Are big SUVs on their way out?

[Hachee]

How dare you compare these two!!!!!

Oh, there's no question that today's big SUV's are the Fleetwood Brougham's of years ago.  And now to a lot of people, they've become just as socially unacceptable.  The people who laugh at the old land yachts are the very people buying Escalades.

The difference is that today's SUV's have zero style, whereas the old land yachts at least (usually) looked good, even as they rapidly became dinosaurs.

[AutobahnSHO]

Did she mean too small of a bed? I can see that complaint with a crew cab pickup.

No, she said he should have bought an F250 or whatever.
(BTW he got the Ecob00st.)

[SVT666]

My neighbour bought the EcoBoost F-150 and said he would never buy it again.  He says he has only seen a marginal increase in fuel economy.  That could be down to what he uses it for though.  He's a logger and spends 90% of his time in the bush with it.

[Laconian]

I thought the Ecoboost F150 was more about the boost than the eco. Torque like crazy.

[Eye of the Tiger]

My neighbour bought the EcoBoost F-150 and said he would never buy it again.  He says he has only seen a marginal increase in fuel economy.  That could be down to what he uses it for though.  He's a logger and spends 90% of his time in the bush with it.

Lol, dumbass. Should have got a Prius.

[SVT666]

I thought the Ecoboost F150 was more about the boost than the eco. Torque like crazy.

I think it is more that he feels mislead by the salesman.

[thewizard16]

I don't think they'll die, but I do think that huge SUVs solely for the the purpose of family hauling will probably be hybrids or electric in the future due to gas costs. I love the Suburban and the Escalade and if I could afford or justify one I'd probably have one. (Nothing preserves a family's happiness like being able to banish noisy children to 10 feet behind you with a tv screen to distract them. ) I think a lot of people that have them don't need them or would be fine with midsize SUVs, etc. but even if they end up being a smaller share of the market long term they're not going to disappear all together.

[Laconian]

I think it is more that he feels mislead by the salesman.

:\

There's just no way you can efficiently haul that much mass using that shape. It's a big fucking barn door with a parachute in the back. Simple physics.

[cawimmer430]

Why there is no economical diesel offered for a Ford F-150 "Ecoboost" is beyond me. It'll always get better gas mileage than a comparable gasoline engine including that new Ecoboost engine. And the extra torque is helpful for towing, hauling and accelerating.

[AutobahnSHO]

My neighbour bought the EcoBoost F-150 and said he would never buy it again.  He says he has only seen a marginal increase in fuel economy.  That could be down to what he uses it for though.  He's a logger and spends 90% of his time in the bush with it.

A "marginal increase" is still an increase, right?

Point was to get the v8 power but v6 gas mileage. But if you're constantly mashing then letting up on the gas pedal, you wouldn't get hardly any benefit from b00st. I can't see offroad driving being the 'sweet spot'. Highway or street, maybe.

[SVT32V]

Large/Midsize SUVs will decrease because of demographics alone. The baby boomers have empty nests and have no need for three row seating. The younger generation pales in numbers and will not have as much disposable income. I doubt minivan sales are anywhere near what they were 15 years ago either.

[SVT32V]

Why there is no economical diesel offered for a Ford F-150 "Ecoboost" is beyond me. It'll always get better gas mileage than a comparable gasoline engine including that new Ecoboost engine. And the extra torque is helpful for towing, hauling and accelerating.

Diesel is significantly more expensive in the US (think premium or above), the marginal increase in gas mileage would have to overcome the added cost of the diesel engine and the added fuel cost. The ecoboost engine is not lacking in the torque dept., hauling or acceleration.

[GoCougs]

Why there is no economical diesel offered for a Ford F-150 "Ecoboost" is beyond me. It'll always get better gas mileage than a comparable gasoline engine including that new Ecoboost engine. And the extra torque is helpful for towing, hauling and accelerating.

Because there is no such thing as an "economical" diesel. Sure it would get better mileage but it'll cost $5,000+ more to buy, which would likely never be recovered in mileage savings.

[Byteme]

Do you think that the glory days of big SUVs are over? Will Americans still buy them in large numbers?

With gas prices being $4.29-$4.45 for a gallon of regular (in my town) and the recession...I just don't see SUVs making a huge comeback. Gas prices are sure to rise even higher than they are now due to Iran.

I love SUVs...big, comfortable, you can see see the road better, you can haul a lot of shit and you can go off-road if you need to.

Then again, $4.45/gallon in a 31 gallon tank for the Suburban equals $137.95. Although I thought it was 26, but here says otherwise: http://www.vehix.com/car-reviews/2004/chevrolet/suburban/4dr-1500-4wd-z71/vehicle-specifications.

Regardless, SUVs are terrible when it comes to gas millage and our average is 13mpg. For that reason and the price of gas, we will not be buying another Suburban/large gas-guzzling SUV.

I think that's the norm rather than the exception.

What do you guys think? Are SUVs over or not?

I hate them.  I can't tell you how seldom I've seen a lumbering Armada, Suburban, Excursion or whatever carrying a load or going off road.  Well, maybe I can tell you about the off road; never.

The sooner those oversized dinosaurs die off the better.

[Byteme]

Ford still sells 10 million F-150s a year, so what does it matter?

A significant percentage are used for work related activities.   I'd expect the usage for purely passenger purposes to decline as well.   You'll still have a few hairy backed knuckle draggers thinking they need a 450 HP 12,000 pound towing capacity monster, but those will become fewer and fewer as the price of fuel edges out the number of cigarettes and tattoos they can buy.

[GoCougs]

A "marginal increase" is still an increase, right?

Point was to get the v8 power but v6 gas mileage. But if you're constantly mashing then letting up on the gas pedal, you wouldn't get hardly any benefit from b00st. I can't see offroad driving being the 'sweet spot'. Highway or street, maybe.

Anyone who buys an F-150 EB believing they'll get "V6 gas mileage" is letting themselves get sold a jar of snake oil.

[Byteme]

I think it is more that he feels mislead by the salesman.

It's been my experience that many who buy a vehicle have no idea how to drive it in a manner to get decent mileage.

[CJ]

Anyone who buys an F-150 EB believing they'll get "V6 gas mileage" is letting themselves get sold a jar of snake oil.

I guess that's why the people who have actually purchased the Ecoboost have been getting pretty decent mileage, then. 

[Eye of the Tiger]

I guess that's why the people who have actually purchased the Ecoboost have been getting pretty decent mileage, then. 

I think snake oil actually contains more units of energy per unit of volume
than regular gasoline.

[Madman]

A significant percentage are used for work related activities.   I'd expect the usage for purely passenger purposes to decline as well.   You'll still have a few hairy backed knuckle draggers thinking they need a 450 HP 12,000 pound towing capacity monster, but those will become fewer and fewer as the price of fuel edges out the number of cigarettes and tattoos they can buy.

Wow, and Cougs says I'm the one who likes to make "unpleasant and personal" attacks on people! 

I think in years to come, monster SUVs will be looked upon with the same sort of distain and ridicule we have today for the ostentatious land yachts of the 1970s.  With the demise of SUVs, I wonder what insecure women and men with small penis syndrome will be driving a few years from now?

But must you always go off into unpleasant personal attacks on people?

But you're right, John.  The knuckle draggers will either have to ramp up their meth production or buy something a little less obnoxious. 

[Colonel Cadillac]

My neighbour bought the EcoBoost F-150 and said he would never buy it again.  He says he has only seen a marginal increase in fuel economy.  That could be down to what he uses it for though.  He's a logger and spends 90% of his time in the bush with it.

Interesting. MT did a comparo between the EcoBoost and V8 F150 and they found the EcoBoost actually performed better in towing/hauling situations. They also found that there was a fairly negligible difference in fuel economy. If I were an F150 buyer, I'd go for the EcoBoost just because it's a pretty impressive engine. I wonder how it sounds with a beefier exhaust; not as good as the V8, but it could still be pretty good.

[SVT32V]

I hate them.  I can't tell you how seldom I've seen a lumbering Armada, Suburban, Excursion or whatever carrying a load or going off road.  Well, maybe I can tell you about the off road; never.

The sooner those oversized dinosaurs die off the better.

Which is the same number of times I have seen 7-8 people in a minivan, rather than one or two kids in the back.

[Byteme]

Which is the same number of times I have seen 7-8 people in a minivan, rather than one or two kids in the back.

I'm not a fan of minivans either.  "Oh, no. We are having our first child, we need a minivan".  Give me a break.   

[Laconian]

THESE CHILD SEATZ ARE HEUG

[GoCougs]

Interesting. MT did a comparo between the EcoBoost and V8 F150 and they found the EcoBoost actually performed better in towing/hauling situations. They also found that there was a fairly negligible difference in fuel economy. If I were an F150 buyer, I'd go for the EcoBoost just because it's a pretty impressive engine. I wonder how it sounds with a beefier exhaust; not as good as the V8, but it could still be pretty good.

That was against the mid-range 5.0L V8.

[GoCougs]

I guess that's why the people who have actually purchased the Ecoboost have been getting pretty decent mileage, then. 

No more decent than a gas V8...

[AutobahnSHO]

That was against the mid-range 5.0L V8.

A V8 is a V8. 

[AutobahnSHO]

I'm not a fan of minivans either.  "Oh, no. We are having our first child, we need a minivan".  Give me a break.    

THESE CHILD SEATZ ARE HEUG

LOL
With our first child we had a 80s Taurus. The infant seats seriously are ginormous- it barely fit in the middle of the back seat and we couldn't put it in our 83 Civic. At all.

And yes we got a minivan when wifey was pregnant with #2. When #3 was imminent family gave us a 2-kid stroller, it didn't fit in the back of the minivan. Ended up with TWO minivans for about a year or so.

Part of the pleasure is keeping the kids in different rows- none of that "he's on my side" crap.  

AND we can put 3 bikes and a bike trailer inside our minivan, while still carrying 5 people. And getting better gas mileage than a truck or SUV.  And we've moved our entire house with nothing but minivans. And you can slide that new clothes washer in the side door with much less lifting involve than a truck.  (impossible in an SUV)

[Eye of the Tiger]

The little 3.5L Ecob000st's 420 lb/ft @ 2500 RPM kicks the asses of every other engine available in the F150 (maybe even better than the SVT Raptor's supercharged 6.2L V8 as far as the bottom of the torque curve). And it does all that while getting about the same fuel economy. Snake oil, indeed.

[GoCougs]

A V8 is a V8. 

No.