Alright....

I have read all of the above and have gotten some very good points from this. So if I may....

I think this SUV thing is getting a tad on the outrageous side. Hell when the Ford Excursion came out it got the same MPG as a 59 Caddy (and the caddy still looked better).

BUT Rather than say point fingers at who is to blame, I think there is a situation that has occurred over time that has led to this riduculous # of SUV's.

That situation is the lack of a suitable RWD CAR. With the ever stringent MPG requirements on new cars, the automakers had to figure out a way to make a vehicle that could haul people and stuff and still perform respectably. The MPG requirements for trucks are less stringent so they started making them.

Wouldn't you know, a big honking motor in a RWD platform. People ate it up as it's what John Q public liked (RWD, V-8). Plus you could haul stuff and didn't have a hump on the floor for the catalytic converter) .

They started selling like hot cakes. Every one from Honda to BMW jumped on the bandwagon thinking everyone wanted an SUV. People buy them because they're saying "I really wish BMW made a big RWD V8 powered ride".

Will it ever end? Time will tell.

The reintroduction of RWD Cars (ie. GM's new Epsilon platform)that perform well may swing the pendulum back the other way as peole buy one and find out it out performs the SUV's and at the end of the week they still have gas $$ left over. It catches on and a few yaers later, TomP will be able to see when he backs his 86 out of the parking lot (now with 900,000 mile on it)

 

Suv's are so played out, today I counted 37 Suv's just driving around town. In less than 5 min's too

 

ok, this is strictly my opinion and i have been argued with many times, but i didnt like clinton much, but we didnt have all this trouble when he was president, people have told me well he was ignoring the threats..ok maybe he was...but nothing happened, all well that ends well, now bush is president we are having all theses wars and stuff what on earth is he doin wrong to mess us up this bad?


my 2 cents

later
mike