SUV question

[Zippy The Pinhe]

Hello.

I am about 2 meters tall and weigh about 100 Kg. That's 6'7" and 220 for you Euro-challenged
readers, if indeed there are any on this list, being's how this ng seems populated with
anti-American Euro cycle snobs.

I ride bikes. A Schwinn Continental, vintage about 1984, ten-speed, with a 71 cm (28") frame (not a
typo) and a RANS recumbent V^2 if you need to know. I wear pants with a 38" inseam. And yes, these
bikes get exactly the looks you'd expect from the likes of ******** Mascarponi the Style God of this
ng. I don't give a rat's ass, I'm not riding to put on a show but to burn off some fat.

I also drive an SUV. A Ford Explorer. Why? Well, I don't test-drive cars, I try them on. I sit in
them and if they fit, I then consider a purchase. Since Euro-Style has taken over, cars just don't
fit me. I have a military service-connected problem with one of my knees that keeps me from
squatting down far enough to enter the kind of car that you all would like me to drive. I need
headroom. I could wear a cowboy hat in my Explorer if I wanted to (which I really don't), but when I
sit in one of the politically correct cars, I could use a sun-roof to stick my head through. Not
even all SUVs fit me; the Dodge Derange-O has a high enough ceiling, but the morons who designed it
decided it would be cool to have the roofline in front extend down into the windshield area, and
I'll be Goddamned if I'll duck down to watch the signal lights change. I'll also be Goddamned if
I'll drive around with my knees up under my chin.

Now, I'm not a college professor or anything like most of you all seem to be, so I really don't know
what is best for everyone else, but I sure as hell know what's best for me.

The politics of all this really amuses me. The guy in the big van who parks in the handicapped space
is driving alone, and he's burning every bit as much gas as me, but my abnormal size doesn't cut any
**** when it comes to convincing folks that I need to drive the car I drive. His wheelchair isn't
something I'd want, but he gets a pass. The soccer mom parking at Marshall Fields drove in alone,
but she's probably a staunch Democrap because she's got an NPR sticker on her bumper, so she's safe
too. But I'm some kind of an eco-terrorist because I drive an SUV. Total strangers feel entitled to
give me a piece of their mind about it. (Not that I'm ungrateful, mind you, because most of them
don't seem to have much mind to spare.)

Until and unless the dipshits who design cars come to the awful realization that we can't all be
built like Tom Daschle, I'll continue to drive my SUV, and all of you automotive fascists can go
**** up a rope, **** you very much.

 

[Max]

Zippy the Pinhead wrote:

> Until and unless the dipshits who design cars come to the awful realization that we can't all be
> built like Tom Daschle, I'll continue to drive my SUV, and all of you automotive fascists can go
> **** up a rope, **** you very much.

y'know, effectively everyone who's written in this thread -- and absolutely this includes me -- has
talked about "need", and made allowances for people who have honest, legitimate needs vs. ego-driven
posturing wannabe ********. The people _I'm_ bitching about specifically, _explicitly_ include that
poser woman at marshall fields with the NPR sticker.

Since you clearly fall into the category of legit need and not poseur ********, and you're not one
of the people we're talking about, i have to ask: are you sure you're not just looking for an excuse
to be offended?

.max

 

[Sc Hiker Biker]

Zippy the Pinhead wrote: And yes, these bikes get exactly the looks
> you'd expect from the likes of ******** Mascarponi the Style God of this ng. I don't give a rat's
> ass, I'm not riding to put on a show but to burn off some fat.

Amen. I am not to ride to get style points from other rides, I am out to exercise and enjoy my bike.

>
> I also drive an SUV.

If they got rid of SUV's and went back to driving large station wagons, people would start hating
them also. It's not the cars it's the drivers. However, we know that the majority of SUV drivers are
not 6'6 and drive them because they need or want large vehicles not because they can't fit into
normal sized cars.

 

[bobqzzi]

On Mon, 27 Jan 2003 19:48:25 -0600, "Zippy the Pinhead" <[email protected]> wrote:

>Hello.
>
>I am about 2 meters tall and weigh about 100 Kg. That's 6'7" and 220 for you Euro-challenged
>readers, if indeed there are any on this list, being's how this ng seems populated with
>anti-American Euro cycle snobs.
>
>I ride bikes. A Schwinn Continental, vintage about 1984, ten-speed, with a 71 cm (28") frame (not a
>typo) and a RANS recumbent V^2 if you need to know. I wear pants with a 38" inseam. And yes, these
>bikes get exactly the looks you'd expect from the likes of ******** Mascarponi the Style God of
>this ng. I don't give a rat's ass, I'm not riding to put on a show but to burn off some fat.
>
>I also drive an SUV. A Ford Explorer. Why? Well, I don't test-drive cars, I try them on. I sit in
>them and if they fit, I then consider a purchase. Since Euro-Style has taken over, cars just don't
>fit me. I have a military service-connected problem with one of my knees that keeps me from
>squatting down far enough to enter the kind of car that you all would like me to drive. I need
>headroom. I could wear a cowboy hat in my Explorer if I wanted to (which I really don't), but when
>I sit in one of the politically correct cars, I could use a sun-roof to stick my head through. Not
>even all SUVs fit me; the Dodge Derange-O has a high enough ceiling, but the morons who designed it
>decided it would be cool to have the roofline in front extend down into the windshield area, and
>I'll be Goddamned if I'll duck down to watch the signal lights change. I'll also be Goddamned if
>I'll drive around with my knees up under my chin.
>
>Now, I'm not a college professor or anything like most of you all seem to be, so I really don't
>know what is best for everyone else, but I sure as hell know what's best for me.
>
>The politics of all this really amuses me. The guy in the big van who parks in the handicapped
>space is driving alone, and he's burning every bit as much gas as me, but my abnormal size doesn't
>cut any **** when it comes to convincing folks that I need to drive the car I drive. His wheelchair
>isn't something I'd want, but he gets a pass. The soccer mom parking at Marshall Fields drove in
>alone, but she's probably a staunch Democrap because she's got an NPR sticker on her bumper, so
>she's safe too. But I'm some kind of an eco-terrorist because I drive an SUV. Total strangers feel
>entitled to give me a piece of their mind about it. (Not that I'm ungrateful, mind you, because
>most of them don't seem to have much mind to spare.)
>
>Until and unless the dipshits who design cars come to the awful realization that we can't all be
>built like Tom Daschle, I'll continue to drive my SUV, and all of you automotive fascists can go
>**** up a rope, **** you very much.
>

Interesting thoughts. Drive what you like, and feel free to burn as much gas as you can afford to
pay for. (and ride whatever bike floats your boat)

But I still don't get the Explorer thing. A mini-van has as much or more room for the driver, and
unless you pull something, are way better vehicles. My only objections to SUVs is thay don't have to
meet the same emission regs as cars (and there is certainly no reason they can't), and that for the
vast majority of people they are a really stupid design that is neither sporty, nor offers much
utility. And to be honest, it is the latter that really bothers me. For some reason, millions of
people have been convinced that SUVs really are a useful design, when, really they are crappy to
drive, handle badly, ride badly, offer little interior space given the size of the exterior, get
poor mileage, aren't as good as a car in 99% of the snow conditions encountered by most people, and
are of atiquated design. They are, however, nice for pulling a trailer.

Bob

 

[Zoot Katz]

Mon, 27 Jan 2003 19:48:25 -0600, <[email protected]>, "Zippy the Pinhead"
<[email protected]> wrote:

>I'll continue to drive my SUV, and all of you automotive fascists can go **** up a rope, **** you
>very much.

As long as you realise you're legitimately a subject of valid ridicule, especially in that hat.

You should have tried a Nissan Maxima. It has the most driver/front-passenger space of any car on
the market.

It has a measly half inch less headroom than the largest passenger truck and two and a half inches
more legroom. You didn't need the truck to haul your hat so try a different line for your
rationalisation.

BTW: The Ford Excursion has the most headroom of the trucks
http://www.edmunds.com/reviews/list/top10/51597/article.html
--
zk

 

[Edward Dike]

"max" <[email protected]> wrote in message news:[email protected]...
| Zippy the Pinhead wrote:
|
| > Until and unless the dipshits who design cars come to the awful
realization
| > that we can't all be built like Tom Daschle, I'll continue to drive my
SUV,
| > and all of you automotive fascists can go **** up a rope, **** you very much.
|
|
| y'know, effectively everyone who's written in this thread -- and absolutely this includes me --
| has talked about "need", and made allowances for people who have honest, legitimate needs vs.
| ego-driven posturing wannabe ********. The people _I'm_ bitching about specifically, _explicitly_
| include that poser woman at marshall fields with the NPR sticker.
|
| Since you clearly fall into the category of legit need and not poseur ********, and you're not one
| of the people we're talking about, i have to ask: are you sure you're not just looking for an
| excuse to be offended?
|
| .max
Following a thread where people like yourself seek to qualify needs, and ration according to your
perception of what other people should need, want, and desire is reason enough for most to be
offended. ED3

 

[Zippy The Pinhe]

"max" <[email protected]> wrote in message news:[email protected]...
>
> Since you clearly fall into the category of legit need and not poseur
********, and you're not one of the people we're talking about, i have to ask: are you sure you're
not just looking for an excuse to be offended?

I am sorry if I gave the impression I'm offended. I'm not the greatest writer, either, or I'd be a
college professor or something instead of just some idiot in an SUV.

No, I'm not offended. But when some asshole gets in my face about my car, I get ******. Maybe you
see that as a distinction without a difference. I'll try to explain. See, I'm an old guy, too, and
growing up, if somebody got in your face and you didn't like it, you could break his nose if you
thought you could keep him from breaking yours in return.

But now, we're enlightened, and we've learned that violence solves nothing, so we just go off in
newsgroups. And self-righteous pipsqueaks make a regular little habit of getting in peoples' faces
about stupid **** like cars.

I'm glad there are people who are legitimate arbiters of what other people need and don't need, and
who intuitively know who's a poseur and who isn't.

Thanks for pointing out that I don't have a skunk in this pissing match, and that consequently I'm
not really entitled to an opinion.

And thank you for shopping at our Aurora K-Mart!

 

[Max]

"Edward Dike, III" wrote:
> Following a thread where people like yourself seek to qualify needs, and ration according to your
> perception of what other people should need, want, and desire is reason enough for most to be
> offended.

Pretty clammy and tepid, even for you...

If you can produce one instance where I've said SUV purchases should be restricted or people
prevented from buying them, i will give you $1000.

I have been quite consistant in promoting negative social pressure as a preferred method for
modifying behavior. I've also been pretty consistant about honesty -- i'm on record as saying I have
more respect for someone who says "**** you i want my big giant truck" than some mealy mouthed
dishonest lying rationalization.

So what it really comes down to is you're offended by honest deconstructive analysis and differing
opinions, and seek instead your comfort in limp, self justifying, prevarications.

At least we understand each other.

.max

 

[Robin Hubert]

You ned a convertible!

Robin Hubert

"Zippy the Pinhead" <[email protected]> wrote in message news:[email protected]...
> Hello.
>
> I am about 2 meters tall and weigh about 100 Kg. That's 6'7" and 220 for you Euro-challenged
> readers, if indeed there are any on this list, being's how this ng seems populated with
> anti-American Euro cycle snobs.
>
> I ride bikes. A Schwinn Continental, vintage about 1984, ten-speed, with
a
> 71 cm (28") frame (not a typo) and a RANS recumbent V^2 if you need to
know.
> I wear pants with a 38" inseam. And yes, these bikes get exactly the
looks
> you'd expect from the likes of ******** Mascarponi the Style God of this
ng.
> I don't give a rat's ass, I'm not riding to put on a show but to burn off some fat.
>
> I also drive an SUV. A Ford Explorer. Why? Well, I don't test-drive
cars,
> I try them on. I sit in them and if they fit, I then consider a purchase. Since Euro-Style has
> taken over, cars just don't fit me. I have a
military
> service-connected problem with one of my knees that keeps me from
squatting
> down far enough to enter the kind of car that you all would like me to drive. I need headroom. I
> could wear a cowboy hat in my Explorer if I wanted to (which I really don't), but when I sit in
> one of the politically correct cars, I could use a sun-roof to stick my head through. Not even
all
> SUVs fit me; the Dodge Derange-O has a high enough ceiling, but the morons who designed it decided
> it would be cool to have the roofline in front extend down into the windshield area, and I'll be
> Goddamned if I'll duck down to watch the signal lights change. I'll also be Goddamned if I'll
> drive around with my knees up under my chin.
>
> Now, I'm not a college professor or anything like most of you all seem to be, so I really don't
> know what is best for everyone else, but I sure as hell know what's best for me.
>
> The politics of all this really amuses me. The guy in the big van who
parks
> in the handicapped space is driving alone, and he's burning every bit as much gas as me, but my
> abnormal size doesn't cut any **** when it comes to convincing folks that I need to drive the car
> I drive. His wheelchair
isn't
> something I'd want, but he gets a pass. The soccer mom parking at
Marshall
> Fields drove in alone, but she's probably a staunch Democrap because she's got an NPR sticker on
> her bumper, so she's safe too. But I'm some kind of an eco-terrorist because I drive an SUV. Total
> strangers feel entitled to give me a piece of their mind about it. (Not that I'm ungrateful, mind
you,
> because most of them don't seem to have much mind to spare.)
>
> Until and unless the dipshits who design cars come to the awful
realization
> that we can't all be built like Tom Daschle, I'll continue to drive my
SUV,
> and all of you automotive fascists can go **** up a rope, **** you very much.

 

[Frank Krygowski]

Zippy the Pinhead wrote:
>
> Hello.
>
> I am about 2 meters tall and weigh about 100 Kg. That's 6'7" and 220...
>
> Until and unless the dipshits who design cars come to the awful realization that we can't all be
> built like Tom Daschle, I'll continue to drive my SUV, and all of you automotive fascists can go
> **** up a rope, **** you very much.

While it's VERY tempting to ignore this post, based on it's sixth-grade conclusion, I want to
make a point.

It's _not_ that _nobody_ should drive a large vehicle. Some people actually do have reasonable
justification for them. Perhaps a person 6'7" tall actually can't find a less obnoxious vehicle to
fit them. Perhaps someone else actually does have a job that requires driving over rough unpaved
roads. If SUVs were used only for those (or similar) conditions, I think you wouldn't see nearly the
amount of irritation and backlash. (For proof, consider the SUV owner's whine: "But you don't
complain about carpenters' pickups!")

But even a pinhead should be able to see that the typical SUV use is a waste. The overwhelming
majority of SUVs are driven by average-to-small people, in well-paved suburbs, during dry weather,
with no passengers and no cargo. They drive them because it's trendy. And the rest of us put up with
their obnoxious presence, and the disadvantages they bring.

A dump truck can be unpleasant to be around, but at least it's doing something useful. If your SUV
is hauling a 6'7" body, I suppose it's doing something at least a little useful. But the SUV, empty
but for the 5'4" woman talking on the cell phone, taking up two parking places because she can't
turn sharply enough to maneuver her land barge - that's flat-out obnoxious.

And now: How close, do you think, is the correlation between anonymous posters and posting
vocabulary like "fascists", "****" and "****"?

My bet is the correlation is quite strong. But most of those posters will never even understand
the question.

--
Frank Krygowski [email protected]

 

[Jon Isaacs]

>You should have tried a Nissan Maxima. It has the most driver/front-passenger space of any car on
>the market.
>
>It has a measly half inch less headroom than the largest passenger truck and two and a half inches
>more legroom. You didn't need the truck to haul your hat so try a different line for your
>rationalisation.
>

Gee, ZK don't disturb this fellows arguments with the facts. Probably would have paid off to do a
web search before buying the thing.

I wonder what Chalo Colina drives, I think hes a bit bigger than this fellow. I have a friend who is
6 foot 7 and he drives a Suburu Forrester.

And of course we all remember the VW rabbit commercial with Wilt Chamberlain. Big cars don't
necessarily have a lot of room. and some small cars have a great deal of room.

Jon Isaacs

 

[Damian Harvey]

I'm 6'6" and I drive a 1988 Mitsubishi Magna. Oh and I'm fat so I ride a 2002 Trek 4700.
--
Cheers Damian Harvey

Goths: If I looked like that I'd be depressed too.

 

[H. M. Leary]

In a stroke of genius the automotive industry dropped the SUV designation from all such vehicles and
returned their name to ³ STATION WAGON ².

Would that be OK?

I have several SUVs and several bicycles, too.

I prefer to ride the bicycle whenever possible, but I havent found one yet that will pull an 8500
lbs trailer.

³If the guy in front of you is a stupid idiot, and the guy behind you is a raving maniac, whats that
make you? _ George Carlin

Ride Safe

--
³Freedom Is a Light for Which Many Have Died in Darkness³

- Tomb of the unknown - American Revolution

 

[Stephen Harding]

Zippy the Pinhead wrote:

> Until and unless the dipshits who design cars come to the awful realization that we can't all be
> built like Tom Daschle, I'll continue to drive my SUV, and all of you automotive fascists can go
> **** up a rope, **** you very much.

Uh oh! Where's Godwin?

SMH

 

[Zippy The Pinhe]

"Robin Hubert" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
>>when I sit in one of the politically correct cars, I could use a sun-roof
to stick my head through.

> You ned a convertible!

That would be fine during the summer where I live. I like summer a lot -- but I always have to work
on that weekend.

But thanks for another one-size-fits-all solution to somebody else's problem, which was what I was
trying to illustrate.

 

[Chris Phillipo]

In article <[email protected]>, [email protected] says...
> Zippy the Pinhead wrote: And yes, these bikes get exactly the looks
> > you'd expect from the likes of ******** Mascarponi the Style God of this ng. I don't give a
> > rat's ass, I'm not riding to put on a show but to burn off some fat.
>
> Amen. I am not to ride to get style points from other rides, I am out to exercise and enjoy
> my bike.
>
> >
> > I also drive an SUV.
>
> If they got rid of SUV's and went back to driving large station wagons, people would start hating
> them also. It's not the cars it's the drivers. However, we know that the majority of SUV drivers
> are not 6'6 and drive them because they need or want large vehicles not because they can't fit
> into normal sized cars.
>
>

I would venture to guess that the only people who buy a car that meets their minimum needs do so
because they can't afford anything better. Cars are not microwaves or toaster ovens, they are drop
in replacements for the toys you had as a kid. People in general don't buy a car like it's an
appliance, they buy it like they are shopping for a big screen TV or nice stereo system. You can ask
me if I really need those big tires, but I can also ask you do you need that spoiler or the leather
seats. Why did you get the car in red when we all know it's the most expensive color to maintain?
And so on. If I didn't have my 4 Runner I would have a piece of **** car and a nice ATV and wish I
had the 4 runner back.
--
_________________________
Chris Phillipo - Cape Breton, Nova Scotia http://www.ramsays-online.com

 

[Chris Phillipo]

> A dump truck can be unpleasant to be around, but at least it's doing something useful. If your SUV
> is hauling a 6'7" body, I suppose it's

Most dump trucks drive hundreds of miles with no load in them and one occupant.

> doing something at least a little useful. But the SUV, empty but for the 5'4" woman talking on the
> cell phone, taking up two parking places because she can't turn sharply enough to maneuver her
> land barge - that's flat-out obnoxious.

And we all know that sort of behaviour isn't present in sedan drivers.

--
_________________________
Chris Phillipo - Cape Breton, Nova Scotia http://www.ramsays-online.com

 

[Chris Phillipo]

In article <[email protected]>, [email protected] says...
> In a stroke of genius the automotive industry dropped the SUV designation from all such vehicles
> and returned their name to ³ STATION WAGON ².
>
> Would that be OK?
>
> I have several SUVs and several bicycles, too.
>
> I prefer to ride the bicycle whenever possible, but I havent found one yet that will pull an 8500
> lbs trailer.
>
> ³If the guy in front of you is a stupid idiot, and the guy behind you is a raving maniac, whats
> that make you? _ George Carlin
>
> Ride Safe
>
>

Actually I can't find a peice of paperwork that refers to my 1993 4 runner as an SUV so since I
drive a truck I guess I'm spared the wrath of the thrifty ones.
--
_________________________
Chris Phillipo - Cape Breton, Nova Scotia http://www.ramsays-online.com

 

[Stephen Harding]

[email protected] wrote:

> But I still don't get the Explorer thing. A mini-van has as much or more room for the driver, and
> unless you pull something, are way better vehicles. My only objections to SUVs is thay don't have
> to meet the same emission regs as cars (and there is certainly no reason they can't), and that for
> the vast majority of people they are a really stupid design that is neither sporty, nor offers
> much utility. And to be honest, it is the latter that really bothers me. For some reason, millions
> of people have been convinced that SUVs really are a useful design, when, really they are crappy
> to drive, handle badly, ride badly, offer little interior space given the size of the exterior,
> get poor mileage, aren't as good as a car in 99% of the snow conditions encountered by most
> people, and are of atiquated design.

I think you are being overly negative, or misinformed on the capabilities of SUVs as a group.

They are popular for a number of reasons, but one being that they are genuinely quite capable
vehicles. They can carry quite a bit AND get through snow or back country AND ride smooth and quiet
AND be fun to drive.

Obviously variations in the critters does exist, and some are far more capable than others.

The few I have driven or been passenger in (Ford Explorer, Dodge Durango, Toyota 4Runner, Jeep
Cherokee and Subaru Forester, have been generally good experiences.

Tire choice and 4WD/AWD selections can be very important to good performance. And yes, you can
greatly improve the slippery road performance of your economy car with just a set of snow tires, at
much reduced cost.

But you are not likely going to get the same COMBINATION of capabilities that the SUV offers.

> They are, however, nice for pulling a trailer.

They are indeed, and depending on the size of the trailer, perhaps the ONLY road vehicle now capable
of doing so legally (besides a pickup).

SMH

 

[Stephen Harding]

"H. M. Leary" wrote:

> In a stroke of genius the automotive industry dropped the SUV designation from all such vehicles
> and returned their name to ³ STATION WAGON ².
>
> Would that be OK?

Some how, I don't think so.

> I have several SUVs and several bicycles, too.
>
> I prefer to ride the bicycle whenever possible, but I havent found one yet that will pull an 8500
> lbs trailer.

The prefered, "responsible" solution is to purchase a Geo Metro with a mini trailer. Haul the load
in 500 pound increments on this trailer.

Yes this will make for 17 separate trips, but unless you make this trip very frequently, this is the
method you should use.

Oh, and don't forget to have three or four of your friends in the Metro with you, since you'll open
yourself to justifiable redicule if you go it alone.

SMH