SUVs - a.k.a. "Esuvee" muppet leads campaign warning of SUV dangers! *Now with mandatory PIC*

[Analog]

Monster part of $30-million campaign pushing safer driving

February 1, 2005

BY MARK PHELAN
FREE PRESS COLUMNIST

A nasty looking Muppet on steroids debuted Monday in the latest attempt to convince drivers that SUVs are Satan's spawn, the things the Lord of the Rings' Dark Riders would have used to hunt down Frodo, if only they could have afforded the gasoline.

The beast, which goes by the endearing name Esuvee, is part of a new $30-million campaign mostly funded by Ford Motor Co. through a settlement of a lawsuit brought by 50 state governments over its marketing of SUVs.

SUV MP3 clip by Mem Shannon

http://www.esuvee.com

article

 

[quakefiend420]

ok...

 

[brxndxn]

That made me mad..

I can't stand people that have to take the extreme sides.. ON EITHER SIDE!!!

On one extreme:

"Hi, I'm a soccer mom in a family of five and I need a Ford Dominator XXXL 4WD 109" wheel base 8L V10"

On the other extreme:

"SUVs are horrible for the environment and there is no use for them whatsoever. Everyone should be driving a Saturn .8 L 20 HP car that gets 900 miles to the gallon."

 

[WyteWatt]

So glad I have a bike.

 

[flot]

That is retarded.

 

[rh71]

suv bashing was so 2002.

 

[J0hnny]

Always hated the use of monstrous SUVs being used in the city and always will. There is no use for them in the streets of any large city, unless you have a commercial license.

 

[iamwiz82]

Originally posted by: J0hnny
Always hated the use of monstrous SUVs being used in the city and always will. There is no use for them in the streets of any large city, unless you have a commercial license.

That's what is beautiful about the U.S. They can drive what they want, even if you don't like it.

 

[Calin]

The SUVs are supported by some regulation that consider them light trucks for the small or very small bussiness. If the regulations (pollution) would disappear, the SUVs would be more expensive.

 

[Freejack2]

I can see why someone who lives on dirt roads in the middle of nowhere might need an suv but why does joe commuter need one?
For snow? Really now, then why is it my little subcompact car can handle the snow just fine. If the snow is too bad for me to go someplace then so is it for joe commuter. Get an awd car.
For safety? An SUV can take more damage but at the cost of manueverability, you can't do a crazy maneuver in an SUV for fear of rollover, in a car you can. To me that means the odds are the same no matter what I drive.

Mind you it's a free country and people can drive what they want but it seems kind of ridiculous to own a giant suv just to get only yourself to work.

An suv costs more in fuel, which considering prices are over $2 a gallon again, costs quite a bit to run. They don't handle like a car and have to slow down more for turns due to risk of rollover. They cost upwards of 3 times as much as a subcompact with all the fixings, yet end up only worth maybe a thousand dollars more than a subcompact in the end.

People can buy whatever the heck they want but I'd rather buy a nice subcompact or mid sized car for a third of what an suv costs and put the rest of the money towards things like a house and computer equipment.

 

[cjgallen]

Awww, he's so cute

 

[rh71]

Originally posted by: Calin
The SUVs are supported by some regulation that consider them light trucks for the small or very small bussiness. If the regulations (pollution) would disappear, the SUVs would be more expensive.

The loophole was closed, AFAIK... so they already are.

 

[Analog]

Mem Shannon's song:

I'M SICK OF THESE S.O.B.'S DRIVING THESE S.U.V.'S

TRYING TO RUN OVER ME WHEN I'M IN MY BEAT UP CAR (2X)



WAIT A MINUTE



I CAN REMEMBER WHEN I COULD NAME EVERY CAR ON THE ROAD

YOU HAD CADILLACS CHEVROLETS BUICKS PONTIACS

LINCOLNS CHRYSLERS AND FORDS



NOW EVERYBODY'S DRIVING S.U.V.'S AND THEY ALL LOOK THE SAME

MOUNTAIN MONSTERS LAND-EATERS ALL KINDS OF OL CRAZY NAMES

 

[Jfrag Teh Foul]

I earn my money and I drive what I want. Anybody says to me that I should or should not drive this or that vehicle can fsck off... twice.

 

[acemcmac]

my favorite part is that on the really twisty roads around here, sometimes they round off the yellow lines... you know... crossing into oposing traffic to avoid having to make a harder turn?

the first time an SUV did this in front of me, it was a HUGE 05 Honda Pilot (I had no idea they were so big until this encounter)... I simply thought he was turning off, so I did what any RWD'er on a twisty road would do... I sped up....

So here I am, on a really twisty road, doing 15 over the limit, with a Honda Pilot in the wrong lane on my left, going into a blind turn, and then HE DECIDED HE WANTS TO GET BACK ON HIS SIDE OF THE ROAD and starts trying to muscle me into the embankment

I should have made him stay over there :|

this is my rant about SUV's

 

[ai42]

I have to admit I hate SUVs but...

I don't think they should go away, there are certainly people with needs who would need them. And probably a lot more people with money to blow on gas etc.

My thing is that these SUV owners don't seam to realize how much manuvering ability they are losing. They see these SUV commercials tearing it up through dirt and rocks and they think that they can do that sort of thing anywhere and with little driving ability. I've seen many crashes in fairly low speed accidents where an SUV gets flipped or rolled on it's side. It's not only dangrous to them but to everyone around them of course. I personally think we should have a new classifification of drivers licenses for SUV/truck owners so they must goto a class of some sort to learn how to drive their SUV/truck first. Certainly isn't a perfect solution as many won't learn either way but its an attempt at educating the public. I don't see this advertising as effective, the people who actually know the dangers are probably the people who will look at this and not the other way around.

 

[acemcmac]

Originally posted by: ai42
I have to admit I hate SUVs but...

I don't think they should go away, there are certainly people with needs who would need them. And probably a lot more people with money to blow on gas etc.

My thing is that these SUV owners don't seam to realize how much manuvering ability they are losing. They see these SUV commercials tearing it up through dirt and rocks and they think that they can do that sort of thing anywhere and with little driving ability. I've seen many crashes in fairly low speed accidents where an SUV gets flipped or rolled on it's side. It's not only dangrous to them but to everyone around them of course. I personally think we should have a new classifification of drivers licenses for SUV/truck owners so they must goto a class of some sort to learn how to drive their SUV/truck first. Certainly isn't a perfect solution as many won't learn either way but its an attempt at educating the public.

I'll do you one better. Let's have a licence system in tiers where you have to master things like power sliding, drifting and other emergency moves.... that'll show the suv'ers what they're missing....

 

[iamwiz82]

Originally posted by: acemcmac

Originally posted by: ai42
I have to admit I hate SUVs but...

I don't think they should go away, there are certainly people with needs who would need them. And probably a lot more people with money to blow on gas etc.

My thing is that these SUV owners don't seam to realize how much manuvering ability they are losing. They see these SUV commercials tearing it up through dirt and rocks and they think that they can do that sort of thing anywhere and with little driving ability. I've seen many crashes in fairly low speed accidents where an SUV gets flipped or rolled on it's side. It's not only dangrous to them but to everyone around them of course. I personally think we should have a new classifification of drivers licenses for SUV/truck owners so they must goto a class of some sort to learn how to drive their SUV/truck first. Certainly isn't a perfect solution as many won't learn either way but its an attempt at educating the public.

I'll do you one better. Let's have a licence system in tiers where you have to master things like power sliding, drifting and other emergency moves.... that'll show the suv'ers what they're missing....

:roll:

WTF does drifting or power sliding have to do with emergency situations? You seem to think that many people enjoy that, when, in fact, most don't so people aren't missing anything.

 

[murphy55d]

Originally posted by: Freejack2
I can see why someone who lives on dirt roads in the middle of nowhere might need an suv but why does joe commuter need one?
For snow? Really now, then why is it my little subcompact car can handle the snow just fine. If the snow is too bad for me to go someplace then so is it for joe commuter. Get an awd car.
For safety? An SUV can take more damage but at the cost of manueverability, you can't do a crazy maneuver in an SUV for fear of rollover, in a car you can. To me that means the odds are the same no matter what I drive.

Mind you it's a free country and people can drive what they want but it seems kind of ridiculous to own a giant suv just to get only yourself to work.

An suv costs more in fuel, which considering prices are over $2 a gallon again, costs quite a bit to run. They don't handle like a car and have to slow down more for turns due to risk of rollover. They cost upwards of 3 times as much as a subcompact with all the fixings, yet end up only worth maybe a thousand dollars more than a subcompact in the end.

People can buy whatever the heck they want but I'd rather buy a nice subcompact or mid sized car for a third of what an suv costs and put the rest of the money towards things like a house and computer equipment.

Ever tried to load up 3 kids, a ton of luggage, coolers, etc into a subcompact to go on a vacation?

You are aware that people do things other than drive to work and buy computer equipment, right? Not all of us ONLY drive our SUV to work and back. Granted I myself don't have kids but I remember my family taking trips and let me tell you had I been stuck in a dinky little subcompact for 10 straight hours with my sister it would not have been a good trip for anyone involved.

 

[Freejack2]

Actually that's a very good idea, leave suvs as passenger vehicles but create a new category that requires an upgrade on your license to drive one. To get the upgrade the driver has to take a 3 hour course in SUV driving safety. Charge like $40 for the course. If people can afford an SUV, they can afford a $40 course that would save lives.

Originally posted by: ai42
I have to admit I hate SUVs but...

I don't think they should go away, there are certainly people with needs who would need them. And probably a lot more people with money to blow on gas etc.

My thing is that these SUV owners don't seam to realize how much manuvering ability they are losing. They see these SUV commercials tearing it up through dirt and rocks and they think that they can do that sort of thing anywhere and with little driving ability. I've seen many crashes in fairly low speed accidents where an SUV gets flipped or rolled on it's side. It's not only dangrous to them but to everyone around them of course. I personally think we should have a new classifification of drivers licenses for SUV/truck owners so they must goto a class of some sort to learn how to drive their SUV/truck first. Certainly isn't a perfect solution as many won't learn either way but its an attempt at educating the public. I don't see this advertising as effective, the people who actually know the dangers are probably the people who will look at this and not the other way around.

 

[lozina]

Originally posted by: acemcmac
my favorite part is that on the really twisty roads around here, sometimes they round off the yellow lines... you know... crossing into oposing traffic to avoid having to make a harder turn?

the first time an SUV did this in front of me, it was a HUGE 05 Honda Pilot (I had no idea they were so big until this encounter)... I simply thought he was turning off, so I did what any RWD'er on a twisty road would do... I sped up....

So here I am, on a really twisty road, doing 15 over the limit, with a Honda Pilot in the wrong lane on my left, going into a blind turn, and then HE DECIDED HE WANTS TO GET BACK ON HIS SIDE OF THE ROAD and starts trying to muscle me into the embankment

I should have made him stay over there :|

this is my rant about SUV's

And this story is pertinent to SUV's because.... ???

 

[Freejack2]

If you want it that's fine, it's your money. Mind you, you could have just as easily gotten a minivan which has just as much room, less likely to roll over, and gets better gas mileage.

What I'm trying to say is a SUV isn't a necessity for many people, if Joe commuter has 4 kids then he could just as easily get a minivan instead of an SUV. If Joe commuter wants his SUV then thats his choice, if I had 3 or 4 kids I'd take the minivan.

Originally posted by: murphy55d

Ever tried to load up 3 kids, a ton of luggage, coolers, etc into a subcompact to go on a vacation?

You are aware that people do things other than drive to work and buy computer equipment, right? Not all of us ONLY drive our SUV to work and back. Granted I myself don't have kids but I remember my family taking trips and let me tell you had I been stuck in a dinky little subcompact for 10 straight hours with my sister it would not have been a good trip for anyone involved.

 

[acemcmac]

Originally posted by: lozina

Originally posted by: acemcmac
my favorite part is that on the really twisty roads around here, sometimes they round off the yellow lines... you know... crossing into oposing traffic to avoid having to make a harder turn?

the first time an SUV did this in front of me, it was a HUGE 05 Honda Pilot (I had no idea they were so big until this encounter)... I simply thought he was turning off, so I did what any RWD'er on a twisty road would do... I sped up....

So here I am, on a really twisty road, doing 15 over the limit, with a Honda Pilot in the wrong lane on my left, going into a blind turn, and then HE DECIDED HE WANTS TO GET BACK ON HIS SIDE OF THE ROAD and starts trying to muscle me into the embankment

I should have made him stay over there :|

this is my rant about SUV's

And this story is pertinent to SUV's because.... ???

it's only suv's that do this, and they do it all the time arond here. This is the story of my first encounter and I was lucky to have survived it. The drivers are so wrapped up in their "I drive a tank ergo I am invincible" mentality, that they literally act with complete disregard to anyone else on the road. If you can't stay on your side of the yellow lines.... then what do you have respect for?

 

[lozina]

Originally posted by: Freejack2
Actually that's a very good idea, leave suvs as passenger vehicles but create a new category that requires an upgrade on your license to drive one. To get the upgrade the driver has to take a 3 hour course in SUV driving safety. Charge like $40 for the course. If people can afford an SUV, they can afford a $40 course that would save lives.

Originally posted by: ai42
I have to admit I hate SUVs but...

I don't think they should go away, there are certainly people with needs who would need them. And probably a lot more people with money to blow on gas etc.

My thing is that these SUV owners don't seam to realize how much manuvering ability they are losing. They see these SUV commercials tearing it up through dirt and rocks and they think that they can do that sort of thing anywhere and with little driving ability. I've seen many crashes in fairly low speed accidents where an SUV gets flipped or rolled on it's side. It's not only dangrous to them but to everyone around them of course. I personally think we should have a new classifification of drivers licenses for SUV/truck owners so they must goto a class of some sort to learn how to drive their SUV/truck first. Certainly isn't a perfect solution as many won't learn either way but its an attempt at educating the public. I don't see this advertising as effective, the people who actually know the dangers are probably the people who will look at this and not the other way around.

If we're going to do any enhancement to driver licenses then we should require all licenses be renewed with a road test/written test every X years. This will weed out those old farts who refuse to stop driving even though they can't drive for sh!t and end up dragging a woman 200 ft before realizing he hit her

 

[lozina]

Originally posted by: acemcmac

Originally posted by: lozina

Originally posted by: acemcmac
my favorite part is that on the really twisty roads around here, sometimes they round off the yellow lines... you know... crossing into oposing traffic to avoid having to make a harder turn?

the first time an SUV did this in front of me, it was a HUGE 05 Honda Pilot (I had no idea they were so big until this encounter)... I simply thought he was turning off, so I did what any RWD'er on a twisty road would do... I sped up....

So here I am, on a really twisty road, doing 15 over the limit, with a Honda Pilot in the wrong lane on my left, going into a blind turn, and then HE DECIDED HE WANTS TO GET BACK ON HIS SIDE OF THE ROAD and starts trying to muscle me into the embankment

I should have made him stay over there :|

this is my rant about SUV's

And this story is pertinent to SUV's because.... ???

it's only suv's that do this, and they do it all the time arond here. This is the story of my first encounter and I was lucky to have survived it. The drivers are so wrapped up in their "I drive a tank ergo I am invincible" mentality, that they literally act with complete disregard to anyone else on the road. If you can't stay on your side of the yellow lines.... then what do? you have respect for?

Wrong, I see people who do that in all sorts of vehicles, including motorcycles. They cut the turn like they're in a race track and think there is not one else on the road.