US needs to do something about SUV's and trucks

Too many people are buying them. It's getting out of hand. If you are in
an accident with one of these things, your chances of dying go up alot. The
worst part is when the suspension is all jacked up on them- then the bumper
will go through a window or over a hood. They need to, at the minimum,
mandate that all SUV's not have their bumpers over a certain height, and not
have suspensions over a certain height. That goes for trucks too. People
could also get new springs and suspensions for their SUV's so they would
ride lower, and that would help alot too. Using a low unibody construction
on the part of manufacturers, would also help.

OH, and SUV's also tend to block the view of car drivers- you can't see
traffick lights or things ahead because there's a big SUV in front.

Did you just figure this out?

What, are you ten years old?

Did you just figure this out?

What, are you ten years old?

No, it's just me ranting.

Anti-SUV folks need to organize. Detroit Project is a good start, but I
think there needs to be a group specificly advocating for the safety dangers
posed by SUV's, apart from the environmental concerns (which are no less
legitimate, but Detroit Project seems to focus on the environmental risks).

At one time cigarette smoking was very popular in this country too. Just
because SUV's are common, doesn't mean the tide can't turn against it if you
lay out the evidence- and the evidence for SUV's is that they put other
drivers in danger by poor handling characteristics, poor braking, poor tire
choices, and high suspensions- and they obscure the view for other drivers.
In the hands of an inexperienced individual, they also are quite capable of
killing the selfsame driver.

If all Americans drove real cars with as few trucks as possible, with
good airbags, and we all buckled up, we'd all be safer. An SUV might be
safer in a pure vehicular collision for the driver, but it also starts from
the assumption that a collision is inevitable and that an individual has no
social responsability (I could make myself safe from burglarly, for
instance, by mounting chainguns that are hooked up to a motion sensor on my
property, but when the mailman gets chewed to pieces by a thousand bullets,
I don't think that's too socially responsable, right?). It also focuses too
much on frontal collisions- in a side collision with another SUV the SUV is
going to be just as vulnerable as the car to car collision. So the arms
race for a bigger car nedes to stop. All the soccer moms need to put
their sprogs in a station wagon and exercise some common sense.

No, it's just me ranting.

Anti-SUV folks need to organize. Detroit Project is a good start, but I
think there needs to be a group specificly advocating for the safety dangers
posed by SUV's, apart from the environmental concerns (which are no less
legitimate, but Detroit Project seems to focus on the environmental risks).

At one time cigarette smoking was very popular in this country too. Just
because SUV's are common, doesn't mean the tide can't turn against it if you
lay out the evidence- and the evidence for SUV's is that they put other
drivers in danger by poor handling characteristics, poor braking, poor tire
choices, and high suspensions- and they obscure the view for other drivers.
In the hands of an inexperienced individual, they also are quite capable of
killing the selfsame driver.

If all Americans drove real cars with as few trucks as possible, with
good airbags, and we all buckled up, we'd all be safer. An SUV might be
safer in a pure vehicular collision for the driver, but it also starts from
the assumption that a collision is inevitable and that an individual has no
social responsability (I could make myself safe from burglarly, for
instance, by mounting chainguns that are hooked up to a motion sensor on my
property, but when the mailman gets chewed to pieces by a thousand bullets,
I don't think that's too socially responsable, right?). It also focuses too
much on frontal collisions- in a side collision with another SUV the SUV is
going to be just as vulnerable as the car to car collision. So the arms
race for a bigger car nedes to stop. All the soccer moms need to put
their sprogs in a station wagon and exercise some common sense.

"Magnulus" > wrote in message
news
> Too many people are buying them. It's getting out of hand. If you
are in
> an accident with one of these things, your chances of dying go up
alot. The
> worst part is when the suspension is all jacked up on them- then the
bumper
> will go through a window or over a hood. They need to, at the
minimum,
> mandate that all SUV's not have their bumpers over a certain height,
and not
> have suspensions over a certain height. That goes for trucks too.
People
> could also get new springs and suspensions for their SUV's so they
would
> ride lower, and that would help alot too. Using a low unibody
construction
> on the part of manufacturers, would also help.

Getting rid of that CAFE nonsense - or atleast modifying it so that
manufacturers are given a better incentive to produce cars - would be a
good start.

> OH, and SUV's also tend to block the view of car drivers- you can't
see
> traffick lights or things ahead because there's a big SUV in front.

Or when you are exiting a parking space. A couple of years ago, my car
was struck on the LR bumper as I was leaving a parking lot by some guy
in a Mazda sedan who was backing out of a parking space which was
surrounded by a pair of large trucks. IIRC, it was even noted on the
police report that his view was obstructed by the trucks. Of course,
that did not excuse him for striking my vehicle and he (or more
accurately, his insurance co.) had to pay for my damages.

"Magnulus" > wrote in message
news
> Too many people are buying them. It's getting out of hand. If you
are in
> an accident with one of these things, your chances of dying go up
alot. The
> worst part is when the suspension is all jacked up on them- then the
bumper
> will go through a window or over a hood. They need to, at the
minimum,
> mandate that all SUV's not have their bumpers over a certain height,
and not
> have suspensions over a certain height. That goes for trucks too.
People
> could also get new springs and suspensions for their SUV's so they
would
> ride lower, and that would help alot too. Using a low unibody
construction
> on the part of manufacturers, would also help.

Getting rid of that CAFE nonsense - or atleast modifying it so that
manufacturers are given a better incentive to produce cars - would be a
good start.

> OH, and SUV's also tend to block the view of car drivers- you can't
see
> traffick lights or things ahead because there's a big SUV in front.

Or when you are exiting a parking space. A couple of years ago, my car
was struck on the LR bumper as I was leaving a parking lot by some guy
in a Mazda sedan who was backing out of a parking space which was
surrounded by a pair of large trucks. IIRC, it was even noted on the
police report that his view was obstructed by the trucks. Of course,
that did not excuse him for striking my vehicle and he (or more
accurately, his insurance co.) had to pay for my damages.

"Paul" <Laura Bush murdered her boyfriend is@the league of ****ing idiots
and welfare bums.org> wrote in message
...
> Getting rid of that CAFE nonsense - or atleast modifying it so that
> manufacturers are given a better incentive to produce cars - would be a
> good start.

CAFE serves the goal, though, of improving fuel efficiency. I don't see
how you can completely eliminate it without sacrificing fuel efficiency,
without levying a tax on gasoline (perhaps not a bad idea, if the funds go
to paying for public transit). Either that, or reclassify SUV's as cars or
a new category altogether. People are clearly using SUV's in place of
cars, so they should be governed under similar regulations.

"Paul" <Laura Bush murdered her boyfriend is@the league of ****ing idiots
and welfare bums.org> wrote in message
...
> Getting rid of that CAFE nonsense - or atleast modifying it so that
> manufacturers are given a better incentive to produce cars - would be a
> good start.

CAFE serves the goal, though, of improving fuel efficiency. I don't see
how you can completely eliminate it without sacrificing fuel efficiency,
without levying a tax on gasoline (perhaps not a bad idea, if the funds go
to paying for public transit). Either that, or reclassify SUV's as cars or
a new category altogether. People are clearly using SUV's in place of
cars, so they should be governed under similar regulations.

> If all Americans drove real cars with as few trucks as possible, with
> good airbags, and we all buckled up, we'd all be safer. An SUV might be
> safer in a pure vehicular collision for the driver, but it also starts
> from
> the assumption that a collision is inevitable and that an individual has
> no
> social responsability (I could make myself safe from burglarly, for
> instance, by mounting chainguns that are hooked up to a motion sensor on
> my
> property, but when the mailman gets chewed to pieces by a thousand
> bullets,
> I don't think that's too socially responsable, right?). It also focuses
> too
> much on frontal collisions- in a side collision with another SUV the SUV
> is
> going to be just as vulnerable as the car to car collision. So the arms
> race for a bigger car nedes to stop. All the soccer moms need to put
> their sprogs in a station wagon and exercise some common sense.

Perhaps if some one actually made a "real car" but the CAFE rules took car
of all those nice 20 plus foot family station wagons. The crap that's
produced today as station wagons (except for the new Dodge Magnum) can
barely fit, two adults + 3 or 4 kids, ever think this is why your so called
soccer mom's or other people with large families drive SUV's and mini
vans????

If you don't like suv's and large vehicles then don't buy one or drive on.
Don't bash them.. I hate small little imports from Asian countries, but I
have yet to post about how dangerous and retarded they are (the vehicles not
the people), I have also refrained from claiming blindly (like you have with
your soccer mom comments) that "everyone who drives a Toyota, Honda, vw or
any other import are just street racing crazed lunatics who should be
ticketed just for owning one."

Whoops I just said that... oh well

Snow .. My JEEP is not a SUVEE and YOUR SUVEE isn't a JEEP.