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hang on a minute there - (long) Posted by MJM [Email]  (#872) [Profile/Gallery]
(more from MJM) on Fri, 16 Mar 2001 09:21:52
In Reply to: Notes from the Commuting Wars....(SUV Hell), Bill H., Tue, 13 Mar 2001 10:30:58 Members do not see ads below this line. - Help Keep This Site Online - Signup |
It's all very fashionable to bash SUV's and SUV owners these days, but based on what? Gas mileage? Wasted resources? Conspicuous consumption?
Ok, so you get 29 mpg on your commute, and at V8 sport-ute _might_ get 19, so what? My 900SET gets 22-24 in my commute. If mileage were "all important", why aren't you/we driving high mileage cars? There are a number of cars on the market that make our 25-30mpg look wasteful. If 18 is bad, what makes 28 good? By that logic, 38 would be great and 48 would be approaching fantastic.
Yes, I would agree that commuting alone in a big SUV, or any car, is "wasteful", but who defines what is wasteful, and so what? You mention that you live in an affluent neighborhood, so let me ask, is your house any larger then it really needs to be? Does each member of your family have their own room? How about furniture, or the clothes in your closet? Do you own more than the minimums in those areas? How is excess in those areas different from excess in a vehicle?
Don't get me wrong, I'm not bashing any of those things. I too have a larger place then I really need, and more clothes, food, toys than are "needed" as well.
You've heard the joke about freeway driving attitudes, right? Everyone who drives slower than you is an idiot, and everyone that drives faster is dangerous. It seems that sometimes these arguments against SUV's come from a mindset like that one. We think "my choices are normal", and so our opinion of others is based on our standards rather than some objective standard. If fuel economy were really important to us, we'd drive Civic HF's or diesel Passats. If waste of resources were important, we'd have smaller houses, fewer toys, etc. The cost of a larger house isn't just in construction, it takes more to clean, furnish, heat, cool, the list goes on.
Even our Saabs aren't immune - we like the heated seats, the leather, the sunroof and so on, none of which are necessary for the task of personal conveyance. Yes, our mileage is a little better due to the small engine, but not by much. I was surprised to see in R&T or C&D that the gas mileage during their testing of the Viggen (2.3T) was equal to that of the 320hp 4.6l V8 Mustang Cobra.
Some choices are important. Belief in God, "family values", kindness, etc, but lets not get wrapped up in picking on little details while ignoring the larger ones.
regards, Mike
, Fri, 16 Mar 2001 09:21:52 <-- Viewing This Message, Fri, 16 Mar 2001 10:59:34
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