Before I start, let me admit one thing: there are no really bad cars anymore. The era of the true crapcan went out around 10 years ago, and any new car or truck you can buy these days is, at heart, a decent vehicle. It may not always seem like it, but we’re currently in the middle of an automotive renaissance of sorts. Like most other categories of cars, it’s been evolve or die for SUVs and crossovers. The competition is stiffer than ever, and that has driven dramatic improvements in the power, handling, ride, design and capability of these vehicles.
That doesn’t mean that some vehicles aren’t behind the curve, of course. And in some cases, they’re way behind the curve.
So why do some SUVs fall short? Sometimes it’s a matter of taste. Consumer desires can shift practically overnight, and it’s easy for a manufacturer to get caught out. When gas prices spiked a couple of years ago, large, V-8-powered sport utes became overnight liabilities. Similarly, the rollover controversy that struck the Ford Explorer in the late 1990s was bad news for tall, body-on-frame sport-utes. In recent years, consumer preference has turned toward more car-like crossover vehicles that split the difference between SUVs and cars, offering the best of both worlds — a move that must have folks at Suzuki and Isuzu (who attempted similar vehicles before it was popular) shaking their heads.
Continue reading for the full story.
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