I drove an SUV this morning.....

from JoeUser Forums

Now, I am going to be perfectly honest, I'm a bit freaked out about this.  Driving an SUV?  How could this happen?

Well, it's a long story.  My Mom has always driven Jeep Cherokees.  The one that she had was 10 years old and falling apart.  My parents drive 4 wheel drives so that they can get up their insanely steep driveway.  Since my parents are retired and watch my daughter while I'm at work, we bought my Mom a Jeep Liberty to replace her rusting car.

So, how did it come to te point that I would drive it?  Well, the other night, my Dad came knocking on my door.  He seemed concerned. He said that my Mom had concerns about climbing into the Jeep after her surgery and wondered if he could trade the Jeep for my lower Monte Carlo.  So, of course, I could not turn him down, and we switched keys.

So, this morning, it sat in my garage mocking me.  It looked like it was saying: "if you really want to go to work today, you're going to have to drive me!"  So, I climbed up into the odd feeling little machine and started on my way into work.  The ride was strange.  The suspension bounces you around like you are bouncing on a couch.  It sits up high looking down at those mere "cars", and I swear you can hear the sucking sound of gas as driving down the expressway at 70 mph.  I tried to get away, but my seatbelt was too tight.  I had no choice but to continue on to work.

Will there be more to this story?  I think so.  The SUV has asked me to meet it after work in the parking lot.  I feel a little queasy about the whole idea, but I might just have to drive it home.  We'll just have to see.....

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11,376 views 25 replies
Reply #1 from JoeUser Forums Top

like you are bouncing on a couch


this analogy does not compute... I can only think of one thing that would cause me to bounce on a couch... and it requires two people...

Reply #2 from JoeUser Forums Top
As a car driver, I'm 'anti-SUV' myself. I've driven trucks, vans, and SUVs, but always feel more in control when I'm lower to the ground.

Please, whatever you do, don't learn to love it and become another overly confident (steriotype) big guy on the roads, leaving the rest of us little guys behind!!!

Come to think of it, I think I hear the Jeep mocking you right now. Hate it, hate it...
Fences - Organize your desktop icons today!
Reply #3 from JoeUser Forums Top
Personally I prefer vehicles that sit a little higher up, but that's mostly because of my bad back. It's easier for me to get in and out of them.

I own a small SUV, a Geo Tracker. Good on gas, not a huge monster,but sits higher up than the average car so it works for me. Besides, I like the convertable top.
Reply #4 from JoeUser Forums Top
Hmm, I never really considered a Liberty an SUV per se, but more along the lines of a grown up Wrangler. Actually, I kind of like the Liberty because it's not as big as say a Suburban, but it's not a small truck either. I think people knock SUVs a little too much. I'm fully aware that 9 out of 10 people buy them for status or a penis envy type of thing, but they're actually quite useful if you have a regular purpose for one.

-- B
Reply #5 from JoeUser Forums Top

quite useful if you have a regular purpose for one.

most people don't though.  You see a lot of 2 wheel drive, so they aren't using them for climbing hills (rear wheel drive is worse for that than front wheel drive) or for driving in the snow.  You also see a lot of them with no trailer hitch, so you know they aren't towing anything with them.

I don't like SUV's because they suck gas like crazy.  I think I will use almost 1/2 a tank of gas just getting to work and back home. 

It's fine for my Mom, though.  She puts less than 100,000 miles on a car in 10 years.  She also needs 4 wheel drive to get up her drive way in the winter.  I couldn't afford to drive that thing back and forth to work even if I wanted to.

But, that is why people should buy cars for what they need, not only because that's what they want.

Reply #6 from JoeUser Forums Top
But, that is why people should buy cars for what they need, not only because that's what they want.


Yeah, I agree here. Unless it's something like a sports car (which is a frivolous car to own) I think decisions in car buying should lean towards utility. Something like a Liberty would work well for me...I have two kids and my car (a 79 Honda Civic) is about as big as a Chicklet. My wife has a Ford Escort, but that's even feeling cramped. Then there's the times where having a truck-like car would be helpful for hauling stuff. I'm not saying that you should sacrifice personal desire for utility, but there's a lot of decent and nice looking cars out there to fit people's needs better than an SUV.

-- B
Reply #7 from JoeUser Forums Top
But, that is why people should buy cars for what they need, not only because that's what they want.


Thank you for that. I always feel like I need to defend our SUV. Ya know, Minnesota winters, heck, even the summers sometimes, and towing boats, snowmobiles, and fish houses. Camping trips and hauling stuff.

But for day-to-day commuting to work we always take the smaller more economical car. Depending on the weather. I feel so much safer with the four-wheel drive when there's a foot of snow and ice on the road.
Reply #8 from JoeUser Forums Top

feel so much safer with the four-wheel drive when there's a foot of snow and ice on the road.


Well, you shouldn't.  I've had 2 accidents in SUV's, both when I was in 4-wheel drive.  We rolled one, and I hit an semi-head on in the other...both on ice/snow, both in South Dakota.  SUV's give folks a false sense of security.


Sorry to rain on your parade....

Reply #9 from JoeUser Forums Top
Isn't it funny that whenever there's a snow or ice storm the first vehicles you see in the ditches are SUVs?
Reply #10 from JoeUser Forums Top
The only time I've ever had a a problem was in the smaller economy cars. I don't feel my security is false. And I never had a parade anyway. So let it rain. Should've known better than to post a positive SUV comment...doh!

Sorry, it won't happen again!
Reply #11 from JoeUser Forums Top
SUVs are just too big for me. I've only been in two car accidents in my life and both were in my father's SUV. The first time he told me to take it because there was snow and his car was "safer." Yup, much safer, right up until the point that it spun out of control and slammed into a tree (I probably shouldn't mention that I was actually in my parent's driveway, returning home and going 5mph when this unfortunate black ice incident nearly totalled his car!). I'm quite content driving my low-to-the-ground Honda Civic now!

Karma, I find it sweet that the SUV liked you and asked you for a second date.
Reply #12 from JoeUser Forums Top

I find it sweet that the SUV liked you and asked you for a second date.

Yeah, I think I will take the offer, too.  I'm not sure how else I'll get home

Reply #13 from JoeUser Forums Top

Where can I find one of these talking cars, and if possible, have it have a sexy feminine voice instead?


Seriously though, an SUV would be the worst vehicle for me. I like petite cars in which I have ultimate control and feel fused with the car. I don't even like driving my mother's truck. The bright side about an SUV though is that you won't have to worry about another SUV annihilating your car!

Reply #14 from JoeUser Forums Top

The bright side about an SUV though is that you won't have to worry about another SUV annihilating your car!


Yes, that's the only thing that saved me, actually.  My Jeep sat higher than a car, and took the impact better.  Had I been in a car I'd have been killed instantly....but then again, had I been driving a car the accident probably wouldn't have happened.


Xtine, I understand why you'd feel safer in an SUV than in an economy car.  I'm juat saying that they're not as safe as people believe them to bed, especially in poor weather.

Reply #15 from JoeUser Forums Top
I thought of purchasing a jeep Liberty for my mother but decided against it because it felt too tipsy at cruise. Personally, just stick with a car for simplicities sake. Repairing ABS and maintenance on new 4X4's transmissions is not fun.


Make a difference - drive something old!
Reply #16 from JoeUser Forums Top
The bright side about an SUV though is that you won't have to worry about another SUV annihilating your car!


That's why I ordered a tank from the Army surplus store. Should be here next week.
Reply #17 from JoeUser Forums Top
Cool! What's the mileage on that?
Reply #18 from JoeUser Forums Top
I won't deny it, I love driving big old SUVs. I love riding nice and high above the road, being able to see a little better. And I admit to liking the feeling of a big, spacious vehicle.

Of course, I wouldn't want to drive one every day. For that I will stick to one of our normal sized cars.

As far as the safety thing, I think part (not all) of the problem is that people feel too safe driving SUVs, so they don't drive as carefully as they ought to. Not always, but often. When driven properly I do believe that they can be more safe than regular cars, but it requires a certain type of driving, a different type then when driving a car.
Reply #19 from JoeUser Forums Top
SUV's kill, be very careful. They are their own, they have their own mentality, their own cliques, they have their own lifestyle. They are vicious. And you turned one on your own family. You are a sick, sick, person. Get a Yugo, quick.
Reply #20 from JoeUser Forums Top

Get a Yugo, quick.

Obviously you didn't hear about the Yugo that took that girl over the Mackinac Bridge?  " In 1989, a tragic accident captured the front pages of state newspapers. Leslie Pluhar's 1987 Yugo, a small car, plunged from the bridge more than 150 feet to the straits below. It was the first vehicle to fall off the five-mile span since it opened." 
http://info.detnews.com/history/story/index.cfm?id=156&category=locations

Now, it sounds like the Yugo is the killer car here, voodoo.

 

Reply #22 from JoeUser Forums Top

Did I say Yugo, I meant Festiva. Sorry.

A Festiva would be better

Or- just don't drive over bridges.....

Reply #24 from JoeUser Forums Top
Changed my mind about the tank. Buying a horse and buggy instead. Just learned oats are cheaper than gas or diesel
Reply #25 from JoeUser Forums Top

Personally I prefer vehicles that sit a little higher up, but that's mostly because of my bad back. It's easier for me to get in and out of them.


You like being above everyone else on the road? Scour the country for a '32 La Salle!--like climbing Mt. Everest.