Soaring SUV sales keep carmakers on collision course with climate policy

Re:Soaring SUV sales keep carmakers on collision course with... by throwaway53678 on Sunday January 12, 2020 @12:34PM (#22027585)

I have one hypothesis for part of the uptick: rear seat room for carseats. I consider myself the SUV hater of SUV haters, and I reject that you need one when you have kids (such is the idea in my part of the US), but...we bought one last year anyway, mainly to accommodate two rear-facing carseats with two adults in the front. There aren’t many cars that make this work, and you’d be surprised how big of an SUV you have to get to get any more rear seat space than a regular car. Not even most of the “mid-size” models.

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Re:Soaring SUV sales keep carmakers on collision course with... by rantwasp on Sunday January 12, 2020 @01:07PM (#22027862)

you're gonna get downvoted for this but you're not wrong. having less kids is one way to slow down climate change.

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Re:Soaring SUV sales keep carmakers on collision course with... by noonespecial on Sunday January 12, 2020 @03:22PM (#22028994)

Then again, if nobody has kids then who are we saving the planet for ecactly?

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Re:Soaring SUV sales keep carmakers on collision course with... by arbitrary_name on Sunday January 12, 2020 @05:31PM (#22030046)

The Planet. Nature. Animals. The smaller human population remaing.

I find your question very shortsighted and narrow minded.

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Re:Soaring SUV sales keep carmakers on collision course with... by agensaequivocum on Sunday January 12, 2020 @12:56PM (#22027777)

This is a disgusting thing to say to someone with children. It's also not true.

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Re:Soaring SUV sales keep carmakers on collision course with... by throwaway53678 on Sunday January 12, 2020 @01:23PM (#22027999)

No offense taken. Sadly, my dislike of SUVs stems more from how they drive and look than anything nobler.

I was actually hoping to illustrate with my own little anecdata about how even if you don’t like them, there seem to be various one-way-ratchet effects pushing their uptake, and this was my personal mechanism. Consumer choice doesn’t always reveal preference—I’d much rather there were a car that fit our situation (back issues + loading kids into the seats also played in here).

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Re:Soaring SUV sales keep carmakers on collision course with... by DoreenMichele on Sunday January 12, 2020 @01:00PM (#22027810)

Granted, it's gauche as all hell, but I'm pretty sure the data supports the assertion.

It should probably be framed more diplomatically and contain a cite to support it. Probably.

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Re:Soaring SUV sales keep carmakers on collision course with... by georgeburdell on Sunday January 12, 2020 @01:00PM (#22027804)

It’s almost trivially true, albeit uncomfortable.

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Re:Soaring SUV sales keep carmakers on collision course with... by kikoreis on Sunday January 12, 2020 @02:21PM (#22028513)

In aggregate, perhaps yes, less children leads to a healthier planet today. But individually, was it worse for the planet you or I were born? Your comment doesn't help us reach any useful conclusion. The reality is complex. Like with most health related topics, individual decisions don't count for much in defining populational growth. Policy and economics and religion control.

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Re:Soaring SUV sales keep carmakers on collision course with... by arbitrary_name on Sunday January 12, 2020 @05:32PM (#22030055)

It's very true. Not a pleasant truth, but a truth nonetheless.

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