The minivan killed the station-wagon; the crossover then ate the minivan. It is all just a different skin around the on-road people-carrier function, but the cr

The minivan killed the station-wagon; the crossover then ate the minivan. It is all just a different skin around the on-road people-carrier function, but the crossover market is one that has explicitly traded function (interior and cargo space) for form (sporty SUV look, high seating). Some "crossovers" these days are literally sedans on jacked-up suspension with plastic body cladding. The Subaru Outback (Legacy), Subaru Crosstrek XV (Impreza), and Mazda CX-3 (Mazda2) come to mind. The latter two are especially egregious, as the "compact crossover" market does no thing well: there's no additional cargo/people capacity, worse handling manners, no safety improvement from more mass, and no additional off-road capability over the (often cheaper) compact sedan or hatchback these vehicles are based on. And that's the point this article is really making: we're collectively punishing real innovation by buying into the marketing-hyped version of reality that "bigger is better" and "crossovers are for families", and we're not holding anyone accountable for these claims.