
SUVs second biggest cause of emissions rise, figures reveal - YeGoblynQueenne
https://www.theguardian.com/environment/ng-interactive/2019/oct/25/suvs-second-biggest-cause-of-emissions-rise-figures-reveal
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esotericn
You have to really consider that in a country like the UK, a lot of people
exist that aren't in poverty. I imagine the same is true globally.

People don't respond very elastically to small percentage differences in price
for something they want unless they're at the margin.

They don't buy the literal cheapest thing available - they buy the thing they
want. Zero hour workers might run on Tesco Value digestive biscuits, basic
pasta, fruit and veg, etc, but there are tens of millions not in that
situation.

If you have your basic needs taken care of and a buffer above that, then an
SUV using 25% more fuel or whatever just doesn't really matter from a cost
perspective.

[https://www.gov.uk/vehicle-tax-rate-tables](https://www.gov.uk/vehicle-tax-
rate-tables)

Want a 250g/km vehicle? Just pay 2 grand a year. Eminently affordable for
like, the second most expensive thing most people buy.

If you want this sort of thing to reduce, you need to price it at a level that
fewer people can afford to pay.

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perfunctory
> The recent dramatic shift towards heavier SUVs has offset both efficiency
> improvements in smaller cars and carbon savings from electric vehicles.

If somebody still believes in a technological free market based solution to
the climate crisis - keep dreaming.

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javagram
Electric SUVs are coming.

But yeah, this is what happens when gas prices fall. I drive a small car
personally but the difference between 30-40 mpg for a small gas car vs 20-30
for a SUV just isn’t very significant in terms of $$ spent on gas.

It probably would have made sense to start gradually increasing the gas tax a
few years ago to make fuel efficiency still worth it - on the other hand, when
France increased their fuel tax they had riots.

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chewz
> Electric SUVs are coming.

Do they change laws of physics? Otherwise larger mass still requires larger
amounts of energy...

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chris11
Power plants are more efficient in generating power for electric cars than an
ice engine is. Plus you get some benefit from regenerative braking.

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TipiKoivisto
I've seen a lot of "Fuck you and your SUV" stickers lately. Now I understand
why.

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eznoonze
Say the ones driving pickup trucks.

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yellowapple
I have a strong feeling this will "fix itself" like it's currently doing for
smaller cars as electric SUVs become more practical and affordable. Right now
the electric-automotive industry leans heavily toward smaller cars, which
means for those of us who have _practical_ reasons to prefer an SUV (I'd like
to be able to comfortably haul passengers and comfortably haul cargo without
having to own/maintain/park two separate vehicles) there are fewer options.

An alternative path would be to convert existing SUVs to electric powertrains.
I'm at least mildly considering doing so for my SUV (and will probably do so
in the event its engine kicks the bucket), even if the automatic transmission
makes that less-than-ideal (most electric conversions stick with manual
transmissions; no need to shift out of 2nd gear).

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freediver
Not electric SUVs.

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solarwind
I can't take anyone seriously who says "carbon" when he means carbon dioxide.

