Vehicle downsizers now facing buyers remorse
A lot is lost in the transition from a Hummer to a smart. We tend to focus on the benefits: the lost fuel bills and reduced vehicular emissions, and that's not going to change any time soon, we being AutoblogGreen and all. Some people, though, are finding that they miss their larger fuel-guzzlers more than they had initially expected. It's easy to hate a car when pulling up to the gas pump and dumping a hundred bucks or more into the tank every week, and it's also likely pretty easy to forget that act a few months after it's gone. It's also tough to get used to a small car after driving a huge SUV or pickup truck for years.
An article from The Wall Street Journal highlights the challenges that some drivers are facing when downsizing their vehicles. We're not too surprised that somebody isn't loving their Chevy Aveo. Losing out on cargo space downsizing from a Suburban to a Pacifica is also a given. For those who occasionally need the passenger or luggage space, though, may we suggest a rental minivan?
[Source: The Wall Street Journal]
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 3)
Jesse 8:56PM (11/06/2008)
Why am I not surprised this was a Wall Street Journal article. I've been watching them slamming renewable energy every chance they get. Why not do whatever they can to find a bad side to downsizing cars too. Stupid newspaper.
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Brian 2:14PM (11/07/2008)
Perhaps when renewable energy becomes something more tangible than a slogan people will begin to take it more seriously.
After 4 or 8 years of an Obama administration I promise there will be little difference in how America gets its energy. That is- oil, hydro, coal and nuclear. Hopefully the promise of solar power will finally start becoming a reality. Just don't hold your breath.
It's like Nixon's war of cancer. Hundreds of billions later and we are still not close to a cure for cancer. A point of diminishing returns is reached with regards to funding. It is going to take time.
BTW, the SUV owners that drive those monster trucks are in the minority. I do not know anyone that drives a Suburban or Hummer. I do know people driving Tuscons, Rav 4's and Escapes. SUV's that get more MPG's than your average minivan.
jb 2:37PM (11/07/2008)
Brian said...
"Perhaps when renewable energy becomes something more tangible than a slogan people will begin to take it more seriously."
The wind energy industry put in more wind energy capacity in the last two years than it has in the three decades prior. It's phenomenal and very tangible growth.
Brian 4:53PM (11/07/2008)
JB said:
"The wind energy industry put in more wind energy capacity in the last two years than it has in the three decades prior. It's phenomenal and very tangible growth."
I do not have a problem with wind energy. I don't even find the big turbines to be an eye sore. But, 1000 turbines giving you the power of one conventioal power plant goes to show that at best, wind power will be a supplement to conventioal power sources.
BoneHeadOtto 10:45PM (11/06/2008)
after driving a light responsive car they will feel like an SUV is awkward. All these SUV space needing drivers need to drive minivans. Get yourself a Mazda5 and you have the best of both worlds. Any you will spend $10-15k less than the typical monster SUV
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Noz 2:16AM (11/07/2008)
Just LOOK at the picture of that utter POS on wheels. Who in their right mind would want to honestly drive one....
Oh yes...I forgot...and idiot.
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miles 7:16AM (11/07/2008)
Oh sure,
I'm an idiot because I have 3 kids & camp a lot & need to pull a trailer & run a den of cub-scouts & take my kids' class on field trips several times a year (x3)? Puhleeze. My Suburban kicks a$$. There is a perfectly good reason for these vehicles to exist.
My commuter car is clean and gets +40 mpg.
I'd just call you a wanker but I'd rather not stoop to name calling.
;)
Phil Degrave 11:16AM (11/07/2008)
"Oh yes...I forgot...and idiot."
Did you mean "an idiot"?
Look who is talking, moonbat.
Noz 3:40PM (11/07/2008)
Well well...the cockroaches who fit the bill come out of the woodwork.
Yeah tell your kids how you pissed away resources and leveraged their future so you can sit above everyone else and boost your ego.
Idiot.
Why don't you look beyond the length of your pen*s for a change? You have kids and STILL have this stupid mentality...God helps us all.
Chairman Mao 5:16PM (11/07/2008)
Miles, you have three children and a suburban!? How can you look at yourself in the mirror? Being the owner of a Suburban, how is your pen*s even big enough to procreate? Your carbon footprint is huge and completely irresponsible. You will be the first in the re-education camp. You are despicable.
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Amtoro 10:11AM (11/07/2008)
Dude!!!! have SOME respect for your own language....
Clyde 3:24PM (11/07/2008)
Amtoro, I don't think it IS her language... At least, not her FIRST one. If it is, her English teacher should be in the unemployment line!
On topic: Gas prices have dropped to half of what they were, so the former guzzler drivers are having second thoughts. But does anyone really believe that the pirces are going to STAY low? I don't. Enjoy the $2.20 per gallon gasoline while you can...
Woodenbee 9:16AM (11/07/2008)
Some people are so sold on the image, a suburban carries no more than my old volvo wagon, its just some people can afford them and like the feeling of looking down on everyone, around me it seems to be the majority of people are still buying these things, its the oblivious, church going, we're number one crowd, its required like a two car garage and kids, I imagine they're mostly fundamentalist christians, if they think they're really outdoorsy and hip they might aspire to a $38k subaru, which is just as ridiculous , anyway thats my rant from the south, I'm just saying these people don't think they just react, and if all their peers have suburbans then that's what they buy, they don't consider anything else, the little flex fuel tag on the back smooths over any twinges of environmental guilt, which is dumb too, because they're never going to go to a E85 pump, ever, the only one is downtown and why would you want to go there!
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JamesWB 12:20PM (11/07/2008)
"a suburban carries no more than my old volvo wagon"
Which Volvo wagon would that be?
Jim M 1:41PM (11/07/2008)
You said:
"Some people are so sold on the image"
That statement could apply to the people who buy a Prius so they can be with the "in-crowd" of Hollywood stars, Al Gore, and others who want to save the world. Many of those people will, of course, jet across the ocean several times a year multiplying their carbon footprint many times over what they might be able to claim as savings from driving a fuel-efficient car.
At least the people who drive SUV's aren't being hypocritical.
chispito 1:33PM (11/07/2008)
This is completely inaccurate. A Suburban will carry eight adults, if I am not mistaken, along with additional cargo room in the back, not to mention the tow capability. I love station wagons but, at best, they are merely sedans with a very cramped rumble seat (the use of which means you can't carry cargo in the back).
ASimpleDad 4:19PM (11/07/2008)
Hey Woodenbee, stop being a tool. Just because there are people that have different choices than you in cars and religion, does not mean that only people who have a different religious view also have a different car view. I have very down to earth family members who have a Suburban. Why? So that instead of driving two or three cars to get everyone from point A to point B, we can only take 1 car. Wow, what a wasteful pig that person is, right? All you people who just pass judgment because someone chooses a different car than you are so lame. I have a wasteful old Landcruiser, but I bet the fact that I maintain such an old car, while you people go through 2 or 3, makes me less wasteful in reality, if not in smugness. Tuned to perfection, so as to minimize pollution, as compared to all those oil burning old VWs that no one criticizes. Also built an eco friendly home, which is as much if not more of an environmental savings than your car, but still feel free to pass judgment if you see me driving around, though you know absolutely nothing about me or my lifestyle. Add to that we grow our own food and only by local items, instead of relying on industrial agriculture and cross country trucking, and I bet I'm living a lot more sustainably than all you smug tools that just need to feel better about yourselves than others. The people really making a difference aren't spouting off about how great they are, and aren't belittling other people, we're winning them over with kindness and by example. But hey, the world definitely can use more haters and divisiveness, so keep it up! And don't worry that your doing more damage than good to your cause, as long as you get to FEEL superior to others, it's all good!
Sam 5:20PM (11/07/2008)
I own own of the largest of the Volvo wagons, a 940, and love it but I wouldn't say it has the space of a Suburban. It does have as much or more space as most of the smaller utes though. I only get a combined 22 mpg in it though so it really isn't the best example. And it is painfully slow.
rob 1:09AM (11/08/2008)
puhleeeze.
Suburban carries no more than a Volvo wagon????????? in your dreams.
Try loading an entire sheet of ply wood UNCUT into your Volvo.and then close the doors. Then load another 30 sheets of the 3/4" variety and drive it home. Not only will it not fit. or close the doors. It will not get above 30. Now since I DO have a Volvo in the fold, I will admit that the Volvo brakes are as good or better than my Suburban's units. But really, hold as much????? not unless you cut the roof off.
And honestly, my suburban gets 20 mpg on the interstate.