SUVs and pickup trucks are now too big for already gigantic garages
There are some glaring issues with this article.<p>&gt; All of the benefits of driving big cars, as I have previously argued, are illusory.<p>Literally only one of the points mentioned in this paragraph is actually mentioned in the linked article (and that point - about safety - is dubious considering that it in turn links to a NYT article that doesn&#x27;t actually link back to any real data; said article pulls the &quot;11% more likely to die in a crash&quot; number out of its ass with no opportunity for the reader to discern what that number actually means or how it was derived).<p>&gt; The vast majority of people who drive them do not need the space or towing capacity nearly as much as they think they do<p>Okay, well that&#x27;s nice, but those of us who do need that space <i>do need that space</i>, whether you think we do or not.<p>I was able to move myself from San Francisco to Reno entirely by myself (no moving van, no moving crew, not even family members&#x27; vehicles this time around) specifically because I owned an SUV and was able to fit large items in said SUV (including my couch - which does come apart, granted, but still would absolutely not have fit in a sedan), and thus able to move everything from one apartment to the other.  Even that was stressful, and involved multiple trips; I would have had an even easier time if I had a similarly-sized van (of the cargo variety, or even a minivan if all the middle and rear seats are removable) or pickup.  Yet, it was still possible.<p>This same vehicle comfortably hauls myself and 4 passengers (and has done so a multitude of times, with passengers ranging from fussy nieces&#x2F;nephews in car seats to coworkers to drinking buddies to grandparents and everyone and everything in between).  Hell, it can do so even while hauling a bit of cargo in the back.  It gets me to work and back.<p>I can&#x27;t speak to towing capacity since I don&#x27;t tow anything (I don&#x27;t even have a hitch, though I&#x27;ve been tempted to buy one).  I know plenty of people who do tow with their SUVs, though.  I also know that there are times I wish I can tow (for example: a trailer would&#x27;ve also helped with moving logistics).<p>&gt; they do not handle inclement weather better than a smaller car with similar technology—such as all wheel drive—which many have.<p>This is patently false when you take ground clearance into consideration.  I sometimes need to be able to drive through a foot (or more!) of snow, and would prefer to do so without my headlights being used as a snowplow, thank you very much.<p>&gt; In addition to the higher sticker price, owners of big cars pay hundreds if not thousands of dollars more every year in gas because the gigantic car is so much less fuel efficient.<p>Hm, if only there was a drivetrain that used electricity from my house or a public charging station instead of petroleum.<p>(Not that my SUV has such a drivetrain, given that it predates the relatively-widespread availability of electric SUVs by nearly two decades, but still)<p>&gt; SUVs and trucks are now so profoundly gigantic they no longer fit in the already pretty large suburban American garages constructed to store said cars.<p>Clarification: <i>some</i> SUVs and trucks are too big to fit in garages.  The author apparently lacks zero comprehension of the idea that there&#x27;s such a thing as &quot;mid-size&quot; and &quot;compact&quot; SUVs and pickups, instead pretending that literally the only options are Canyonero-esque monstrosities.<p>Has the author never seen a CR-V?  Or a RAV-4?  Or a Rogue?  That category of SUV (a.k.a. &quot;crossover&quot; SUVs) accounts for more than 50% of the American SUV market.  When those stop fitting in garages, then sure, go ahead and start punching that strawman again.<p>The Ranger and Tacoma are also still reasonably-sized, though I&#x27;ll admit they&#x27;ve grown a fair bit since the 90&#x27;s&#x2F;00&#x27;s.<p>&gt; Large vehicles mean roads wear out faster and need more repairs<p>&quot;Large vehicles&quot; being semi trucks, the author surely means.  One semi causes the equivalent damage to a road as thousands of cars.  The difference between a sedan and even a full-size SUV (let alone compact or mid-size) is negligible in comparison.<p>----<p>Like yeah, sure, I&#x27;m happy to mock the folks buying big SUVs and pickups to compensate for certain idadequacies, but if you could avoid throwing those of us who actually do need those capabilities under the bus that&#x27;d be great.