| Author |
Message |
Martin (Miami348ts)
Intermediate Member
Username: Miami348ts
Post Number: 1480
Registered: 5-2001
| | Posted on Friday, February 15, 2002 - 8:24 am: | |
Walking thru the streets in telluride CO I saw a vast number of trucks as well as probably all Subarus sold in this country. There were all there...
Subaru is probably the best vehicle when handling in snow.
My Jeep is a hauling vehicle only. Yesterday nioght I hauled my snowboards to the warehouse and today I am hauling trash from one of the properties. Other than that, I do not like the Jeep. Too big and too bad of a ride! |
William_Huber (Solipsist)
Junior Member
Username: Solipsist
Post Number: 174
Registered: 9-2001
| | Posted on Friday, February 15, 2002 - 7:43 am: | |
The SUV craze keeps my business going. I get many jobs from them backing into BMW's, rear ending Mercedes Benz, side swiping a LEXUS. It never ends in Houston. The one thing that scared me was last Sunday at the Blockbuster video store on Westhiemer, a yellow 360 spyder was parked in front of the store when a speeding Ford Excursion with super soccer mommy talking on her phone. She raced into a parking spot next to the Ferrari & got way to close to the driver�s door. There was not enough room for the 360 driver to get the door open with out damaging it. |
Michael (Mtabije)
Junior Member
Username: Mtabije
Post Number: 223
Registered: 10-2001
| | Posted on Thursday, February 14, 2002 - 9:54 pm: | |
King of the Hill is damn funny! Mike Judge, the creator of Beavis and Butthead fame, actually got the idea for a more adult comedy when he relocated to Texas. He actually went to school to be a mechanical engineer and some of the drawings and depictions in his animation show that. It's funny but a different funny than the social/cultural/satire-critique that is The Simpsons. As for SUV's check out all the recent car shows and these crossover vehicles It's and SUV/Minivan/Compact/Sporty vehicle that you can put your snowboards in and fuctional tie downs behind the foldable rear seats...blah blah blah blah blah ala Toyota Matrix, Lexus IS300 Wagon (Lexus doesn't want you to call it a wagon), Mazda Protoge 5, Pontiac Vibe, and the list goes on and on and on..... |
Randy (Schatten)
Junior Member
Username: Schatten
Post Number: 188
Registered: 4-2001
| | Posted on Thursday, February 14, 2002 - 9:00 pm: | |
Bret, and you think he's kidding? ha!
A few years ago, I went out to Sacremento and met up with some friends there. We were sitting aroudn flipping channels and then King of the Hill came on. They didnt' get it. They thought it was totally fictional. But I swear, its all true, and if you live in Texas long enough, you'll run into those neighbors on the cartoon. And another thing, they never got the crack about her name: Luann Platter. =) |
BretM (Bretm)
Intermediate Member
Username: Bretm
Post Number: 1609
Registered: 2-2001
| | Posted on Thursday, February 14, 2002 - 8:41 pm: | |
lol. |
James P. Smith (Tigermilk)
Junior Member
Username: Tigermilk
Post Number: 60
Registered: 7-2001
| | Posted on Thursday, February 14, 2002 - 8:00 pm: | |
Well, on the way home from work today I saw another Texas specialty - the limo truck (4 extended cabs strapped together and a long or double-long bed, quite ridiculous looking). Must have been delivering some customers to the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo. Too bad the guy across the street from me wasn't out with his bow and arrow shooting fake deer in his yard. That would have topped my day off. |
arthur chambers (Art355)
Junior Member
Username: Art355
Post Number: 139
Registered: 6-2001
| | Posted on Thursday, February 14, 2002 - 6:58 pm: | |
Nika:
Here in California we buy SUVs and raise them with big tires, etc. Then we put in Nitrous to make sure that the 454 we bought was fast enough. Doesn't work worth a damn in the snow, but you sure can have fun off the lights with the hot rods, and sports cars.
Art |
Edward Gault (Irfgt)
Member
Username: Irfgt
Post Number: 818
Registered: 2-2001
| | Posted on Thursday, February 14, 2002 - 4:46 pm: | |
I went to Alaska last year and couldn't help but notice that SUVs were hard to find on the roads. Just 2wd cars and pickup trucks. If they don't need them there then where the hell are they needed or Alaskans just smarter than the lower 49. |
Tyler (Bahiaau)
Junior Member
Username: Bahiaau
Post Number: 94
Registered: 12-2001
| | Posted on Thursday, February 14, 2002 - 3:06 pm: | |
I also am surrounded by SUV drivers and truck drivers. The popular ones here are the Ford Excursion(with a V10) and the Lexus LX470. I have to agree that it does appear the larger the vehicle the less skill of the driver. Nika, I think of SUVs and trucks the same way, they are work vehicles. The soccer moms around here are deadly in them. I think they are a status symbol though and that helps fuel the craze. |
DBP (Dilly)
Junior Member
Username: Dilly
Post Number: 56
Registered: 9-2001
| | Posted on Thursday, February 14, 2002 - 2:50 pm: | |
I really don't like SUVs. However, if I lived up near Nika I know I would feel differently. Most people love being "up high so you can see everything". Well I want to be down low so I don't roll over. We drove the X5 and it just wasn't for us. I agree with Frank and I think a lot of other people would too if they looked at those crash tests. |
Mark (Study)
Junior Member
Username: Study
Post Number: 165
Registered: 10-2001
| | Posted on Thursday, February 14, 2002 - 2:34 pm: | |
I have the most fun watching SUV guys trying to race sports cars. You see it at the lights and around town (blocking or competetng for a lane change).
What a joke. If you want to race, do me a favor and buy a sports car.
Actualy I don't know if it is the driver wishing he had a sports car or feeling sad that he is stuck with 5000pounds of metal (regardless of how much horse power he has).
But it is also the TV ads. Has anyone seen the SUV ad that shows a SUV stuck behind a P-car.
Or Ford or Mazda with SUV on track or surounded by Miatas... or I even saw one with a Esprit racing a truck. Marketing to the macho boys... that an SUV is not a station wagon or a mini van is the name of the game! |
Willis Huang (Willis360)
Member
Username: Willis360
Post Number: 489
Registered: 8-2001
| | Posted on Thursday, February 14, 2002 - 2:31 pm: | |
Oops, I forgot about Subarus. |
Richelson (Richelson)
Member
Username: Richelson
Post Number: 412
Registered: 12-2001
| | Posted on Thursday, February 14, 2002 - 2:19 pm: | |
I think the SUV craze is absurd. They charge a fortune for these, quality questionable cars. I agree with Frank, quite a scam. Also, it is true the bigger these get the worse the drivers are. They think that they are invincible in these sport utilities. The headlights blind you to no end and most are to big for the road let alone a parking space. I think they are everywhere. The south, TN, GA etc. all have lots of trucks. |
Randy (Schatten)
Junior Member
Username: Schatten
Post Number: 185
Registered: 4-2001
| | Posted on Thursday, February 14, 2002 - 2:17 pm: | |
People should be required to have a license and take a skills class to drive one of those things. Seriously - how many times have you been run off the road by one because the driver couldn't see you / wasn't paying attention / thought they could drive it like a sports car / other ?
Yes, there are problems with that idea, but then again, there is something that the govt wouldn't ignore - more income! Heck, they still make money manufacturing the penny, they'll do anything for an extra buck in their pocket(s).
Can't stand the soccer moms out there driving their SUV's on the phone with five screaming kids in the back. This is a very frequent sight I come across. /rant.
And what about parking spaces? When I go to a mall or a shopping center, there are a vast number of 'compact parking spaces' that only a line of Geo Metros would fit in. Yet, in Texas, we have the majority of trucks and SUVs sold in the US. =/ sad sad sad.
Willis - btw, the Subaru WRX wagon isn't too shabby either. =) |
TomD (Tifosi)
Member
Username: Tifosi
Post Number: 298
Registered: 9-2001
| | Posted on Thursday, February 14, 2002 - 2:08 pm: | |
Willis
I agree and I refuse to drive one. To me they are still to much like a truck. I have the MB and Audi Wagons and they are great. The audi is nimble in the snow and MB gets by. the MB has a huge amount of space with two seats in the rear.
|
89TCab (Jmg)
Junior Member
Username: Jmg
Post Number: 130
Registered: 9-2001
| | Posted on Thursday, February 14, 2002 - 2:05 pm: | |
Unfortunately, most people that want an SUV will never consider a station wagon. I like to think of them as rolling chicanes and treat them appropriately! |
Frank Parker (Parkerfe)
Member
Username: Parkerfe
Post Number: 557
Registered: 9-2001
| | Posted on Thursday, February 14, 2002 - 2:05 pm: | |
If you need all wheel drive, there are many all wheel dive cars and wagons on the market from BMW, Audi,Subaru,Toyota and many others. Even Lamborghini offers an all wheel drive option. |
Willis Huang (Willis360)
Member
Username: Willis360
Post Number: 488
Registered: 8-2001
| | Posted on Thursday, February 14, 2002 - 2:02 pm: | |
Stationwagons make perfect sense for most people who drive SUVs now. Some are pretty cool and sporty with AWD(BMWs, M-Bs, Audis, Volvos). They're also just the right size to fit in parking spaces. |
Nika (Racernika)
Member
Username: Racernika
Post Number: 316
Registered: 12-2001
| | Posted on Thursday, February 14, 2002 - 1:53 pm: | |
Well, in cold Toronto climates - I need an all-wheel drive when it snows. I also can't fit 40lbs of dog food and a bunch of groceries in the 308. But I always wonder why people buy pick up's in California just to lower them.....and cruise. I've always looked at them as work vehicles.
On another note - it's terrible to see SUV drivers driving with the attitude that their trucks can handle bad weather.......I've seen many become ditched because people don't realize 4 wheel drive may provide traction but not stopping power in a snow storm. |
Frank Parker (Parkerfe)
Member
Username: Parkerfe
Post Number: 556
Registered: 9-2001
| | Posted on Thursday, February 14, 2002 - 1:45 pm: | |
The SUV craze is a result of the largest fraud ever pulled off on the American public. Up until the early 1970s a man with a family that needed more room would buy a station wagon. Only farmers and construction companies used trucks. Then came the OPEC gas crunch. Because the American manufacturers couldn't then make cars meet the new gas mileage, emission, and safety standards on cars, they started selling vans and SUVs which are "trucks" and didn't have to meet the car standards. Now, decades later, the manufacturers could easily make the trucks meet the same standards as cars, but don't. Why should they. Us dumb Americans will buy inefficient, unsafe, poor handling, gas guzzling SUVs under the misguilded concept that "bigger is better". Its not. Even the Insurance Institutes crash tests show that a four door sedan is much safer in a crash than a big ugly SUV . The profit margin on SUVs is much higher than on cars so don't look for the manufacturers to change their marketing any time soon. |
Ken Thomas (Future328driver)
New member
Username: Future328driver
Post Number: 30
Registered: 12-2001
| | Posted on Thursday, February 14, 2002 - 1:43 pm: | |
James,
You think Houston is bad, you should see it in Dallas. I think the SUV is the weapon of choice around here. |
James P. Smith (Tigermilk)
Junior Member
Username: Tigermilk
Post Number: 58
Registered: 7-2001
| | Posted on Thursday, February 14, 2002 - 12:50 pm: | |
I was told Rossa Rubino. Looks like ruby red, so I'll take it. Just don't confuse it for Texas A&M colors. Strange thing is that it's close in color to the '88 Pontiac Grand Am I donated last year after I bought the 308. Old with the old, in with the older. |
Dave (Maranelloman)
New member
Username: Maranelloman
Post Number: 11
Registered: 1-2002
| | Posted on Thursday, February 14, 2002 - 12:29 pm: | |
James,
I agree 110%. And I have found that, the larger the vehicle, the smaller the driving skills...
BTW, I really like the unusual color of your 308. Is that Rosso Fiorano? Or Rosso Monza? |
Willis Huang (Willis360)
Member
Username: Willis360
Post Number: 486
Registered: 8-2001
| | Posted on Thursday, February 14, 2002 - 12:27 pm: | |
Kids grew up riding in their mommy's Caravan or Cherokee. It's really not a surprise they'd rather have a SUV over a sportscar. Also, they probably need the room to haul their buddies and snowboards. |
Ken (Allyn)
Junior Member
Username: Allyn
Post Number: 185
Registered: 10-2001
| | Posted on Thursday, February 14, 2002 - 12:15 pm: | |
Not just Texas. More kids would rather have an SUV than a sportscar in a recent poll I saw. WUWT? |
James P. Smith (Tigermilk)
Junior Member
Username: Tigermilk
Post Number: 56
Registered: 7-2001
| | Posted on Thursday, February 14, 2002 - 11:53 am: | |
You pull up to the light and you're surrounded by trucks. This morning I had a Suburban in front of me, a big American truck behind me, and 3 big US trucks to the right. Not a passenger car in sight. And being in the 308 I was eye to eye with their hubcaps.
Texans are a little too infatuated with trucks. |
Anonymous
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