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.

Are you insinuating that I don't actually need my big car, and that I can't park it in a small space? 🤣

Do you feel the same way about people who have huge homes/country estates - yet only 2 people living in said expansive grounds??

Hmm....

It’s not just women who can’t drive them, it’s men too. The problem from my observations is that unfortunately most people in SUVs believe they automatically have the right of way and have no issue taking up two spaces in a carpark and leaving you unable to open your car doors. Also parking badly on the school run. The school sent out an email of all the offenders who had parked badly causing emergency vehicles unable to access the road and guess who they were!
Our roads and carparks were not designed for them.

Yes we’ve heard repeatedly what a great driver you are and how you can parallel park etc, that’s great, pat on back - but you can’t make your car shrink can you, it’s still offensively big and taking up more space in car parks and on the road, it’s still more damaging to the environment

I'm surprised you can fit in a small car with that enormous chip on your shoulder.

We live in a one bed flat in suburbia, no kids, no kids or hobbies, DH retired but we still need an SUV so he can actually get in and out of the car. He can't comfortably get in and out of my car and and SUV was the only one that he found comfortable.

But they’re mostly bought on finance so they can’t really afford it

Personally, I think that’s a perfectly legitimate reason to get one but there are some more compact and eco friendly versions out there. My neighbours had a smaller one for this very reason and it makes a lot of sense.

Hilarious. Please, continue.

I drive an A3 which is a medium sized car, but increasingly feels tiny next to these behemoths.

We didn't want a big suv but found it really hard to find an alternative. Soon lots of people will be forced into suvs.

It feels like the newer cars have either massive upsized or downsized. Its either an igo or a tank. Lots of the mid sized cars eg ford focus are no longer being produced. We very much found you could either get a fiesta style car or an suv

We managed to find a 5 year old estate type car, but that model is no longer being produced.

Even volvo tried to stop selling estates for a while and go for big suv only

We wanted a boot big enough for a double buggy but realised that our options were like tanks. 15 years ago we'd of been looking at estates, a Picasso, tourans, type thing but they've all gone from the new market.

My dislike for big cars has nothing to do with anyones ability to park it.

I hate them because

1. They are unnecessary - We had a fiat 500 for 10 years with 2 young adult children. It coped fine with shopping and travel
2. They are harmful for the environment. If its bigger then its dirtier and uses more fuel. It also uses more materials to build
3. It clogs up the roads. If everyone is in a battle to get bigger and bogger cars the roads become more congested and narrow roads become harder to pass.
4. They are dangerous for anyone else but the occupants on the road. Imagine being in a Fiat 500 and having an accident with some of these 2 ton bohemouths.

There was a huge thread about school run cunts recently. Everyone jumped on board slating all the bad driving, parking, and downright poor behaviour. I bet 90% of the people posting drove big cars because little Timmy needs more room in the back.

The government already tax cars on emissions and value. Next step is weight. Heavy cars should pay triple the road tax of little/light cars. Tax them off the road.

If you're really worry about getting stuck in the snow, then get some winter tyres. Put them on around October time and take them off around Easter. It's what the rest of Europe does every year. It's considerably cheaper than buying and running a 4x4.

What's the point of a more compact car when he can't get in and out of it easily?! I have an 'eco friendly' car, fondly known as the Pile of Toyota Shit and I can't wait to get rid of it and get an older car that I can actually rely on. It might be economical and environmentally friendly but it's uncomfortable and I can't rely on it, another reason for DH to have a decent car!

What car do you drive that parks it for you? Would love to know!

Toyota Yaris Cross or Skoda Elroq seem like good options. My neighbours had the Yaris and they were in their 90s with mobility issues and very happy with it.

My Mini was able to do this, I never really needed to use it though.

Do you mean Parking Assistant? I thought you still had to control the car to a point.

No, if you are reverse or parallel parking it will do it itself.

Neither of us would touch a Toyota with the proverbial barge pole after mine, I don't really care that it's better for the environment, it's just shit. Anyway I believe the Yaris Cross is around the same size as the Mazda CX-30 which he tried and didn't find as comfortable as the bigger CX-5 when it came to getting in and out.