Why are there so many SUV's on the road?

[Sausagenbacon]

I've just had a wonderful cycle ride (we used to cycle a lot during lockdown but not since).
We really noticed how busy the roads were, which was unsurprising, but we also noticed that most people drive suv's now, which is a pita.
Why is this, and how do people afford them?

A higher proportion of people than you think are morons who like inconveniencing everyone else and putting others at risk with their massive cars

Perceived as safer yet estate cars often have bigger load capacity and lower rear hatch. Bigger profits for the manufacturer.

Yea like I said, crack on and knock yourself out, I just don't get it. And no, I've no clue about the rules for push bikes because I don't ride them and my kids only ride them on tracks and such. Logically riding two abreast isn't ok but I have no idea if truth be told. Would it make any difference to my life to know it? I wonder if my license should be revoked because I don't know this? I've only been driving 40 years with one accident when someone drove into me but I'm sure there's somewhere you can report my misdemeanor and have me struck off for giving absolutely no fucks about what anyone else thinks about my large car choice 😁

I have one so I can carry a rake of kids around with me. Handy for that.

Otherwise I agree either with you. We’re not set up for them. When I’m not sharing lifts to matches ect… I’ll be back in a small car.

IMO this is the real problem, drivers having no idea about the Highway Code and not giving a fuck they don’t know the rules. If you don’t know this fuck knows what else you don’t know and you could well put someone else life in danger due to your lack of knowledge.

Why are they less safe for everyone else ? Or is that just your opinion based on absolutely nothing except jealousy perhaps ? 🤔

A nova? My brother had one of those as his first car in the 90s , didn’t even realise they existed anymore .
But realistically an SUV would be more comfortable, more room for luggage and I’m guessing safer in event of an accident , as any newer car would be .
But you do you . A car like a house is very much a personal choice & you pay for what you decide. Someone else’s car is not your business

Passing cyclists is in the Highway Code for drivers, not just cyclists.

That rule being you have to give them the same space as a car while passing, so its rarely safe to pass one if you cant over take two abreast, as you need to basically be on the opposite side of the road.

SOME cyclists are annoying (like the ones who like to struggle uphill on the main road out of our village, at around 15mph on a 50mph road, despite the lovely wide cycle path to the side of the road... which never has potatoes on like the road)
SOME drivers are annoying.
SOME tractors are annoying ( like the ones who drop potatoes over said road!)

But basically... all are entitled to use the road.

My parents had the Classic Volvo estate, that was massive & way bigger than any other car I’ve had.

I think maybe the op is elderly and means a long time ago. As they stopped making the Vauxhall nova in 93.

im not sure of the point she’s making either, 30 years ago SUV’s were much less common,although I don’t think families of five were rushing at the nova, which would have been cramped as fuck for the kids.

I can assure you, my 12 year old estate is far longer, wider and more of a pain in the arse than a newer SUV.

@Orangebadger why do you think all SUVs are bigger than your estate?

I really think many posters just don’t understand what an SUV is

Also Google just told me that the top selling 3 new cars in the UK are all ( crossover ) SUVS, and have been for several years so guess there’s more lovers than haters out there .

I agree. I need the space for moving student DD between rental properties.

No you don't. So moving once a year? Van hire would be far cheaper.

Several reasons.

Most SUVs are so huge that children cannot see over or around them which makes crossing the road more difficult and dangerous.

Because they are so much wider (even than a van), it is much harder for a pedestrian to get out of their way on a single track road because they can take up almost all the road instead of 2/3rds of it

Because the are much higher, if a pedestrian is hit by one, their head is far more likely to be hit, so they are more likely to die or have catastrophic brain injuries than with a normal car.

Thing is you don’t get to dictate how others spend their money they earn. Just saying.

It obviously matters how a car is driven - but SUV bonnets are tall & blunt and are more dangerous in a collision as you are more likely to be dragged under them rather than bounce off them. Traditional cars have lower, angled bonnets.

No but I can challenge fake justification.

Do you deem my justification acceptable?

Love this idea and completely agree. We have the smallest SUV there is, pretty much, so can still fit two going past each other on suburban city streets. I absolutely loathe the ones that are so wide only one can fit down at a time and judge the owners

UK roads are much safer though now vs the past & are some of the safest in the world.

”Throughout the 1920s and ‘30s, between 5,000 and 7,000 people died in road accidents each year”

“Fast-forward to today. Around 1,700 people die in road incidents each year in the UK, about a quarter of the number that used to be. That’s despite there being 16 times more vehicles on the road and 33 times as many miles driven.”

“If road deaths per mile driven were still as high as in 1950, then the UK would not see 1,700 road deaths per year, but 37,000.”

What an idiotic response, of course a Corsa is going to be fine for a family of 4.

We are a family of 9, (most important member ddog included), I own (outright) an 8 seater Landrover Defender and I love it. It's perfect for our needs, is very safe on the road. I know it won't crumple like a tin can in an accident and the luxury aspect is something I want in my car and have always had, meaning I work to afford nice things.

The best part, when I pull up at the lights next to you, I can look down and give you a royal wave.

Does that help?

No one needs to justify their choice of car to you.