I badly wanted to buy one of these while I was living in snowy New England. Ultimately I chickened out because of those reasons and because I knew I’d have a huge amount of guilt about hooning it in the snow as I’d want to given the amount of salt they put down up there. In my mind, with the budget for maintenance,…

He gave you facts. It’s your choice what to do with them. Ignore them. That’s your god-given right. But don’t pretend that facts are biased, or that he’s not doing exactly what his job is. We’re better off with more information, not less. 

I think we already accept the environmental problems with cars (we’re all on this website), because it’s a proven technology and essentially the status quo. Given that this is being feted as a replacement service, it’s prudent to consider the difference, in the same way that I want to know about the benefits and…

I have a problem with this kind of comment. He gave you a well-researched, well-considered report. There was no political bias, just statistics. Conflating reporting and political bias is one of the worst thing we can ever do. A lot of new stations do it, so I understand your impulse, but that’s not what he happened…

Semi trucks are driven by professionals who I would trust on the road more than almost anybody else. In this scenario, they’re practically the control group. Your average moron in a Suburban has little measurable skill whatsoever. Average, nonprofessional drivers are the most likely to do something stupid and…

Top 10 events least likely to see in New York City, number...

Moot point, they subsidize diesel the way we subsidize gas and they use that instead. They have always preferred smaller cars and wagons to trucks and SUVs. The sedan-wagon vs. CUV distinction is true and has been proven. The Crosstrek is a wagon by any other name that happens to ride higher (like the VW Alltrack), so…

Yeah, that’s exactly what I’m saying. And it’s hard, since a 240sx is a massively cool car (kudos to you for owning one), but how do you rationalize that when everybody else is in a full-size? And if you wanna drive with your wife next to you? I’ve been on the receiving end of a road rage incident with a drunk in a…

I agree, but yeah, the proportions remain a little different. I was looking at a BMW X2 on the street the other day – that’s got to be barely any larger than a Golf, and yet it’s in the X-category! Lots of other weird semi-crossovers, like the 500X and the C4 Cactus. Americans would barely even consider those…

Those trucks are serving an essential purpose to the rest of us...apples to oranges.

That’s not really true. The US is the only place around the world with such a SUV/CUV-dominated market. When the Europeans want room, they buy wagons and MPVs. Same goes for the Latin Americans, the Asian market, Arab world, etc. Not to mention, thing about what ‘huge’ meant back then. The large cars of the 1960s were…

Really disagree with this, particularly the sports car part of the analogy. They’re actually pretty antithetical to each other. Torch or somebody made this point in an article about being a ‘tough guy’ on the road a little while ago. There are fewer small, interesting cars on the road because these behemoths make it…

Interesting point unfortunately disproven by this very case. You’ll note that stricter emissions requirements are, in fact, a more progressive cause, and California has demonstrated no interest in ‘federal supremacy’ making their norms country-wide, but is instead simply defending its own state right to set an…

Sure, but self-reliance is not the same as social antagonism. I sympathize with the point you’re making, but you’re also conflating the virtue you’re talking about. You’re more talking about security than self-reliance, which is something a lot of people privilege. Regardless, we have to reframe this discussion when…

Unusually, the NYC rule is you can’t park over the crosswalk line, but you can pass over the white line. That’s considered a stopping point for through-vehicles only. Immediate ticket if you’re in the crosswalk, though.

Wonder how those catalytic converter-free leaf blowers which pollute as much as highways’ worth of F150s do in similar conditions...

Disagree – it should be the same cost with an no-cost delete available, so that mediocre drivers are naturally pushed to have them and the few of us opposed can go without. Some new systems like lane assist drive me insane on highways, and my own car is happily analog. But based on the number of people who have nearly…

For making people who should have bought a station wagon or minivan feel better about their bad choice.

Yeah, it’s a weird, impractical car. Lots of compromises. The Europeans seem to consider it a novelty item, a kind of “luxury” CUV with the whimsy of the 500 but little practicality. The Tipo sedan/wagon is the practical option (Dodge Neon to the Arab and Latin market), but that’s never seeing US shores.

Right! And not to mention the comparatively bloated sedans the US market receives in the first place. If there were a meaningful competition for economy, efficiency-minded sedans and small cars would blow CUVs entirely out of the water. But Americans currently find it unthinkable to drive cars with the horsepower…