For me simply one of the worst inventions of the last years, a 2ton+ pseudo-tank, pseudo-all terrain vehicle , pseudo-roomy/family vehicle, the SUV.
I usually don’t mind a shit to the vehicle one drives, neither alone value/rate a person for his/hers wheels, but for SUV drivers i open an exception, in my opinion all those guys/gals moving around in BMW X*, Audi Q’s, Volvo XC*, Touaregs, Cayennes and the likes are just plain retarded assholes, who should pay 10x times more road tax than the other drivers.
Why? Well, there are two main reasons, the first is that from the technical point of view they just suck, SUVs suck at off road, the ratio from total space/inner cabin space sucks, awful aerodynamics, prone to rollover due to high center of gravity, high fuel consumption, and the list goes on. So, all this sets up the other reason why i hate SUVs, because many (if not most) of SUV drivers know all these reasons but yet they choose them over better, more sensible options, because they are a status symbol. So these narrow minded people spent some tens of thousands just to show-off a status symbol… so for me is like “Hey, look at me! I drive a 40.000 euro SUV, here i am at the top of the world! Im successful!”, yet stupid enough to make a idiot choice.
Even in a collision, either with other vehicles or pedestrians, they are plain dangerous due to the oversize mass. So, this brings me closer to the post title, these vehicles should be heavily taxed (i mean really heavily), and the lighter more fuel efficient vehicles on the the other hand should be promoted with tax isentions. Also there should be a law limit to vehicle weight.
We really must be a dumb society to embrace SUVs, that are a ménace to the environment, the economy and other road users. Can really someone explain to me?
India’s environment Minister Jairam Ramesh even goes a little further and calls it (SUV driving) criminal. As the days go by i am more and more biased into his opinion.
Updates:
30-12-2010: SUVs and other gas guzzlers will be forbidden in Paris – http://www.leparisien.fr/avon-77210/les-voitures-polluantes-bientot-indesirables-21-12-2010-1199315.php
- roomy