Call me unparanoid, but I happen to think SUV is the best, most succinct and descriptive term for the type of vehicle. It's a better description than "car", "truck", or generic "vehicle".... might have worked as well as "4x4".
How would you wish they described the vehicle in this accident?
"Driver killed when he lost control of his SUV" maybe.
Put the blame on the driver, not the bad, bad SUV.
or "Driver fails to wear seatbelt and is killed when thrown from his vehicle during an accident."
Your descriptive term had the vehicle been a Yugo:__________.
Your descriptive term had the vehicle been a Volvo:__________.
Your descriptive term had the vehicle been a Saturn:__________.