Rise in ‘bigger’ cars

[Hannahblueberry]

Driven by women specifically. Prompted by a conversation between my friend and I today after witnessing a woman trying (and failing) to park a ridiculously large car in a shopping centre car park.

What do you think the rise is driven by? Cars being made bigger in general?

My friends theory was that due to Covid and hybrid/WFH policies, couples sold one of their cars and in the main, the man kept their car which tended to be the bigger one.

Brilliant. I love mine too. Everyone is happy

I drive an enormous car, and I love it. It feels safe, it’s 500 hp, and I feel lovely and confident behind the wheel.

I chose a small car because I wanted a small car. Money wasn't an issue and didnt factor in my decision. Why do you think everyone wants the same as you? Seems rather a leap!

This.

The proportion of large cars on the roads now (vs say 20 years ago), the appalling impact on the climate to build and run them, and the array of (weak) "justifying" reasons for such largesse, really annoys me.

It's all bonkers. Treble the tax on 'em!

So what?

I proved that not all SUVs are as polluting and some are less polluting that conventional vehicles while you deflected to irrelevant twaddle about weights etc.

And you are throwing a hissy over that? 😂

OK, seems you only like selective facts that fit your blinkered narrative because you got found out.

I'll leave you to wallow in your anti-woke-SUV hating misery. I for one am glad I have an SUV, like many others here 👍

The fact that you think the weight of vehicles in this context is irrelevant twaddle makes it clear that you’re simply not arguing in good faith. And what on earth is “anti-woke-SUV hating misery”?

It's funny when people throw insults at others that clearly best describe themselves

Exactly, I haven’t done any of the things mentioned in that buzzword soup.

Its all very well that you can squeeze your oversized car into tiny spaces but as a small car driver I constantly find that drivers of SUVs squeeze in next to me rather than next to another SUV -taking up all my space to open the door!

Clearly, reading was never your forte....

I've got a massive pickup truck. I can drive it, park it, reverse it, tow things with it (and also reverse while towing), chuck lots of things in it, put lots of things on top of it, and drive it off road/through floods snow etc. I did try going back to a little car for a while but it didn't suit my lifestyle one bit.

My DH is the one with the little car who can't tow 🤣

More personal insults. Grow up.

Same issue with older car parks too. Chelsea tractors take up all the space in a bay leaving no room to open doors if there is one parked either side of you.

I find as the driver of a little car that the drivers of these massive cars always expect me to reverse on a country lane (especially when they have just passed a passing place), so they can get past. Even though if they weren't driving something so oversized we'd both be able to get past without any need for evasive action.

In my mind if you have chosen a bigger car, it shouldnt be on others to put themselves out because your car is causing the issue. Particularly if you have just driven passed the pull in.

People talk about bigger cars giving them confidence, I think they mean it just empowers them to act like a dick

It might be increasing but they’re still in the minority so yes we’re definitely still laughing. You can have a well built larger car to accommodate a family without driving a tank around and looking like a massive twat. It’s different in the states - we don’t have the roads and infrastructure to accommodate such massive cars. They also take up more than one space in a carpark and make everyone else struggle to get out of their cars.

I'm always the one reversing in my big truck - the amount of people that I meet (in both big cars and small) who are utterly unable to reverse more than 5 feet on a country lane is astounding.

Love the fact tgat you re only looking posts that agree with you.

If you live on a farm then that makes a lot of sense. If you live on a little new build estate with a small driveway and use it to do the school run 5 mins away then I would say it’s inappropriate

Well I live in a terraced house on an estate with no driveway, but I parallel park it into a space the same size as my husband's small car. I do have a horse and dog and spend a lot of time in the countryside but I do equally use it for going to the shops etc because, well it's my car!

If I lived in a city yes it would be totally inappropriate but I hate these threads bashing women for driving big cars and accusing them of not being able to drive them.

My family would laugh hysterically at that description.. I was reading classics when most children were still ploughing through Topsy &Tim

The thing is for every anonymous mumsnetter (who protests that they definitely need their huge car and that they can magically transform it so it only takes up the same space as a small car when parked ...) we have all seen 1000s of people out in the real world who live in tiny houses in suburbia and have two children and uneventful hobbies and jobs and ,take up two parking spaces /half the road when parking.

I bought a larger car after having an accident in my small car with another small car. If it had of been a big car that drove into my small car the accident could have turned out a lot worse so I wanted to feel safe.

I do agree that a lot of car parks need to redo their spaces to accommodate that cars are now much larger than when the spaces were originally drawn out though.

Yes this is the case . Especially in certain towns near me.
I've had a qashqai in the past, but some of these cars are next level enormous. You just think - why do they need such mahoosive things.

They need something so mahoosive as per the poster above. She was in an accident between two little cars where they both came off badly. Now in a massive car she'll obliterate the other car and driver, but be fine herself