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This article might hit a nerve as it boasts that finally there are SUV's that drive like a Porche 911. That may be true to an extent, but just look at sports. Do you see many 300-pound wide receivers? Any track stars that big?

As gas prices are again approaching $3 a gallon, some drivers want an SUV that goes from 0-60mph in under 6 seconds.

Overall, the average zero-to-sixty time for all passenger vehicles in America in 1981, as calculated by the EPA, was 14.1 seconds. Today, the average is 9.9 seconds.

Note that the "puny" Insight goes from zero to sixty in under 11 seconds.


CNN/Edmonds article (http://money.cnn.com/2006/03/29/Autos/carreviews/performance_everything/index.htm)

I think that all SUVs drive like porches actually. Oh wait, did you mean Porsche? That's a little different! The Camry Hybrid is a great example of having your cake and eating it too. Motortrend recorded a stunning 7.3 second 0-60 time while still averaging 38 or 39mpg in the hands of their ham-fisted drivers. Any SUV that runs a 7.x 0-60 time will be in the low teens for fuel economy. As for handling, er, actually Toyota isn't well known for putting stiff, well controlled suspensions on their cars, that's Honda's niche in the market and they're not quite up there with Toyota in terms of the blend of raw speed with amazing fuel economy as far as hybrids go.

Hi Chuck:

___It wasn’t but 12 - 15 years ago and everything on the road had an average 0 - 60 time of ~ 10.5 - 11 seconds! What in gods name are we (the US) doing wanting 0 - 60 in 8 second or less anything’s? If it was free, sure, but it isn’t anywhere near free given we accelerate at those rates practically 0% of the time under any and all circumstances. The penalty is the other 99.97% of the time we are driving a far less fuel efficient ICE in the behemoth of the month :(

___Good Luck

___Wayne

I hear you, Wayne.

Two ways to make a gas-guzzler (1) make it as fast as a Porsche 911, (2) make it as big as an Escalade SUV. Performance SUVs are a double whammy. Wait - physics probably says more than a double whammy. :(

Car and Driver reported EPA estimates of 13 city, 19 highway for the new 2007 Escalade. They got just 11mpg in their testing. For comparison, the 2006 Porsche 911 is rated at 19/26. Kinda makes you wish people still bought sports cars as status symbols instead of monster luxo-utes.

The Ford SUV rollover problem that the courts were trying to decide if it was them or Firestone tires - don't you think the drivers might have played a part? Trucks are just not as nimble as cars, yet I see drivers ignore this. Among other things, this results in rollover accidents. I'd suspect the weight/speed load has got to stress the tires.

Another suspect in the truck/SUV rollovers is the one-armed "gansta lean". Ironically, I see a lot more middle-aged white guys probably listening to country music than African-Americans doing this.
http://www.spencerthelion.com/images/fullofit02.jpg

Guy in his power truck or SUV as if he is in the reclining chair.
Something happens on the freeway that requires a quick response.
Typical first reaction: turn. With one arm on the wheel as shown, it's probably going to be an overturn.
Now for the "Oh Crap" moment. The turn is too sharp, resulting in a rollover.I'm expecting more of this with performance SUVs. :(

hm i think these performance SUV's were "Crossovers" aka suv that are meant for the road and not the dirt. But in exchange you get car like handling and the tall ride of an SUV

more fuel efficent too, but ya the ICE is indeed a gas killer when paired up with something so heavy.