Why motorists are ditching SUVs for saloons: Could this be the beginning of the end for gas-guzzling 4x4s?
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Why are motorists shifting from SUVs to saloons?
Hard to imagine a journey down any road in the country without being met by multiple hulking SUVs. But that could change if purchasing trends continue. An increased demand for cheaper and more fuel-efficient cars is pushing people towards smaller vehicles. Neil Briscoe is a motoring journalist with the Irish Times and CompleteCar.ie. He's been writing about four-door saloons making a comeback. Morning, Neil.
Good morning, David.
Start off by just defining an SUV for me. What exactly are we talking about?
okay we're going with the easy questions first right um there there is there is actually no different definition of an suv it's it is it is the it's the classic thing of you know when you see it yeah uh car manufacturers have cottoned on certainly and particularly since the mid-2000s launch of the original nissan qashqai to the idea that people are keen on having taller higher riding vehicles that certainly give off the appearance of being more practical than your average family hatchback saloon or estate but that actually in fact aren't necessarily so but it's a fashion that caught on and and frankly caught fire and you know in a few short years we've gone from 12 of car sales across europe being what would what would be categorized as suvs to more like 56 wow
But even within that, there are small SUVs, big SUVs, crossovers, things that are halfway houses. There is no one definition.
OK, but the interesting thing that you've been writing about is that in the United States, a country renowned for big cars, the four-door saloon is making a comeback.
It certainly seems to be.
What factors are influencing the comeback of four-door saloons?
And I do think that's significant because obviously the US is where the SUV craze first began. And it's, you know, for many, many decades, the best selling vehicle, not strictly car, in the US has been the Ford F-150 pickup. And this image of a tall, rugged, outdoorsy vehicle is what, it's just hugely appealing to people, even if actually your daily driver's Driving is just, you know, bumbling around town and going to the shops and dropping the kids at school. And that's why SUVs have become so popular. But yes, there does seem to be a bit of an uptick in sales of much more conventional, well, what we might think of as conventional, four-door saloons like the Toyota Camry and the Honda Accord.
And is that because of fuel prices and practicalities or do we know what's behind it?
There's a huge number of factors driving it. Yes, definitely. I think fuel economy is partially driving it because there is just mathematically, physically, there is no getting away from the fact that SUVs are thirstier than their four-door saloon counterparts because they're taller and they're generally heavier too. But actually, I think there's a much bigger and more fundamental shift going on, which is that kids don't want to buy the cars their parents had. And I think we're seeing some of that fashionability factor start to play out. And the fact now that everybody has an SUV, people are now starting to look for something. Well, I don't want that because my mom had that. My dad had that.
How do fuel prices impact vehicle purchasing decisions?
I want something different.
And what about the Irish market? Are fashions changing here as well?
Not yet. And they probably won't change for a while. You have to remember that whatever about the fashion changing, the industry can't change that fast. The cars that we'll be buying in four or five years' time are already in the design and engineering process. They're already at the prototype stage. So it's not going to change overnight. But there are some very faint signs that maybe there is a change happening.
Are traditional small cars making a resurgence in the market?
We're seeing a tiny, tiny drop. in the sales of more compact SUV models, and that's possibly down to the resurgence of more traditional small cars, small hatchbacks like the Renault 5, the Hyundai Insta, and so on.
Okay, and people carriers could become trendy again? Fingers crossed.
Personally, I have a bit of a fetish for an early 80s Renault Espace myself.
What role does consumer preference play in vehicle trends?
It leads to its own. I'm possibly sharing too much. But yeah, there is an increasing trend.
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Chapters
6 chapters
1
Why are motorists shifting from SUVs to saloons?
0:00–1:40
2
What factors are influencing the comeback of four-door saloons?
1:40–3:05
3
How do fuel prices impact vehicle purchasing decisions?
3:05–3:35
4
Are traditional small cars making a resurgence in the market?
3:35–3:57
5
What role does consumer preference play in vehicle trends?
3:57–4:29
6
What innovative designs are emerging in the automotive industry?
4:29–5:01