MMPC

I recently got a Ford Escape. It's comfortable, powerful and holds everything I need it to (and yes, I actually have a use for the space since I do TV production). The only thing that sucks is the gas mileage, but I knew this going in. I wish the hybrid Escapes had been more readily available when it was time to get mine. The included hitch makes mounting my road and mtb easy using a Performance 3-bike rack.

greenstork

To set the record straight, the issue is most assuredly MPG and not trashing suburbanites. I think it's wisest to leave it at that, since I have seen many of these conversations go awry.

2Rodies

If you are a family man here are some great bike/kid haulers. Audi S4 Avant, Audi Allroad, Audi S6 Avant, or a Volvo V70R. Or if you are into SUV's I've got a like new 99 Expidition fully loaded with only 57kmi for $12.8k.

ImprezaDrvr

Impreza WRX STi
Altima SE-R
Legacy GT sedan or wagon
300C
new Charger, whenever it hits
Magnum
upcoming Mazdaspeed 6
Escape Hybrid

Convert, you on nasioc?

As for Subaru becoming more popular with roadies since Lance, some of us were in them before their little association.

tspinning

hey, i looove, love... ok strongly like my 96 jetta gls...but i'd go for a 99 if your looking at this kinda car cause they fixed alot of the things that were first wrong with the MKIII style...i.e. door handles break every 5-10k, door moulding (on outside fall off all the time) and the woindows mysterioulsy drop often at high speed travel...a $200+ repair unless you can go to a junk yard and hunt... so over all my car is OK i guess but thats my two cents. I was recently looking for a new car and decided on a mazda 3 wagon, it would be in my driveway but im gonna try and wait till after the winter to start on car payments, back to work, good luck sorry bout the accident, glad your ok

SSSWEET

No its the fact that SUV's and other large vehicles contribute to greenhouse gas emissions which causes GLOBAL warming. All large vehicles suck and until governments realise that other things e.g social welfare and the environmental protection are more important than tax excise and stamp duty on low density housing connected by endless road networks and boring suburban landscapes, we are just gonna have to choke on carbon monoxide untill we get all the oil out of the ground. But I suppose ignorance is bliss....

SUV- suburban ugly venom or stupid unnecessary vehicle

Anything more than a 2.0L 4 cylinder is excessive and selfish.

P.S I have strong convictions about this topic.

late

I was in a Ford dealer the first year the huge ones came out. I looked underneath the body and saw a pair of I beams. I got pissed.
Ford knows better, it's just being cynical. We have known for a generation that crush zones do a better job at protecting people.
The heavy metal beams are there to give the appearance of safety.
But it creates that appearance by substantially increasing risk to people in other vehicles. You can be in another large SUV, if you get t-boned that energy is going to get transfered into you.Of course, if you hit a more massive object, those beams work just as well at transfering the energy back at you. At first I thought people had gotten smarter than to buy into such nonsense. But I console myself with the thought that tens of thosuands of the idiots will remove themselves from the gene pool in rollovers.

hickok45

About any car would do, I'd guess. I love my Camry, so I had a real trailer hitch installed so that I could slide in a 1 1/4" or 2" (with adaptor) hitch.

Now, though, I've about decided I'd like a roof-mount rack. I'm a tall guy, and I could easily handle it. I'm just not sure yet about drilling holes in my roof or buying another rack.

ollie

You may speak with the consensus in the roadie section, but I was trashing suburbanites as they an integral part of the problem. They have to drive EVERYWHERE. Even if they wanted to bike or walk, the roads are not friendly towards them, not to mention they'll get looked down upon.

Yes, biking is a functional form of transportation, not just a nice ride on the weekend before you put your bike back on your $30K car and drive home.

galen_52657

As far as safety goes, statistically the Subaru is far safer than your Tahoe or the Hummer. The fact is that the Tahoe and the Hummer, being classified a as ‘light trucks’ do not have to pass the stringent safety regulations that Subaru does. Moreover, the Subaru being smaller, lighter, quicker to turn, able to turn at a higher G force and being able to brake at a higher G force can avoid many of the mishap that the Tahoe or Hummer will simply plow into.

The odds of dying in a crash are much greater in a behemoth SUV than in a smaller vehicle. It’s a fact.

A nice car for the cyclist is a Ford Tarus wagon. Good mileage, good repair record, extra room in the back, easy to load bikes on the roof.

khuon

I see your Unimog and raise you one Pinzgauer or possibly an old Alvis Stalwart if you happen to live next to a lot of water.

khuon

A frame-type construction is often needed when you go offroad. Yes, you may argue that most of these veicles rarely ever see offroad but I think that's a different argument entirely. The point is that designed to spec, an SUV built to handle offroad conditions cannot simply get by with just a standard unibody construction. My Jeep Grand Cherokee although often described as unibody is actually a hybrid design. There is a frame that the unibody is attached to and then welded together much like a standard unibody. Jeep calls it a uni-frame. For vehicles that need to carry substantial loads or ones that will be subject to loading other than those found in standard driving conditions, different rules of construction come into play. The reason why standard body-on-frame construction isn't as safe is because the body itself is non-load-bearing and cannot absorb impact forces. A hybrid approach combines both the frame component with a unibody passenger compartment for safety.

Dchiefransom

How much food acreage goes into making one gallon of biodiesel?

Murrays

IIRC, the newspaper articles a few months ago stated that you are 11% more likely to die in an SUV than a car. Buy a slightly larger car with above average crash tests and you’re significantly safer than an SUV.

-murray

steve_wmn

I drive a '98 Ford Windstar and I like it because I can fit my road bike in the back without folding a seat down or anything. All I have to do is take off the front wheel and turn the handlebar 90 degrees right. I also keep some tools, spare tubes, helmet and gloves back there pretty much all the time. For my next vehicle I plan on looking at minivans again, or possibly a quad cab pickup with a cover over the truck bed. I keep my bike in the car maybe 90% of the time (my normal training ride loop starts at my office parking lot) and I like the security and weather protection of actually keeping it inside the vehicle.

Raiyn

Not sure on that one. When the project started they were using used fast food fry oil. Best way I've heard of making the "Supersize Me" culture work to someone's benefit yet

noisebeam

I have a 2dr Ford Explorer and a Toyota Prius. My bike fits inside both - I have to lower the rear seats in both cases but have to remove the front wheel in one case.

Al

MRGolfo

I have a subaru baja. i am able to put 4 bikes in the bed and i haven't seen a chage in gas mileage. four people fit comfortably and rides smoothly. i use to have a roof rack and traveled to california from st. louis. my tank of gas didn't last as long with the wind catchers. find a car that will it your bikes behind the actual vehicle.

sizmaters

i have a 1972 dodge neon carbon fiber and ultralite wheels get 80 miles to d gallon and i just let down the top and pedal when i want to ride.

TheKillerPenguin

Get a Saab

A 9-3 or 900 hatchback have mucho room for anything. A 9-5 sportwagon has even more room. And Turbo Saabs love to go fast . Very very fast. And they get 30+ MPG!

I have a 900 Convertable, unlimited cargo space when the roof is down

Raiyn

A 1972 Neon? Why do I smell sewer gas?

Geo_NJ

I have two cars. An Acura RSX that gets 32 mpg that I drive all the time. I also have a 94 Ford Explorer that I can throw the bikes in the back. I only drive the Explorer occasionally so the gas mileage is not a factor. I bought both cars used. If you dont drive a lot the Explorer can work for you. If you are a high mileage person then you need a car with better economy. Frankly I dont understand anyone spending $30-$40K on a car. I dont see what you get for the money. I take the train to work into NYC and that frankly is the best environmentally sound way to travel.
Geo

VeeDubOne

...although you have to give credit for the astounding accuracy of the rest of the post!

khuon

Nonsense! I have found a picture of said 1972 Neon... complete with tailfins!

55/Rad

Khuon - you have too much time on your hands....

55/Rad