to think that 4x4 drivers are the most selfish w@*&(*&s ever???

[redrobin]

It makes my blood boil! They drive their big childcrushers whilst on the phone, they tailgate other smaller cars, they use enormous amounts of petrol, they block up roads, they look threatening...how can people choose to drive something like that? Do they have ha a selfish gene, do they think they are just better than other people so rules don't apply to them, or are they just thick?

(NOTE this is only about town drivers, i appreciate that they are useful in the countryside).

Sometimes, I think Jeremy Clarkson is winning.

[redrobin]

AitchtwoOh, I love you.

am gutted that Hercules couldn't care less what i think though.

[SugarSkyHigh]

upwind, we walk to school

[dippydeedoo]

i live near manchester my neighbours who are not particularly wealthy each have big 4x4s he to drive half a mile to work in and her to drive less .......they take up twice as much room to park on our small street.

[hercules1]

Isnt far more damage caused by a zillion other things? Isnt flying very bad for the environment? i've only been on a plane once surely that excuses me and means I cause far less pollution that others here who have slagged off people like me?

[Ripeberry]

My dad is 61yrs old and only passed his driving test at 59yrs old.
He was never very interested in cars but now he is very interested in saving for and getting a Chrysler 300, because it is a "tank".
Can't do a link, but have a look and i think that that car is MUCH scarier than normal 4X4
s!.
When i drove a small Toyota Corolla i used to feel threatened all the time by big 4x4s but since having a Vauxhall Zafira, i'm a little higher off the ground and they don't bother me that much anymore, except when the driver is being a tw*t.

[Tutter]

i could try to convince you that it was all down to research re pollution, spaxce required for mahoosive pram, ease of getting boys in and out

but no, you were pretty much spot on

i also, btw, love driving white vans

[ingles2]

Go on then RR.....What car should I be driving?

[redrobin]

pedilia, i don't like bmw drivers much either. Am not sure about 4x4s having smaller engines, it would have to have a pretty small engine to be smaller than mine!

[AitchTwoOh]

i don't really care about it from a planetary perspective, tbh. it's just that they are so frightening if you're in a small car/on the pavement attempting to cross a road with a buggy and the fact that they will pulp me and dd in a heartbeat while remaining all encased and lovely inside. it's just so unnecessary and un-British.

love a proper landy though, sort of car you're only going to get if you really do need it because it does about five miles to the gallon.

[Quattrocento]

Actually, I think the congestion charge for a 4x4 should be around £50 a day. We're all agreed there's no need for them in town, right? That'd keep them out of London and cities that are shortly about to introduce a congestion charge, like Manchester ...

Whaddya think?

[hercules1]

Our 4x4 is very slow and crap tbh.

[tissy]

Today is the first day I have regretted getting rid of my LandRover, when I was skidding across the road into oncoming traffic in the snow.

And no, I wasn't racing, I was literally crawling along, just had to negiciate a very sharp left hand bend whilst going downhill. Luckily the cars coming uphill were also crawling along, so no damage was done.

This snow has been forecast for a week, so where were the gritters ?

Off to read the rest of the thread, now, but to the op, I've seen plenty of non 4x4 drivers doing ALL the things you mention and more, both in town and country.

[AitchTwoOh]

a volvo estate, ingles... we've been over this, surely?

[muppetgirl]

...am selling my landrover and are going to buy this

I am stupidly excited adn trying to convince myself we really can get dh (big man) me adn 2 littles in the thing.

[southeastastra]

imagine a great big landrover skidding on the road though, it would wipe out my car.

[redrobin]

oh i don't know ingles. you sound like you need it. you drive it and enjoy.

[muppetgirl]

ANYONE WANT TO BUY MY LANDROVER??????

[pedilia]

Meaning my old landrover was a 1.8 but my neighbours BMW is a 3.1

[Upwind]

The top gear crowd also jeer at urban 4x4 drivers. Clarkson once memorably argued that it is "like permanently wearing a condom for the one day a month you might get lucky."

[ingles2]

dirt track Aitch... snow, sleet... I don't think so

[AitchTwoOh]

now now, you have to pay your CAT and do that properly on for sale, muppet, you know that...

[ingles2]

OMG! Have I been excused RR?????

[AitchTwoOh]

you could get a monster truck, ingles, one of the ones with the ginormous wheels, really go the whole hog. and they're so cooool.

[hercules1]

Trouble is I dont actually care what topgear say either.

[AitchTwoOh]

to be fair, ingles, rr did say from the off that she was talking about 4x4s in the town. clean ones, i suspect. we'll know you by your mud.