Why is my zero emission incredibly efficient SUVthat is large enough to carry my family not appropriate? To note, the majority of fully electric cars are SUVs. Where is the harm or imposition? Should I replace it with the small diesel car my neighbour has? Maybe a smaller one that doesn’t meet our needs and we don’t all comfortably fit it so we buy a second car or have to be squashed in? Or shall we buy a saloon car that’s a much larger footprint for the same internal size?
Congratulations for driving a 'zero-emission' vehicle btw.
But what's large enough these days? This has changed significantly due to marketing*.
'SUV' vehicles I have driven don't offer any more 'family space' than a large Estate Car. However if 7 seats are required the 7 seater MPV market seems to have evolved into the SUV segment - so there bugger-all choice there now....
Big SUV's whether 2 or 4 wheel drive tend to be heavier and generally higher 'specced' so more materials, less aerodynamic so more fuel/less efficient, fatter tyred so less fuel efficient and more resources etc. Whilst a 'Flying Brick' vehicles might emit zero emissions locally, it's still consuming more energy to make and run (electricity is not formed by magic) than a smaller lighter more aerodynamic vehicle.
Another aspect in cities is visibility - not for the driver of the Flying Brick, but for pedestrians and other road users. They're hard to see round or over and as their size increases beyond that of the largest estate car or people carrier, they take-up more road-space and parking space too. They're also very intimidating and when driving them you have a strong sense of isolation from the world around you. IIRC there was some evidence that in collisions with pedestrians, SUV's because of their high bonnet height tend to cause more injuries - however more recent designs may have mitigated that. [Edit: A study published in the Journal of Safety Research last year (2022) found that children were eight times more likely to die when struck by an SUV than those struck by a passenger car /EDIT].
Marketing fear and aspiration has driven people into coveting these ever bigger vehicles (makes you wonder how we managed before). Whilst the box outside gets bigger the insides are like a Tardis in reverse, stuffed with ever more material meaning the true passenger space is even more confined. They talk about 'stance' 'presence on the road', the whole 'safety on the school-run' thing. Most of it macho laughable nonsense (those stupid boxes on the outside of the latest Discos). And increased size begets increased size. A Ford Cortina used to be a big car, now it's dwarfed by the average 'mid sized' vehicle. Walk down residential streets now in cities and can't see the other side of the road any longer, just a row of tinted windows. So we get used to this ever increasing size of cars until we realise they no longer fit into a parking space.
Big cars/vehicles have their places (we have one), as do 4x4, but you have to really ask if every flying-brick /4x4/SUV and other large heavy vehicle is really necessary for most people particularly when living or working in the City?
Surely it's better to have as many smaller and lighter vehicles in places where space is restricted and where pedestrians and cyclists are most numerous and in closest proximity?
A little nudging here and there can drive change....
