27145792
Gareth Grove was proud of his Hummer, but it was too big for the garage in his Washington, D.C., neighborhood so he left it parked outside. Apparently not everyone approved of his massive, gas-guzzling vehicle because two masked marauders took sledge hammers to the car after just five days. They smashed windows, slashed tires and scratched the message "For the Environ" (evidently running out of room for the whole word) onto the side.
Vandalizing or burning SUVs is quite trendy. One radical green even went to jail for torching a row of Hummers in Eugene, Ore. "We were trying to draw attention to the use of resources in America that are contributing to climate change and global warming," the incarcerated Jeff "Free" Luers said.
Cooler heads, however, point out setting fire to SUVs is inherently bad for the environment. Check out www.elmerfudd.us/burnsuvs.html, where it is argued lighting an SUV releases more harmful pollutants in a day than the owner would have in a year driving it. "When people set fire to pickups, SUVs and Hummers not only are they releasing a great deal of pollution to the environment, they’re negating the resources that went into building the vehicle in the first place," the site said, while assuring visitors it hates these "penis extenders" with a passion.
There is indeed a war of sorts between greens and the many, many Americans who say they need large trucks. How else are they going to trailer their all-terrain vehicles? These folks are feeling somewhat conspired against and consider 35-mpg federal fuel economy laws to be nothing more than an attempt to wrest away their SUVs.
With all that said, I took a close look at the Nissan Titan 4×4 Pro-4X truck, which is proof positive the Japanese can compete in the big leagues with Ford, GM and Chrysler. The Titan is enormous. My 10-year-old daughter literally could not climb into this $36,000 truck without assistance from her sister. It’s 18-feet long and weighs 5,297 pounds. Fuel economy? How about 12 miles per gallon in the city and just 17 on the highway.
There are definite Hummer parallels because, even with its massive size, the rear seat feels cramped. And it’s equally impractical. We were forced to leave it home on a trip to the airport because it was raining and there was nowhere other than the exposed bed to put luggage. The Nissan’s saving grace, if it has one, is a plethora of useful bins and storage pockets with an ingenious swing-out cup holder. After that, I sort of run out of positives because the Titan is really awkward to maneuver in anything other than an open field. Like the school buses I’ve driven, it’s fine in a straight line on an open highway, but backing it up or turning it is white-knuckle time.
Here’s what I don’t get: For some people SUVs are like guns and the keys will have to be pried from cold, dead fingers, but why does anyone want a vehicle this big? What’s the attraction of breaking the bank at the pump with an expensive vehicle of truly marginal utility? When does the fun begin?
