28th Dec 2006, 19:41

I went to the Poconos last winter in a H1 on vacation and we all lived. We had a great time.

29th Dec 2006, 08:22

I get it now. The higher the center of gravity, the less safety features, the worse the brakes, the more the structure is built on a truck frame, the more the goverment warnings stating the vehicle does not handle like a regular car, and the more uncorroborated stories by Joe 12 pack the safer the SUV.

I must thank you all for clearing that up.

29th Dec 2006, 15:31

Uncorraborated stories? Have you ever been in a large SUV? I would also hesitate to call a Hummer owner Joe Six Pack. I would call a Toyota owner..."a Toyota Owner." Its not a strain to appreciate others preferences. By the way a Hummer is typically not the only vehicle in the household.

29th Dec 2006, 17:11

I think you need to do research on what exactly a rollover is. It means the vehicle is unstable IN AN ACCIDENT - you lose control because the car/truck is NOT responding as it should.

I would NEVER drive a vehicle that surprised me when I am attempting to avoid an accident. But that's just me, I like to live.

You can make all the claims about Hummers killing people in other cars and so on, but it doesn't change the statistical fact that SUVs are unsafe and bad for American roads.

29th Dec 2006, 21:14

With regard to comment 08:22, yes, high center of gravity, bad brakes, poor safety features, etc. definitely does describe the Highlander, however you made one mistake: The Highlander is NOT built on a truck frame. It is an underpowered Camry platform with a fat body.

29th Dec 2006, 21:38

Heres the mpg thing again. Drive a Hummer less than 10 miles round trip to work and/or actually live closer to work. Drive an hour or longer one way to work in the econoboxes and justify the lengthy commutes and even additional fuel than a large SUV that doesn't do the long treks. Somedays I ride a motorcycle too which is isn't the safest mode of transportation. In my opinion any vehicle can be deadly. I would rather be around a safe accident free cautious SUV driver than the Fast and Furious small street drivers, ones on cell phones, curling irons, applying makeup while driving etc. each morning.

29th Dec 2006, 22:56

Where I live in Minnesota it seems the car of choice is a truck or suv or minivan. People drive these things like the fast and furious and it really bothers me. Especially when you have a homemaker following you in an Excursion tailgating you when visibility is one quarter mile. It is not just people in cars who drive dangerous; people in Suv's are just in number as those who drive little cars dangerous. I saw a roll over today involving a F-350 towing a trailer... was just blown over with its trailer in a ditch. Sounds safe to me!

30th Dec 2006, 05:25

Must of been a tornado. Sure it wasn't a smaller truck? I frequently tow a dual axle boat trailer carrying a 20 ft Wellcraft. I love people passing in front and then hitting their brakes on you for a traffic light.

30th Dec 2006, 09:56

""I would rather be around a safe accident free cautious SUV driver""

Sorry, but if the vehicle itself is inherently unsafe due to design (as SUVs are by their nature) then no matter how "safe" the driver is it's not going to matter.

And I would love to find such a driver, but they simply don't exist.

American driver training is the worst in the western world. In Germany you can't take ANY vehicle on the autobahn until you're at least 18 and have 2 years of driver training (and that's REAL WORLD driver training).

In America it's just a short test involving parallel parking (if that, mine was backing around a corner) and you can drive any regular vehicle on any road. And God forbid anyone learns emergency accident avoidance.

So you have ill-trained drivers driving SUVs that give a false sense of confidence.

30th Dec 2006, 11:30

Yeah, the laws of physics apply. You know, the ones that state lower center of gravity, less weight, superior brakes, a safety cell, and so on provide a much safer car.

If SUVs are such a superior design, you'll have to explain to me why Porsche, Ferarri, Lamborghini and the similar don't design their CARS with off road tires, high centers of gravity, truck frames, and inadequate brakes. After all, you people claim SUVs are incredibly safe, and part of safety is how a car handles driving situations.

30th Dec 2006, 12:00

I went to a high speed driving school drive a Viper and a Range Rover. I agree I would rather be around a safe accident free driver.

30th Dec 2006, 14:27

Other than being top-heavy I can't imagine what might be "unsafe" about SUV's. We've owned 4 and all were equipped with every conceivable safety option. About a year ago a kid in a tiny Toyota Tacoma ran a stop sign in front of me. I T-boned him and his little "toy" ota wrapped around the front of my vehicle like a pretzel. It had to be scraped up and hauled away on a big flatbed truck. My vehicle had a broken headlight, busted grille and two (VERY EXPENSIVE) deployed air bags. It was totally drivable and didn't even have a busted radiator. Fortunately the Tacoma driver did have on his seat belts and was not catapulted into the passenger side door and squashed like a bug. In an incident a few years earlier a local woman was hit from behind in her mid-sized sedan so hard that the rear bumper was pushed up behind the front seat. She survived, and the person who hit her not only survived, but led police on an 11 mile chase at speeds up over 100 mph in the full-size GMC pickup he hit her with. The tremendous crash had not even punctured his radiator. He was finally apprehended when he hit a tree (which was a bit more solidly built than the car he had hit). Amazingly he was not hurt at all in the crash with the car even though he was NOT wearing his seat belt, and his older truck did not even have air bags. He did receive a broken arm when he hit the tree ending the chase. To argue that large trucks and SUV's are more dangerous to their drivers and occupants than tiny little imports is about as logical as believing in the tooth fairy!!

30th Dec 2006, 14:50

Comment 15:52 does present some unwelcome truths: We ARE a very spoiled nation with no consideration for our planet, the poor, or our children's future. I don't like it, but that is the truth. On the other hand, being part of a very wealthy family that does own Hummers, I feel a bit of a need to come to the defense of these very fine vehicles. First of all, as has been pointed out, everyone who owns Hummers also owns other much more sensible vehicles that are used the majority of the time. My Hummer-owning kin also own Mercedes C-class sedans and convertibles, Porsches, Jaguars and Ford F-150's. I can't imagine a "Joe 6-pack" type being able to afford a Hummer. A Hummer is like a fine piece of art in the home. It says "I'm rich, here's proof". Is it an "ego thing"? Absolutely. I'm not going to pretend otherwise. Is it a great vehicle? Definitely. It is an incredibly solid, well-built vehicle that offers incredible versatility and a surprising degree of civility as well. Being made by GM it is unquestionably reliable. As for safety, I'd much rather have an accident (ANY type of accident) in a Hummer than in any other vehicle on the planet. To call such vehicles unsafe is the silliest statement I have ever heard. As for the comment that special taxes should be levied against these vehicles, I will AGREE with that. No real argument can honestly be made that they are not harmful to our dwindling resources and contribute to an unhealthy addiction to foreign oil. Those are indisputable facts.