I understand Walmart has a sale on reality but I assume CCC never goes there. (:
White, Since I accused no one of hypocrisy or political correctness, it seems hard to know what you are talking about. Or are you just blowing exhaust out of your tailpipe?
Does she hate the planet? Is that why she wants a VW MicroBus
My Explorer has better emissions than the Micro… even if you could keep it tuned up.
Does she like buying more gas?
My Explorer gets better gas mileage than the Micro… even if you could keep it tuned up.
Judging the morallity of an SUV vs VW MicroBus is ludicrous - Morallity and cars only belong together when talking about drunk driving or using the car as a weapon.
I know what it is… “Car with Soul” means she likes keeping tools in the back.
Whitey -
You are the one who didn’t listen. She WAS morally opposed to SUV’s… And I doubt that she would “key” and SUV but I imagine that she would frown on SUV drivers. She may think that SUV drivers are worse for the environment than the folks that burn cars and dealerships to “protect” the environment. We don’t know.
She wasn’t opposed to the minivan on moral grounds, it was just Un-Cool and it wasn’t Anti-Social enough.
I don’t get your points on various motor failures. Are you saying Tom/Ray saved her from that or were trying to put her in a car that had those problems.
I don’t care what people behind my SUV think… they shouldn’t be tailgating in their Subaru that close anyway.
I drive the SUV for my view, so I can see over the Prius in front of me.
That’s right Rod. It is totally image based. Imagine me/my wife/3 kids in an Explorer. Looks pretty full to me.
There are “A LOT of actual people” in my neighborhood (±800 homes). If you filter down to just Minivans/SUV’s… Most of the minivans are at 2 driver houses and the 2 driver + passenger houses have SUV’s in the drive or both.
Why does Cig get to determine that me or anyone else for that matter don’t have a PRACTICAL need for a vehicle of that TYPE. I’m sorry but just because my SUV weighs (nominal gvw) 158 lbs. more than an Odyssey and gets THE SAME MPG that I get in my Explorer… I will take my extra 158 lbs. fishing, through the pasture, at the farm and the Moralist can keep there minivan… but at least they will get a crick in there neck since they have to look up at me to look down their noses.
Jesmed,
May you be blessed with your attitude and pass it on down. If you decide it is practical and correct for you, and you have the means to aquire and support your decision, and it doesn’t infringe on my civil liberties.
I shouldn’t care if you smear peanut butter all over you and dance around if that is what you want to do (which may or may not have anything to do with something Denis Leary said).
Because my Explorer doesn’t get lousy mileage (about the same as the Honda Odyssey Tom&Ray recommended in the offending episode). And we can haul the 5 of us and the dog wherever we want to go. And it’ll beat your Prius off the line. And I like the positive feel of a truck which I actually like the handeling of.
Again Whitey - I have an Explorer and we put 5 people in it all the time. It doesn’t get lousy mileage. It is up to you to figure out how to get ahead, not for me to slow down to your speed.
I see more decadence in Cadillac, Lexus, and even Subaru owners than in my Explorer (which I will admit, does have satelite radio… but not leather seats.)
Azimuth-
The problem with the caller is she is wrong. Webster has moral as “of or relating to principles or right and wrong in behavior” and different variations of that. She is clearly a Neo-Liberal (feelings) and not a Classic-Liberal (freedoms). She is improperly throwing a word with power and clear definition into her desires/feelings so that she can appear to make a superior choice. She could say that she is “morally opposed to buying a wood frame house” and she would be just as wrong because it isn’t MORAL… it isn’t RIGHT OR WRONG. Whether her choice is informed or not is a different matter, but it is her choice.
If a neighbor runs their SUV through a house because they don’t like the color of the door… that’s morally wrong. BUT THE SUV HAS NOTHING TO DO WITH IT.
If a person takes a dying stranger to the hospital in an SUV… that’s morally right… BUT THE SUV HAS NOTHING TO DO WITH IT.
If a person has vulgar/pornographic picture painted on an SUV… most would agree that is morally wrong. BUT THE SUV HAS NOTHING TO DO WITH IT.
Whitey-
"thanks (in part) to Wal-Mart"
It is getting harder and harder to find 16 oz. sausage packages. I want to cook a full pound of sausage in my Gumbo… not 14 oz. like they have now.
Why do I have to buy a 34 3/7 watt incandescent light bulb… because some idiot at GE or Wal-Mart said “hey, this idea will save energy and money.” So now I have to buy the 56 6/11 watt bulb where I would really like a 40 watt bulb…
Just like those of us that care for the environment would rather drive a poor MPG, bad on emissions VW MicroBus versus a more efficient, cleaner operating SUV…
Bad choices/options are not OK just because they make you feel better.
Wow. Ok, my suv and me average 7 gallons a week in winter and 4 gallons a week in summer because I ride my bike some days. Why is a hybrid long distance commuter who uses more gas per week than me be the good guy and me the evil one? Sure I need an SUV to tow the boat and still use less gas per week overall including the boat than many assumed greeners.
OK, Chinyla. All I gots to say is they some ignant fools out there.
Lengthwise: Most people agree the Explorer is a larger SUV… Wheelbase 113.7" Most people would say the Taurus is smaller than the Explorer… Taurus Wheelbase 112.9"… SUV sucking up space 0.8" at a time.
Width-wise “You keep a swervin’ in my lane” - Robert Earl Keen: I won’t even comment… OK, just one. I guess GM forgot to tighten all steering wheel nuts, but just forgot to recall them. I saw a Prius driver swervin’ and texting the other day.
Potholes: Talk to your street department. Potholes are caused by faults in paving being undermined by dirt/water being pumped in and out of cracks or seams by the flexing of pavement. Over time the pumping leaves a larger void underneath and the surface fails. It has much more to do with frequency (the number of cars) than weight.
Pollution/Cabin/Coolant: First hand experience here. I have been in the back of a Explorer on a warm/sunny day… not hot. I can tell you that I was very uncomfortable due to the heat and the AC was on full/cold/Max. There was the Driver, 4 small kids (all 4 totalling about 140-160 pounds)and myself… so it wasn’t overloaded. It just isn’t designed to cool the back… Trust me. And if that isn’t enough for you: COOLANT IS NOT A CONSUMPTIVE USE SUBSTANCE. You don’t get miles per ounce per degree on coolant. You junk the car, they (should) reclaim it whether it is a Prius or Explorer.
If you drive like you should (defensively), it would not matter what is in front of you. If you are close enough that the SUV blocks situational awareness, you would be too close even if it was a Ford Festiva.
I own a 2008 Explorer and my wife has been rear-ended twice (if it is so big, wouldn’t the people see it… or at least the stop sign they were coming up to?). She was also T-Boned when somebody on a side street pulled onto a highway (She was in the inside lane… if it is such a big car, would they have avoided it)… T-Bone and 1 rear-end was with kids in car. I won’t feel sorry for the next Mini-VW-Prius that gets run over next time they dart in front of her regardless of the gas mileage they get.
Because on the days you drive your evil SUV you don’t make the folks in Prius’s or those driving VW Microbusses (you know, the ones burning oil) FEEL good. As a matter of fact, I bet you make them FEEL bad. Oh, you bad Waterboy you.
I guess they would freak if I told them I regularly use 15-20 gallons a day for weeks on end. Every few months, I will have a 40-45 gallon day. Just think about 18-wheelers burning 200 gallons a day (rough guess).
You make a great and compelling point. But I stand by my original point. Chrome on post-1959 vehicles is just morally wrong.