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SUVs, Sports Cars and Hypocrisy

Amused

Elite Member
One thing I have noticed among SUV haters is that they never bash sports cars.

They rail on and on about how wasteful SUVs are. How we as a nation are so gas dependent because of them. They comment that because they often see a single driver in them, then they are not needed.

Yet sports cars often get as bad if not worse gas mileage than SUVs, yet have none of the usefulness of an SUV.

With an SUV you can tow your boats and trailers, haul home large purchases, and carry 8-10 passengers. None of which you can do with a sports car.

BTW, no, I do not own an SUV. But my V6 Passat only averages 18 MPG in the city. About the same as many smaller SUVs.
 
Originally posted by: Amused

BTW, no, I do not own an SUV. But my V6 Passat only averages 18 MPH in the city. About the same as many smaller SUVs.

your traffic must suck!
 
<---- Garage? We've had more than a few of these kinds of discussions.

SUVs are grossly more prevalent in our 21st century America, making them a higher-profile target, and indeed more wasteful as a whole than the relatively small numbers of 'sports' cars.

You are correct though, most 'sports' cars have very poor fuel economy, Vette notwithstanding.
 
Originally posted by: Amused
One thing I have noticed among SUV haters is that they never bash sports cars.

They rail on and on about how wasteful SUVs are. How we as a nation are so gas dependent because of them. They comment that because they often see a single driver in them, then they are not needed.

Yet sports cars often get as bad if not worse gas mileage than SUVs, yet have none of the usefulness of an SUV.

With an SUV you can tow your boats and trailers, haul home large purchases, and carry 8-10 passengers. None of which you can do with a sports car.

BTW, no, I do not own an SUV. But my V6 Passat only averages 18 MPG in the city. About the same as many smaller SUVs.

2006 called, it wants its headline back.
 
Originally posted by: LS21
sports cars dont block road vision and hog parking spaces

Hog parking places? I've never seen an SUV that requires more than one parking spot. If you are referring to the fact that people can't park them, then i've seen just as many regular car owners who can't park.
 
Originally posted by: Arkaign
<---- Garage? We've had more than a few of these kinds of discussions.

SUVs are grossly more prevalent in our 21st century America, making them a higher-profile target, and indeed more wasteful as a whole than the relatively small numbers of 'sports' cars.

You are correct though, most 'sports' cars have very poor fuel economy, Vette notwithstanding.

Maybe because they're more useful?

Before SUVs there were fullsize station wagons and vans. No more economical than SUVs and neither could drive offroad.

 
Originally posted by: tefleming
SUVs also pose a different challenge safety wise.

For the sedan driver:
Sedan + SUV is worse than Sedan + Sports Car

SUV's are generally much saver to drive than sports cars.
 
Originally posted by: Arkaign
<---- Garage? We've had more than a few of these kinds of discussions.

SUVs are grossly more prevalent in our 21st century America, making them a higher-profile target, and indeed more wasteful as a whole than the relatively small numbers of 'sports' cars.

You are correct though, most 'sports' cars have very poor fuel economy, Vette notwithstanding.

This.

There are far more SUVs than sports cars on the road, so the collective damage is worse. As an analogy, heroin is more destructive than alcohol or tobacco, but very few people use heroin compared to alcohol and tobacco, so the collective external costs of the latter two drugs are much higher.

Also, SUVs are heavier than sports cars, so they cause more damage to road infrastructure, and more damage to other vehicles and pedestrians when they are involved in collisions.

 
At their peak light truck and SUV sales made up 55% of new car sales in the United States. Sports car sales represent what percentage of total vehicle sales? Less than 10%?

BTW-You conveniently ignore the fact that it takes more resources to make an SUV, they require brake jobs more often, they use more resources to keep running and they take up more space on the road. So, if you're just using it to drive yourself to and from work everyday that's wasteful.

I don't own an SUV or a sports car, I own 2 family sedans, a fullsize and a midsize.
 
Originally posted by: LS21
sports cars dont block road vision and hog parking spaces

No but parcel vans, work vans, 18 wheelers, and a myriad of other vehicles on the road are more than capable of blocking your vision if you feel the need to be so close to them you can't see around them. As for parking every SUV I have seen other than a Hummer fits in between the lines in a parking lot which is all the space you are entitled to when parking.
 
Another point...SUVs are often driven more than sports cars, so they consume more fuel overall. Many people have an SUV as a daily driver, but many sports cars are only weekend toys.
 
A lot of people who own sports cars don't use them as their daily driver, instead keeping a beater around that they can drive when conditions are bad or if they want to save on gas. Also, depending on the car, some sports cars are capable of pretty good fuel economy. A lot of the little four-bangers, especially turbocharged ones, are capable of a lot of power if you put your foot down, but if you're light on the accelerator they will give you pretty good economy. This is helped by the fact that many sports cars are lighter than the average car, not heavier.

Also, a lot of people who bash SUVs are really only bashing big truck-based SUVs, and only when the owner doesn't use it for anything other than commuting alone. Of course, there are some jerks who bash all SUVs constantly, no matter what, but I for one am happy that the trend is shifting toward smaller, more fuel-efficient SUVs (which are really more like minivans anyway).
 
^^ Yeah. I believe in a free country, and if someone needs an SUV, by all means, have an SUV. But I'll judiciously use my free speech to say that people who own giant gas-gobbling SUV's just as a status symbol, or because they don't want to be seen in a more efficient minivan (for families that don't need off-road abilities, or need to tow very heavy loads, they are vastly superior in almost every aspect) are wasteful and selfish. We all have our vices though. It's just that the guy driving the 10mpg 800hp modded Viper is more interesting than just the next guy driving the 10mpg 7,000lb land tank.
 
I plan on committing the worst crime (according to some people here) and owning both 😛 SUV more for the 4x4 for the winter and the space inside. Looking at a smaller one like a blazer or maybe a little bigger like a trailblazer (but that costs more). Although, the car I want gets mid-upper 20's MPG on the highway 😉
 
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