Spacious
Autos: SUVs vs Minivans
by SolveYourProblem.com
Has your family started to cram into the old
sedan like a pack of sardines? Have members of the neighborhood
car pool begun to look suspiciously at your battered station
wagon? Perhaps it’s time to retire the old family car and move
up to a bigger vehicle. Often, the choice for a more spacious
family vehicle is a toss-up between a sport utility vehicle
(SUV) and a minivan. Both offer flexible passenger and cargo
areas, comfortable seating for five to eight persons, and rear-seat
entertainment systems. Although the SUV has a slightly higher
risk for rollovers than minivans do, both are equipped with
similar safety features, such as air bags and anti-lock brake
systems. So, which one deserves to park in your family garage?
To come up with the right choice, you need to look at how the
vehicle’s styling, fuel economy, passenger and cargo space,
towing capacity, and safety will suit your family’s needs and
lifestyle.
Styling
More than a matter of need, a vehicle’s styling is a matter
of personal preference. The SUV usually wins out over the minivan
when it comes to appearance. With its rugged, sporty styling,
an SUV oozes urban cool, unlike the minivan, which is perpetually
associated with soccer moms and suburban neighborhood carpools.
Most men would recoil at the thought of driving a minivan,
so if your husband would be sharing driving duties, you might
have to talk it out with him. Likewise, many teenagers wouldn’t
be caught dead stepping out of a minivan, so if you’d be using
the vehicle mainly to drop off and pick up your adolescent
children from school, you’d have to consider their preferences,
too.
Fuel economy
Minivans give better mileage than SUVs, which have a reputation
for being gas guzzlers. If you want to squeeze more miles out
of the gasoline tank, then a minivan would make a more economic
choice than an SUV. Other ownership costs, such as maintenance
and insurance, also tend to be higher for SUVs than minivans.
Unless you’re willing to pay the price for being cool and stylish,
the practical minivan is the way to go.
Passenger and cargo space
Sport utility vehicles and minivans have comparable passenger
and cargo space, but the roomy interiors of a minivan can be
a delight to young kids. Unlike SUVs, minivans also have a
low step-in height, so they’re easier for kids to climb into.
Minivans’ large picture windows afford young passengers a better
view of the passing scenery, therefore keeping your impatient
young ones amused for a good part of the ride.
Towing capacity
If you own a boat and like to take the entire brood for weekend
sailing retreats, then an SUV would make an appropriate choice.
SUVs have superior towing capacities, enabling them to pull
practically anything between a trailer and a small boat. Otherwise,
if you’re only schlepping groceries and your kid’s soccer team,
then there’s no reason to overlook the minivan.
Safety
Although both have comparable safety features, SUVs have a
higher rollover risk than minivans. SUV devotees counter this
by pointing out that rollovers account for only three percent
of all traffic accidents and claiming that SUVs offer excellent
passenger protection in two-car collisions. It remains to be
seen whether this supposed collision safety factor outweighs
the risk of rollovers. If the threat of rollover accidents
keeps you awake at night, then a minivan could give you a little
peace of mind.
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SolveYourProblem.com : 2007
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