OC Americans prefer SUVs: I don't. What am I missing?

I'm genuinely trying to figure out what I'm missing. I prefer hatchbacks, I have a VW GTI right now and its perfect. I have moved myself and other people from house to house, I can store almost everything in it. The car is fast, I can back in anywhere, and its great on gas (despite my enjoyment of said speed). SUVs are huge, they get in the way, they are slow, they take up so much gas to use. I see the use in space, but if you don't have a family of 5 what good are they? I've driven a few but I just don't get it.

I _want_to understand what the draw is. What's so good about them over hatchbacks or sedans?

Spoodle,

A lot of things factor into this:

  1. Space and marketing. The US is huge and its infrastructure was largely developed around large sedans from the 50’s-70’s. People have the space for SUVs and auto companies have HUGE margins on them so they market them hard.

  2. They serve as an almost 1 to 1 replacement for the high riding, spacious, land yachts that many in the US grew up around. This was pointed out in a post on /r/cars a month or two ago and makes perfect sense. People in the US largely grew up with vehicles that had a lot of interior space. Packing the a bunch of individuals into the car and going on a week long road trip was common place for a lot of middle class America for many years. As safety regulations became more strict vehicle body panels became thicker and encroached in this prized interior space. Minivans and then SUV/ Crossovers offered a solution to this.

  3. Ease of access and loading. The higher seating makes getting in/ out of the car and loading/ unloading much easier. For anyone who has mobility challenges the convenience is either the extra cost.

  4. Young people never want to own the cars their parents owned. Those whose parents owned large sedans bought wagons. Their kids hate wagons, when they grew up they got minivans. Their kids hate minivans, when they grew up they got SUVs. Their kids hate SUVs, when they grew up they got crossovers. Who knows what’s next?

EJ257,

The average joe says "I like sitting higher up, I like the space"

blackdragoness,

I wonder about that. I get it sort of. I see what it's like sitting up so high when driving other people's SUVs. But then like they make them so y'all you literally can't see 10 year olds step out in front of you. That's dangerous.

QingQangQong,

Decades of car companies pushing them down consumers throats because they were classified as light trucks.

Video on the subject

blackdragoness,

That's funny I just mentioned that SUVs can't even see kids ans the thumbnail is a child in front of an SUV. This should be interesting.

QingQangQong,

It is extra frustrating since I would've gotten a wagon but the options are so limited.

blackdragoness,

People don't even like wagons. I don't get it. They used to be an American staple.

Now it's like we only get the occasional smaller crossover. I guess that's the new wagon.

Spoodle,

100% this was the progression in the US:
Large sedan -> wagon -> minivan -> SUV -> crossover

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