo, with pathetic infrastructure unless you only ever do short journeys and have all day to go for longer drives. DH has a Lexus - whilst it's not as tall as my car, it's just as long, and a bit wider. What difference would that make to other drivers?

@theycallmestacie

So you think we're coming up with all these objections just to be mean to you?

Don't trot out the jealousy thing- I could easily afford one, but I do at least try not to be an utter toss pot.

What do you class as 'too big'? Is there a maximum height, width and length in your opinion to not be 'cringeworthy'?

Buses , lorries and vans have a function. Not many people actually need an SUV as most people live in cities so don't need off road function. There's also a lot less buses and lorries compared to mass produced SUV's that every other person seems to have !!!

No, I don't think you're being mean, or jealous. Slightly ridiculous, with a side of inverse snobbery perhaps. What do you drive?

Other people's cars being long or short makes little odds to me - they're the ones who have to park it. It's the height that creates the visibility problems for other road users, and to a lesser extent the width causes inconvenience.

@theycallmestacie

Trust me, it's not inverse snobbery. I'd be embarrassed to be seen in one of those.

All of the articles written, studies done that show that these are a shit idea, are just nonsense then?

Are you a climate change denier, anti-vax, think that 15 min cities are a globalist plot?

Because they're huge and take up so much space in the carpark and because most people can't drive or park them properly. Most people don't need a vehicle that big, it's ridiculous

Are there? I've not seen stats on that. I've been blinded by lights before, but those awful LED things aren't limited to SUVS. Small hatchbacks can have them too, and tailgating isn't exclusive to SUV drivers either.

So by your logic, anyone driving anything bigger than the smallest of superminis are causing issues?

Nope. Climate change is for sure, and both ds and I are vaxxed AF.

Can you link to an article?

Well no. Any arse can tailgate, it's true.

LED lights are extra-dazzling on an SUV as they're at eye-height, when driving a normal car.

And of course there are more SUVs than buses. Every fourth car, or something, is an SUV. Whereas buses go past every 30 mins.

@theycallmestacie when was the last time you walked down a terraced street and tried to safely cross a road?

It is dangerous as the height means pedestrians have to be further into the road than is safe just to see if there are cars coming.