4 ms·

Do you know what made you do this? Can you explain? I would honestly like to understand.

tonyedgecombe 5y ago
I blame Edward Bernays.
antiterra 5y ago
Seating and cargo capacity, smaller than the minivan it replaces, comfortable ride if I want it, reassuringly fast acceleration onto the uncontrolled highway intersection by my home, fun, bumpers align with all the trucks and other SUVs, solid quality AWD (unlike the Volvo hybrid.) Might be worth noting there are heavier and less efficient cars, it’s not at the top of the list for either of those things. What’s difficult to understand?
- markvdb 5y ago
  I come in from a rather different angle. I currently own a 2007 diesel station wagon, mostly by accident. It's a hand-me-down from my parents. Fuel consumption is 4.25l/100km (~55 mpg). It's plenty comfortable to me. It has the safety features that matter (ABS, airbags and whatnot). I've never ended up in an unsafe situation due to a lack of acceleration either. It's got plenty of cargo capacity on its own. In the unlikely event I need more, I can easily hook up a trailer. Which is exactly what I plan to do on the way to the holiday house this summer. Plenty of rather rough unpaved roads there, and yet hardly an SUV to be seen. All of this fits well with a personal strategy: - frugal. I try not to spend more than the median unskilled labourer reasonably can. - political. I try to make sure as little as possible money goes to Russian (48%), Saudi (~20%) or other middle eastern (~5%) oil firms of vey questionable ethical reputation. Just thinking of Mohammed Bin Salman is stomach turning enough for me to lower my speed to the fuel efficiency optimum. - ecological. Used car, fairly clean burning engine, using it as little as possible, driving it at optimal speed ~90km/h (~56mph) . My significant other is on board with this. The tradeoff was between owning a car or not. She absolutely wants one. I absolutely want what we own to be frugal, aligned with our political choices and ecological. I can really appreciate the engineering that went into a massive engine, very much so. Same for a friend's custom leather car upholstery rework. True work of art. An acquaintance of a friend's converted an old Volvo 240 to run on wood (!) [0]. To me, the comfort and fun you described sound bland, hollow, empty even in comparison. Why go with the boring highly polluting v8 when you can get something similarly boring with more positive externalities instead?
  - antiterra 5y ago
    "Your fun is bland, hollow and empty" is so hilariously self-righteous, presumptive and condescending that it sounds like you're trying to convince yourself. I enjoy translating poetry from Japanese and Spanish. I enjoy playing classic and modern music on piano-- I played violin in an orchestra when I was younger. I enjoy learning to read various writing systems. I love watching films new and old, including those of Kieślowski & Roy Andersson. I have fallen in love and been loved. I have eaten a Liège waffle in a park watching the sunset. I have arrived in Paris at 6pm and walked around with a camera until my train left at 10am. I have sat on the grass outside a Mexican airport drinking beer with other travelers and employees waiting for the massively delayed single flight of the day. I enjoy sailing, swimming, cycling. In addition to those other bland, hollow and empty pursuits and experiences, I also have a passion for driving and autosport. Every trip I make by car requires me to, from a stop sign with no ramp, enter or cross a 65 mph divided highway that is often busy. It's happened many times where I've pulled into an empty lane and a car going faster than 70 switches to my lane and closes in at a dangerous rate behind me as I'm still accelerating. Sometimes cars accelerate spontaneously after I've entered a gap that is normally plenty of room. Other times, drivers behind me rage with horns or dangerous maneuvers if I don't enter when they feel it's safe. All those are solved (save for errant hypercars) with a simple sub 4 second 0-60 time and the stability of all wheel drive. In addition, on road trips, I can close the exhaust valves, raise the ride height and soften the suspension. Then, I can talk to other people in the car without shouting, and I don't have tinnitus ringing in my ears for hours after. Those two things are definitely not boring. Hooking up a trailer ramps up the inconvenience significantly if you're just driving to a beach condo or attempting to park in a normal lot. That said, my vehicle can tow around 4 US tons if I wanted to go that path.

I blame Edward Bernays.

Seating and cargo capacity, smaller than the minivan it replaces, comfortable ride if I want it, reassuringly fast acceleration onto the uncontrolled highway intersection by my home, fun, bumpers align with all the trucks and other SUVs, solid quality AWD (unlike the Volvo hybrid.) Might be worth noting there are heavier and less efficient cars, it’s not at the top of the list for either of those things. What’s difficult to understand?

markvdb 5y ago
I come in from a rather different angle. I currently own a 2007 diesel station wagon, mostly by accident. It's a hand-me-down from my parents. Fuel consumption is 4.25l/100km (~55 mpg). It's plenty comfortable to me. It has the safety features that matter (ABS, airbags and whatnot). I've never ended up in an unsafe situation due to a lack of acceleration either. It's got plenty of cargo capacity on its own. In the unlikely event I need more, I can easily hook up a trailer. Which is exactly what I plan to do on the way to the holiday house this summer. Plenty of rather rough unpaved roads there, and yet hardly an SUV to be seen. All of this fits well with a personal strategy: - frugal. I try not to spend more than the median unskilled labourer reasonably can. - political. I try to make sure as little as possible money goes to Russian (48%), Saudi (~20%) or other middle eastern (~5%) oil firms of vey questionable ethical reputation. Just thinking of Mohammed Bin Salman is stomach turning enough for me to lower my speed to the fuel efficiency optimum. - ecological. Used car, fairly clean burning engine, using it as little as possible, driving it at optimal speed ~90km/h (~56mph) . My significant other is on board with this. The tradeoff was between owning a car or not. She absolutely wants one. I absolutely want what we own to be frugal, aligned with our political choices and ecological. I can really appreciate the engineering that went into a massive engine, very much so. Same for a friend's custom leather car upholstery rework. True work of art. An acquaintance of a friend's converted an old Volvo 240 to run on wood (!) [0]. To me, the comfort and fun you described sound bland, hollow, empty even in comparison. Why go with the boring highly polluting v8 when you can get something similarly boring with more positive externalities instead?
- antiterra 5y ago
  "Your fun is bland, hollow and empty" is so hilariously self-righteous, presumptive and condescending that it sounds like you're trying to convince yourself. I enjoy translating poetry from Japanese and Spanish. I enjoy playing classic and modern music on piano-- I played violin in an orchestra when I was younger. I enjoy learning to read various writing systems. I love watching films new and old, including those of Kieślowski & Roy Andersson. I have fallen in love and been loved. I have eaten a Liège waffle in a park watching the sunset. I have arrived in Paris at 6pm and walked around with a camera until my train left at 10am. I have sat on the grass outside a Mexican airport drinking beer with other travelers and employees waiting for the massively delayed single flight of the day. I enjoy sailing, swimming, cycling. In addition to those other bland, hollow and empty pursuits and experiences, I also have a passion for driving and autosport. Every trip I make by car requires me to, from a stop sign with no ramp, enter or cross a 65 mph divided highway that is often busy. It's happened many times where I've pulled into an empty lane and a car going faster than 70 switches to my lane and closes in at a dangerous rate behind me as I'm still accelerating. Sometimes cars accelerate spontaneously after I've entered a gap that is normally plenty of room. Other times, drivers behind me rage with horns or dangerous maneuvers if I don't enter when they feel it's safe. All those are solved (save for errant hypercars) with a simple sub 4 second 0-60 time and the stability of all wheel drive. In addition, on road trips, I can close the exhaust valves, raise the ride height and soften the suspension. Then, I can talk to other people in the car without shouting, and I don't have tinnitus ringing in my ears for hours after. Those two things are definitely not boring. Hooking up a trailer ramps up the inconvenience significantly if you're just driving to a beach condo or attempting to park in a normal lot. That said, my vehicle can tow around 4 US tons if I wanted to go that path.