A Sport utility vehicle or SUV is a car classification that combines elements of road-going passenger cars with features from off-road vehicles, such as raised ground clearance and four-wheel drive.
There is no commonly agreed-upon definition of an SUV, and usage of the term varies between countries. Some definitions claim that an SUV must be built on a light truck chassis; however, broader definitions consider any vehicle with off-road design features to be an SUV. A crossover SUV is often defined as an SUV built with a unibody construction (as with passenger cars), however in many cases crossovers are simply referred to as SUVs. In some countries — such as the United States — SUVs have been classified as "light trucks", resulting in more lenient regulations compared to passenger cars.
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The predecessors to SUVs date back to military and low-volume models from the late 1930s, and the four-wheel drive station wagons and carryalls that began to be introduced in 1949. The 1984 Jeep Cherokee (XJ) is considered to be the first SUV in the modern style. Some SUVs produced today use unibody construction; however, in the past, more SUVs used body-on-frame construction.
During the late 1990s and early 2000s, the popularity of SUVs greatly increased, often at the expense of the popularity of large sedans and station wagons. More recently, smaller SUVs, mid-size and crossovers have become increasingly popular. SUVs are currently the world's largest automotive segment and accounted for 36.8% of the world's passenger car market in 2017.
Definition
Automotive websites' descriptions of SUVs range from specifically "combining car-like appointments and wagon practicality with steadfast off-road capability" with "chair-height seats and picture-window visibility" to the more general "nearly anything with available all-wheel drive and raised ground clearance". It is also suggested that the term "SUV" has replaced "jeep" as a general term for off-road vehicle.
American dictionary definitions for SUVs include:
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"rugged automotive vehicle similar to a station wagon but built on a light-truck chassis"
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"automobile similar to a station wagon but built on a light truck frame"
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"large vehicle that is designed to be used on rough surfaces but that is often used on city roads or highways"
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"passenger vehicle similar to a station wagon but with the chassis of a small truck and, usually, four-wheel drive"
Characteristics
Chassis
Many years after most passenger cars had transitioned to a unibody construction, most SUVs continued to use a separate body-on-frame method, due to being based on the chassis from a light truck, commercial vehicle, pickup truck, or off-road vehicle.
The first mass-produced unibody four-wheel drive passenger car was the Russian 1955 GAZ-M20 Pobeda M-72, which could be considered the first crossover car. The 1977 Lada Niva was the first off-road vehicle to use both a unibody construction and a coil-sprung independent front suspension. The relatively compact Niva is considered a predecessor to the crossover SUV and combines a hatchback-like passenger car body with full-time four-wheel drive, low-range gearing and lockable center differential.
Nonetheless, unibody SUVs remained rare until the 1984 Jeep Cherokee (XJ) was introduced and became a sales success. The introduction of the 1993 Jeep Grand Cherokee resulted in all Jeep SUV models using unibody construction, with many other brands following suit since the mid-1990s. Today, most SUVs in production use a unibody construction and relatively few models continue to use a body-on-frame construction.
Body Style
SUVs are typically of a two-box design similar to a station wagon. The engine compartment is up front, followed by a combined passenger/cargo area (unlike a sedan, which has a separate trunk/boot compartment).
Up until approximately 2010, many SUV models were available in 2-door body styles. Since then, manufacturers began to discontinue the 2-door models as 4-door models became more popular. Only a few 2-door SUVs remain today, such as the body-on-frame Suzuki Jimny and Jeep Wrangler, and the Range Rover Evoque crossover SUV.
Safety
SUVs typically have high ground clearance and a tall body. Unless the SUV is powered by a battery in the floor, this results in a high centre of mass, which makes gasoline powered SUVs more prone to roll-over accidents. In 2003, SUVs were quoted as 2.5 times more likely to roll over in a crash than regular cars and that SUV roofs are more likely to cave in on passengers than in other cars, resulting in increased harm to passengers.
Between 1991 and 2001, the United States saw a 150% increase in sport-utility vehicle rollover deaths. In 2001, though roll-overs constituted just 3% of vehicle crashes overall, they caused over 30% of occupant fatalities in crashes; and in crashes where the vehicle does roll over, SUV occupants in the early 2000s were nearly three times as likely to be killed as other car passengers.
The increasing popularity of SUVs in the 1990s and early 2000s was partly due to buyers perceiving that SUVs provide greater safety for occupants, due to their larger size and raised ride height. Regarding the safety to other road users, SUVs are exempted from the regulation[where?] that a passenger car bumper must protect the area between 16 to 20 inches (41 to 51 cm) above the ground. This often increases the damage to the other car in a collision with an SUV, because the impact occurs at a higher location on the other car. In 2000–2001, 60% of fatal side-impact collisions were where the other vehicle was an SUV, an increase from 30% in 1980–1981.
The high danger for cyclists and pedestrians of being seriously injured or even killed by SUV drivers (who due to age, fatigue or drug use, are not carefully observing the street) has caused some public protests against SUVs in urban areas.
Types of SUV
Crossover SUV
The "crossover SUV" segment (also known as "CUVs" or simply "crossovers") has become increasingly popular since around 2010. Crossovers are often based on a platform shared with a passenger car, as a result they typically have better comfort and fuel economy, but less off-road capability (many crossovers are sold without all-wheel drive) than pickup truck-based SUVs.
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| Volskwagen Atlas SE. Courtesy of Wikipedia |
The difference between crossovers and other SUVs is sometimes defined as a crossover being built using a unibody platform (the type used by most passenger cars), while an SUV is built using a body-on-frame platform (the type used by off-road vehicles and light trucks). However, these definitions are often blurred in practice, since unibody vehicles are also often referred to as SUVs. Also, crossover is a relatively recent term and early unibody SUVs (such as the 1984 Jeep Cherokee) are rarely called crossovers. Due to these inconsistencies, the term SUV is often used as a catch-all for both crossovers and SUVs.
Outside of the United States, the term crossover tends to be used for C-segment (compact) or smaller vehicles, with large unibody vehicles—such as the Dodge Durango, Mercedes-Benz GLS-Class, BMW X7 and Range Rover—usually referred to as SUVs rather than crossovers. In the United Kingdom, a crossover is sometimes defined as a hatchback model with raised ride height and SUV-like styling features.
Mini SUV
The smallest size class of SUV is the "mini SUV". In Japan, SUVs under 3,400 mm (133.9 in)—such as the Mitsubishi Pajero Mini—are included in the kei car category and therefore attract lower taxes.
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| Suzuki Jimmy. Courtesy of caranddriver.com |
Many recent vehicles labelled as mini SUVs are technically subcompact crossovers and are built on the platform of a subcompact (also called supermini or B-segment) passenger car.
Compact SUV
The "compact SUV" is the next bigger size class after mini SUVs.
Many recent vehicles labelled as compact SUVs are technically compact crossovers and are built on the platform of a compact (C-segment) passenger car.
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| Jeep Wrangler. Courtesy of autocosmos.com.mx |
Mid-Size SUV
The next larger size is called the "mid-size SUV". Outside of North America, this term is not commonly used, with mid-size SUVs being grouped together with full-size SUVs. Some mid-size SUVs are based on platforms shared with passenger cars and are therefore crossovers. Other mid-size SUVs are based on compact or mid-size pickups.
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| Land-Rover Defender. Courtesy of diariomotor.com |
Full-size SUV
Full-size SUVs are the largest size of commonly produced SUVs. Some are marketed for their off-road capabilities, while others are marketed as luxury vehicles. A few full-size SUVs are built on dedicated platforms; most share their platforms with full-sized pickups.
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| Dodge Durango. Courtesy of caranddriver.com |
Extended-Lenght SUV
Some North American SUVs are available as a long-wheelbase version of a full-size SUV, which is called an "extended-length SUV". The additional length is used to provide extra space for rear passengers or cargo. As per the full-size SUVs they are based on, most extended-length SUVs are built on dedicated platforms, full-sized pickups or heavy-duty pickups.
Extended-length SUVs are mostly sold in North America, South America, the Middle East, and the Philippines.
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| Cadillac Escalade ESV. Courtesy of mastercadillac.com |
