Tyred of SUV’s

The wisdom of Father Fintan Stack:

“I had my fun, and that’s all that matters.”

richmtb – its interesting I used to be adamant that I’d never own a pointless 4×4 and they really served no benefit. My wife was even more adamant. Then through a set of circumstances I found myself with time constraints and limited options and saying screw it I’ll take the Honda CRV to tide me over. Best car I’ve ever had! Whilst 50 mpg might not be amazing its better than many cars I had before it (none were especially sporty and I don’t drive like crazy). It was a family waggon moving four or more people in comfort, sometimes moving boats, kayaks, bikes (sometimes all three + luggage). When the time came to replace it we looked at octavias etc – and my short arse wife says the visibility isn’t as good as the raised position in the SUV, my slightly aging parents in law find getting in and out their own low down car increasingly hard and we want to be able to move them around when needed. So I’m part of the problem (although “only” a little under 6000 miles a year part of the problem!) – the SUV name is stupid, and fashion may be a factor but if the product managers of the “estate” ranges are scratching their head wondering why these bricks are so much more popular they probably want to spend some time looking at how people actually use their vehicles and what makes them tick. By the way neither previous nor current SUV are actually 4×4.

Back on Page 1 someone said – just hire a 4×4 when you need one. I assume that person has never tried to hire a 4×4 in peak season (e.g. when there’s snow or flooding) nor get a commitment from a hire company that a vehicle will have a tow bar.

FWIW I live 3 minutes walk from a train station, but 80% of my car journeys would be totally impractical if not impossible by public transport. The pandemic makes people hesitant to use public transport, there’s no service after midnight and we’ve had sunday rail strikes for almost a year. Glasgow is 35 minutes away by train but this popular busy town (15K people) had no direct bus service to Glasgow – it takes nearly 2 hrs to go by bus. My parents live about 50 minutes drive away but its over 2 hrs on public transport. When no trains running I’m actually quicker to cycle it, but that’s not a practical solution. Even when a service is running – to take a family of four by train and bus costs about £50. It’s probably £15 in fuel + running costs on the car. Really the problems aren’t the SUV owners. There’s a lack of infrastructure and pricing that is unattractive for multiple people combined with poor service / restrictive times. All driven by governments who are scared to invest heavily in pushing people out their cars. Any “look its the SUV owners” nonsense is just a smokescreen so the other car owners can feel better about themselves.

do E-MTB’s fall into the same massive SUV/Truck usage, jsut becasue you can, doesn’t mean you should bracket 😉

do E-MTB’s fall into the same massive SUV/Truck usage, jsut becasue you can, doesn’t mean you should bracket 😉

The question should maybe be ‘do they fall foul of the ‘unnecessary performance’ criteria by offering a rider the climbing power beyond the fittest TDF rider’, would they not be better if they were a more honest capability enabler relative to a bicycle? So maybe half the power, but with more range, which may actually suit more people. Wouldn’t be ‘fun’ enough so never catch on…

do E-MTB’s fall into the same massive SUV/Truck usage, jsut becasue you can, doesn’t mean you should bracket 😉

Without getting in to ‘that topic’ again, my own feeling is that yes for the most part EEBs are superfluous and marketed to the middleclasses as expensive outdoor lifestyle toys. There are reasonable use cases (IMO) for people with mobility issues or those looking to replace a car with a less polluting alternative for local utility.

But for the most part they’re sold and used for propelling mostly able bodied people round trail centres…

There obviously is some hypocritical finger-wagging, but choice of vehicle is a pretty clear indication of where you lie on the spectrum of social responsibility vs convenience/pleasure/status isn’t it? Chances are the same people are likely to also have at least an average number of kids/foreign holidays/eat lots of meat etc

From a climate change perspective more children are a huge part of the problem

Pretty important if the point is for the human race to survive though.

Can we get onto the environmental impact of dog ownership (trail or otherwise) yet?

Jesus christ, I despair.

**** letting down tyres with no idea of what the need for the car is or what the consequences of it being out of action are.

Self righteous pricks. I wonder if they would get the same support for doing it to T5 vans !

No **** need for em in urban blah blah.

Oops, someone got the gammon triggered.

no idea of what the need for the car is or what the consequences of it being out of action are.

Turns out not much, which I guess is kind of the point eh.

Thats it, we’ve arrived at Brexit…5 pages in.

wonder if they would get the same support for doing it to T5 vans

Yeah that’s not been mentioned before on this thread. You know we’re at T6.1’s now?

But I imagine exactly the same. I’ve got an 11 year old T5, 85k on the clock, maintain it myself, never ever drive the kids to school in it, but had some flippin’ brilliant camping trips when the alternative could be a week abroad. But, I wouldn’t be in the least but surprised to find a flat tyre or 2. I’m not perfect, we’re all hypocritical in some way when it comes to our green credentials. I’m aware my van isn’t the most environmentally friendly, and as the kids are now to big for it I’ll be selling it next year. It certainly won’t be replaced with a SUV though.

@matt_outandabout

That Volvo Stat has been disproven sooo many times. Yes, currently, if you look favourably at the production of a petrol car and pessimistically at the production of an electric car and assume full scrap at the end of 100k miles and that the electric car is ran at most on 30% renewables, and that there are no emissions associated with oil extraction, pumping, transporting and refining – then, yeah, you get to that number. But in reality renewable contributions are only ever going to go one way, the reuse of batteries (or even the whole car – 100k miles? Really?) or materials will be high given their value and as ever the system boundaries on production and use of a petrol car are waay smaller than those of the EV as people (like Volvo) struggle to deal with Tesla’s rise in the US and the fact that they have but a few EV models to compete with.

I thought of sticking a ‘Penalty charge notice’ on car windscreens with some environmental info inside / cycle to work schemes etc. Never got round to doing it but letting down tyres is a bot hardcore for me!

Bunch of pricks. Anyone thinks they have the right to mess with someone else’s property is mistaken, and all they’re going to do is turn people against them.

You started off defending SUV ownership, then got derailed into a 180degree U-turn with some insight into the plight of the countries dealing with the effects of climate change and the disdain those people feel for people in the global North who needlessly pollute at their expense putting their economies, livelihoods and property at risk.

Good work.

@brucewee

If only you knew how stupid that statement is.

Turns out not much, which I guess is kind of the point eh

And you know this how ?

Who needed to make an urgent trip but couldn’t cause some **** immobilised their only car ?

But, I wouldn’t be in the least but surprised to find a flat tyre or 2. I’m

And you’d be happy enough with that ? Someone vandalising your car ?
Cause that’s what it is.

Thats it, we’ve arrived at Brexit…5 pages in.

You’ve turned into brexit how exactly?
I’ve missed that but lol

I support them all the way. It’s about time SUV drivers were called out.

The missus has an suv, its quite a nice place to sit when stuck in the urban traffic jams.

Quite tricky to lift my ebike onto the roof though as it’s so high up.

About 20 years ago, I was a paid up member of the Alliance Against Urban 4x4s 🙋‍♂️

They did plenty of this type of stuff, but I was a little young to participate, sadly.

Even if those toffs aren’t gonna change their habits, maybe some of the thousands of people who read the news stories about it will make better decisions down the line – that’s probably more the point…

It’s about time SUV drivers were called out.

Do you drive? If so, please share the great environmental credentials of your vehicle/s so we can emulate you.

FWIW last car up a French alp in winter is always an old panda 4×4 with skinny tyres and a 1.2l engine, and never a BMW X5.

SUVs aren’t an excuse for getting down a slightly gritty road in a British winter. They’re ego chariots and nothing else.

Toffs lol

Amazing

What do you lot make of this thing? Its the Paul Smith Mini Strip, stripping out as much of the plastics and unsustainable materials as possible, not even painted, kept raw, not much superfluous. I think its really cool and didn’t get enough attention, cooler than the latest dinosaur performance car maybe, the whole philosophy behind it is closer to where we should be heading. Cant think of anything else out there going down the same lines. Paul Smith, he must be ok he rides bikes…

Paul Smith Mini

If only you knew how stupid that statement is.

You trying to tell me your face didn’t take on even the slightest pinkish hue when you were typing your wee sweary rant?

Come on, don’t tell porkies.

You’re pretty ignorant.
Also you’re use of an implication related to rascist attitudes is even more ignorant

But well done for making the the thread personal. I’ll ignore whatever spouts next.

And you know this how ?

Who needed to make an urgent trip but couldn’t cause some **** immobilised their only car ?

Was mentioned earlier in the thread – the most dramatic story the BBC could find was a pharmacist being slightly late for work.

Well if the BBC says so.
Bottom line is you’re putting someone’s transport out of commission with no knowledge of what it’s needed for.
Did they check the glove boxes for blue badges ?

Regardless of this is the fact that damaging someone’s large car to persuade them to get rid of it is stupid.
Do you imagine it’s actually worked for one single person who’s car was vandalised?

Also you’re use of an implication related to rascist attitudes is even more ignorant

Nope, the only way to use gammon in a racist way is to say it’s a racist term.

To say gammon is a racist term shows a fundamental lack of understanding of what racism is. To be so ignorant in this day and age can only come through willful ignorance.

So go ahead and call me racist but I think we both know which of us holds the bigoted attitudes.

Wow lol
Perhaps try reading posts correctly.
The term is used to describe someone with racist attitudes and you used it to describe me.
(Implication)
And followed by calling me a bigot. You’re on fire bud keep it up

Ignorant indeed

Edit to add, ofcom have deemed the term as racist. Go figure.

Edit to add, ofcom have deemed the term as racist. Go figure.

No they didn’t. They deemed it a ‘mildly offensive’ political insult and did not ban it on TV and Radio. Along with snowflake.

The missus has an suv, its quite a nice place to sit when stuck in the urban traffic jams.

I feel like this sums up how utterly daft cars are as a means of transportation in a single sentence.

Well if the BBC says so.
Bottom line is you’re putting someone’s transport out of commission with no knowledge of what it’s needed for.

Ahh yes, the tried and tested (it failed the test) argument that people only drive cars for wholesome and worthwhile causes.

Absolutely not because 90% of them’re lazy.

To grossly misquote Blackstone, better one person be inconvenienced for 5 minutes reinflating the tyre of their oversized and selfish transport option. Than 10 kids be driven less than a mile to the school gates.

Regardless of this is the fact that damaging someone’s large car to persuade them to get rid of it is stupid.
Do you imagine it’s actually worked for one single person who’s car was vandalised?

Yes actually, I suspect it probably did.

Cars are status symbols for a lot of people, and probably for all SUV drivers. They can’t convey that feeling of status on the driver if they feel like the rest of the world holds them in contempt. Give it 3 years and I bet the next car a lot of them buy isn’t an SUV.

I have to say, brads, it is nice seeing this other side to you. I’m so used to seeing you turn up in threads, make some nudge nudge wink wink comment about a minority that you think is oh so clever because you’re being bigoted but with plausible deniability and congratulate yourself on being so witty.

When someone calls you out on it you get to do your favourite thing which is playing the victim (because as a cis-gender straight white male we all know you’re the real oppressed minority in society).

Who knew that all it takes to get you to lose your cool is the idea of someone touching your stuff.

One of the farm reps that serves my outlaws used to drive a diesel VW. 50-60 real world mpg and filled up once a month.

Her company switched the fleet to hybrids and got a shit load of climate incentives and tax breaks.

She still does the same annual miles give or take, gets real world mid 30’s mpg on avg and fills up twice a month.

But its fine, its environmentally friendly cos the media said so.

And the mines that rape and pillage obscur villages to obtain those rare earths for western battery packs are fine cos no-one gives a shit about whats not in their door step. Or should I say “no reported incidents since records began”. 5 years ago.

Climate is the new religion to keep us under control and with it goes too many myths, half truths and people who think its fine to go go and damage random peoples stuff.

I dont think its right to be 5ft tall with a 6ft waist when theres so much poverty. So can i go round and smash up their fridge and cooker?

TINAS I agree with a lot of what you said, but I don’t see how an SUV is a status symbol. Think that’s the wrong argument. Surely there’s a large proportion of SUV drivers who can’t afford an electric car. I’ve had cars that are status symbols (Aston Martin, Porsche) but never see a rented SUV as a status symbol.
I drive an SUV at the moment, it will be my last. We were fortunate enough to be gifted it by the father in law when he bought his Tesla. Mrs W has finally agreed we will move to an electric car with our next purchase.
We own Fuel Stations, she was adamant we would remain on fuel until the last moment, but the recent attention brought to us by these activists has helped her realise we should have done so a long time ago.

When the time came to replace it we looked at octavias etc – and my short arse wife says the visibility isn’t as good as the raised position in the SUV

That works until we all buy even higher cars since we want to have the visibility and, ideally, have lights at the right height to blind other car drivers and cyclists even when not at high beam.

Any “look its the SUV owners” nonsense is just a smokescreen so the other car owners can feel better about themselves.

Yes of course it is. Keep telling yourself that.

Hypocrites and virtue signallers unite.

Outcry at SUV drivers while buying plastic frames for sport, manufactured using fossil fuels and fitted with metal components extracted for no other reason than somebody’s hobby and then shipped around the world in the same way. NIMBYers annoyed with the world and getting involved on a forum using devices also made in countries using fossil fuels to make them, and ship them – probably updating them every two years just because too.

They’ll put the thread behind them tomorrow though when they jump in their fuel efficient cars to drive to a trail centre or ride start, smug that the unnecessary journey their taking is in a small, fuel efficient car.

Meanwhile, SUVs make a great headline while ignoring all of the hot hatches, performance saloons and large engine diesel estates because, well, the headline is less punchy…

Aren’t sweeping generalisations great. You can just conclude anything you want to.

The SUV I drive means I don’t fly to the Alps in the winter (skiing) or summer (road and MTB – 8 bikes this year).

And I rarely commute in it. Three days WFH and two days of 2×20 mile commutes.

And it’s doing 40mpg, which isn’t as good as I’d like, but not horrendous.

Am I perfect? No
Do I have a carbon footprint? Yes, as does everyone.
Can I do better? Probably. I could give up skiing and MTB.

We just ordered our first EV. In about 30 months (delivery times 🙄) I suspect the mileage that SUV does will go down.

She still does the same annual miles give or take, gets real world mid 30’s mpg on avg and fills up twice a month.

So lets see. To make a lot of assumptions that may not be the case here but…50-60mpg, fills up once a month, so lets say 600 miles per tank, 150 miles per week, 30 miles daily. If its a plug in hybrid then surely the only way to get such poor mileage is to not set off with a full charge of the battery. Its a known fact that may company hybrid vehicles get used without the users ever having plugged them in, they get returned after lease with the cables still wrapped in plastic bags in the frunk. They still get the tax break though…

It did make me laugh that on the other thread everyone in Aberdeen wanted to fight him when he lived here. And yet the rest of us didn’t experiance that.

You’ve made me waste good beer 🍻😂