Readers Seeking a Variety of Vehicle Types

Vehicles have changed dramatically since first invented. The preferred family vehicle continues to change too. Currently Crossovers are on the rise as sales of passenger cars drop.

The SUV is officially king.

Three full-size pickups were still the best-selling vehicles in the United States last year. But the fourth-place spot was claimed for the first time by an SUV, not a sedan.

In 2017 the Toyota RAV4 sport ute outsold the Toyota Camry sedan, reigning car-sales champ for the last 15 years.

The compact, five-door RAV4 crossover sold 407,594 units last year — a gain of 15.7 percent — eclipsing Camry by 20,513 in sales. The midsize sedan saw an annual sales decline of 0.4 percent. Camry wasn’t even runner-up as another SUV, the Nissan Rogue, gained 22.3 percent to 403,465 units sold.

Most of the vehicles labeled as SUVs aren’t, they’re technically crossovers. What’s the difference?

For many car experts, the difference between the two is simple: A crossover is based on a car’s platform, while an SUV uses the chassis of a truck. The result is that crossovers use “unibody” architecture, meaning the body and frame are one piece, while SUVs use a “body on frame” design. In that case, the body is built separately from the frame and placed together later. 

While that definition is strictly true, it doesn’t always work in practice. For example, many shoppers refer to car-based, unibody vehicles as SUVs even though they’re crossovers by our definition. How often, for example, do you hear the Ford Explorer called an SUV? Or the Toyota Highlander? Or the Jeep Grand Cherokee? All use a car-based unibody design, despite their appearance and marketing. 

The result is that the term “SUV” is often applied to both crossovers and SUVs. In the past, that was even more common. Before, “SUV” brought up negative associations with large size and poor gas mileage. That’s when many automakers started using the term “crossover” to describe a vehicle that was “crossing over” from the practicality of an SUV to the drivability and fuel efficiency of a car. (Auto Trader)

Regardless of the tern you use, every auto manufacturer is rushing to add more models to their lineups. Sports car maker Porsche was early to capitalize on the trend to SUVs/crossovers with the 2003 Cayenne. BMW subsidiary Rolls Royce won’t call their upcoming Cullinan an SUV or Crossover — it’s a “high-sided vehicle.”

The Ferrari sedan won’t happen, as sales of conventional three-box four-doors—even ones with glamorous badge—are in a slow death spiral. That leaves the Ferrari SUV, an idea no longer as outlandish as a few short years ago, what with Rolls-Royce, Aston Martin, and Lamborghini now following Bentley and Porsche into the segment.

“Ferrari will not produce an SUV competing with Porsche, Bentley, or Lamborghini,” insists Ferrari marketing boss Enrico Galliera. “An SUV can be a very fast car. But it’s not a sports car. We will remain consistent with our strategy, which is producing sports cars.”

Except … several sources have confirmed Ferrari is working on an all-road, all-wheel-drive, wagonlike vehicle with four doors that’s based on the architecture used for the GTC4Lusso. So what makes it more sports car than SUV? The laid-back driving position, apparently. (Motor Trend)

I’ve seen the 70s van craze, the 80s mini-van craze, the 90s body-on-frame SUV craze. I personally think the current unibody crossover craze will come to an end as we move toward fleet-owned autonomous electric vehicles. I could be wrong, of course. I do know for certain I’ll see lots of new crossovers/SUVs and fewer passenger cars at the Chicago Auto Show. Tomorrow & Friday are media-only days.  If something interesting comes up either day I’ll be posting it to Twitter & Facebook.

Here are the results from the recent non-scientific Sunday Poll:

Q: I’d like my next vehicle to be a…

• Convertible 2 [6.45%]
• Coupe 4 [12.9%]
• Crossover 4 [12.9%]
• Hatchback 5 [16.13%]
• Sedan 5 [16.13%]
• Sports Car 0 [0%]
• SUV 2 [6.45%]
• Truck 1 [3.23%]
• Van 4 [12.9%]
• Wagon 2 [6.45%]
• Unsure 0 [0%]
  n/a 2 [6.45%]

These results are very different than the overall auto market.

— Steve Patterson