60 Minutes : The Thrill Of The SUV

CBS News ^ | July 13, 2003 | Morley Safer, Correspondent

[newgeezer]

Most SUV owners believe bigger is always better.  (Photo: 60 Minutes/CBS)



"Cars are very key. They are an expression of myself. You know, this is maybe the best way for Americans to express themselves.”
Dr. Clotaire Rapaille

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The Thrill Of The SUV
July 13, 2003


If you drive an SUV, a sport utility vehicle, you may be feeling a little defensive these days.

According to some, you're not only unpatriotic and un-Christian, you're ruining the environment. You're also selfish and stupid and dangerous - a rollover waiting to happen.

So, are SUV owners sheepishly surrendering to more sensible cars? Hardly.

As 60 Minutes reported a few months ago, there's no end in sight to America's love affair with size and horsepower. Correspondent Morley Safer reports.

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Ah, the thrill of the open road - if you can find one. Roads are more and more congested and the vehicles they carry grow ever larger. Today, the family car is no longer a modest station wagon, but a Suburban, a Yukon, or an Excursion or a Land Rover or an Escalade.

By and large, SUV owners seem a contented lot, lording it over the common herd, proud of the status symbols they captain to the shopping mall or the grocery store.

Urban and suburban guerilla groups, like an outfit called "Earth On Empty," are waging a losing battle, ticketing SUV's and citing drivers for their selfishness.

In California, a group called "Changing the Climate" uses bumper stickers to make its voice heard. And then there are the TV ads.

On the radio you can get another earful from the hosts of NPR's "Car Talk" -- Tom and Ray Magliozzi. On their Web site, the Car Talk brothers feature nine downsides to driving an SUV, including "Other people on the road may hate you." SUV owners are not amused.

“They hate us,” says Tom Magliozzi. “All the vitriolic responses that we get.”

But the Car Talk guys' disdain seems futile, even with rising gas prices. With gas still costing less than bottled water, most Americans have shown little interest in more fuel-efficient cars and the auto makers happily comply.

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SUV's are the fastest growing segment of the car market. There are almost 70 different macho models to choose from and they are the mother lode of profitability. George Peterson does market research for all the major manufacturers.

“Let's take Ford, for example, the industry says that Ford is probably making $5,000 on each Explorer sold. So then you have an Expedition that sells for, let's say, $30,000 to $40,000. They're making $10,000 a unit on that. And they may be making as much as $20,000 a unit on a Navigator,” says Peterson. “That’s real money.”

And that's music to manufacturers' ears. There's the $90,000 Mercedes and a brand new Porsche is on the market. What is this need that Americans seem to have to be seen to be ready to conquer Everest or the Sahara?

Dr. Clotaire Rapaille, a psychologist, makes a living explaining that need to major corporations like the Detroit "Big Three" and European auto-makers.

“The notion of need is very, very interesting. Because what do we really need, you see? I need food, I need water. I need shelter,” says Rapaille. “And you know that, but then there are other needs, needs of identity. Needs of communication. Needs of being loved, being respected.”

And the need for cars.

“Absolutely. Cars are very key,” adds Rapaille. “They are an expression of myself. You know, this is maybe the best way for Americans to express themselves.”

That's why ads show SUV's bouncing up mountains and fording streams, even though the automakers know only about five percent of owners ever go off-road. The reality is that the two-ton, four-wheel-drive behemoth carries more carrots than climbing gear, and it's just the ticket for lugging that ton of household bills.

Rapaille no longer sees patients. He doesn't need to, because he’s paid well to supply his insights to corporate America - and lives in baronial splendor outside of New York City.

Apart from Ford, GM and Chrysler, he's advised companies like Kelloggs, Kraft, and Proctor & Gamble. They pay him to get inside the deepest recesses of our brains. In fact, he's known as the "car shrink" in Detroit.

“Why do you buy a car that doesn't even make 10 miles per gallon, doesn't fit into your garage? Do you really need that? And you don't need that intellectually,” he says. “But at the reptilian level, what I call the reptilian level, the reptilian brain, the deepest part of you, the gut level if you want, you feel like you need that.”

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If Rapaille were an SUV, he'd be a Freud Explorer. He says people are completely unaware of the subconscious, reptilian reasons why they're drawn to SUVs.

“I don't believe what people say. They have a good alibi. They have a way to explain things to make them feel comfortable about what they're to do anyways,” says Rapaille, who believes it’s now considered hip to appear ready to take on anything.

“We are at war. You don't go to war in a Pinto or in a little Volkswagen. You want a tank, you want, you know, and I told the people there in Detroit, you know, SUVs - you put a machine gun on the top, you're going to sell them better, you know”

With or without a machine gun, people do say they feel more secure in an SUV – that it sits higher up, and people can see a lot more.

“Don't you think this is a fantastic alibi,” asks Rapaille.

“Why? Taller. Stronger. I mean, the elephant, the bigger you are, the more chance you have to survive. Now, we know that the higher you are, more chance you have to roll over. And we know that SUVs have a higher rate of accident for rollover than other cars. I mean a Porsche is a lot less chance to roll over than an SUV. That's at the cortex, which means people know it but they don't refer to it because there's something stronger which is the reptilian- the bigger, the tallest, and more chance to survive.”

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Hummer means lobster in German, but in cash, it means $50,000 to more than $100,000 a copy. It's a favorite of such survivalists as Hollywood actors and New York stockbrokers.

Hummer's commercials pitch the fantasy, and dealerships across the country can't keep them in stock. You can now spot them everywhere, going down city streets, the owners scanning the horizon for a wall to conquer.

“This is America. Bigger is always better. So Hummer is big,” says Rapaille. “One key element here is that outside, this is Mad Max. That's the code, you know.”

“Survival is key, you don't know what is going to happen. You know, is he going to attack you? You don't know if this next guy is going to be drunk and bump into you. And so you want to be square, you want to have a message. Don't mess with me because I can crush you, I can kill you right away, so don't approach me, hah? That's strong. So menacing. The Hummer is menacing.”

And George Peterson agrees that menace is a great selling point.

“One woman said, “I bought my SUV so I can take it down into midtown, and there's not gonna be a taxi on the road that's gonna push me around.’”


© MMIII, CBS Worldwide Inc. All Rights Reserved.

[Richard-SIA]

"SUV" in nothing more than Madison Ave. speak for a optioned out 4x4 wagon.

If it had a cruise control and an 8 channel CD player I suppose a '42 Willy's Jeep or Dodge M-37 could be an "SUV".

The whole SUV myth is histerically funny to people like me, who would not have one as gift, as they are utterly useless for real "off-road" work.

I drive several miles of "off-road" EVERY DAY, as part of my commute to work.
The only "SUV" that will survive my use are the Land-Rover products, the other fall apart in mere weeks.
And no, I do not have any interest in the new "Rover" (BMW) products either.

I think everyone should be left alone to drive whatever they like, so long as they pay for it themselves.
Anyone silly enough to drive a Lincoln Navigator or Cadillac Escalade is punishing their selves aplenty!

[UNGN]

My Yukon XL 2500 vs. Your non american car (Honda, I'm guessing).

I'll take my chances :

[Physicist]

“Why? Taller. Stronger. I mean, the elephant, the bigger you are, the more chance you have to survive. Now, we know that the higher you are, more chance you have to roll over. And we know that SUVs have a higher rate of accident for rollover than other cars. I mean a Porsche is a lot less chance to roll over than an SUV.

So Porsches are safer, right?

That's at the cortex, which means people know it but they don't refer to it because there's something stronger which is the reptilian- the bigger, the tallest, and more chance to survive.”

Try F=ma. Sometimes people's reptilian brain knows more physics than their cortex. Most people have an understanding--whether they can articulate it or not--that the mass of a freight train protects its driver in a collision. That intuition is correct.

[oceanview]

check out the photos in the post I made above. Thats the reality, you are safer in a small German car then an F150.

[UNGN]

"and you think that Tahoe is safe, right? Check out the photo at the right of the page:"

That's a "Jimmy" moron.

[oceanview]

in a crash, the ability of the frame to dissipate energy and maintain a protection zone around the driver is the key to safety.

[oceanview]

right, GM put all their effort into Yukon safety and let the Jimmy perform that way. Get a clue. US made SUVs and light trucks are not safe, they are getting better, but the photos tell the story. I don't care if people drive them because they need the utility, but the claims that an F150 is safe because its big are incorrect.

[zebra 2]

You're right. About the only real, non-luxury car you can still buy, other that an SUV, is a Ford CV or Mercury GM. I've got two of 'em. And I live miles up in the hills on clay dirt roads; as they say...Slippery when wet. But my wife and I do OK in our full-sized sedans, two (rear) wheel drive and all. I'll moan the day Ford quits making them.

[bigj00]

There are far more cars involved in accidents than there are SUVs.

I saw a car flip on its side friday...not an SUV in site.

I got mine because I need the room,if lefties hate me that's just a BONUS!!!!

[UNGN]

A Jimmy shown in that test is based on an S10 designed in 1981 (rebodied in 1994). The current Yukon is ALL NEW in 1999. I'm afraid you are the one needing to get a clue.

As I said in my earlier post. I'll take my chances 6000lb/300hp detroit Iron vs. superior German technology.

[Physicist]

in a crash, the ability of the frame to dissipate energy and maintain a protection zone around the driver is the key to safety.

It is one key to driver safety. There's nothing intrinsic about an SUV that it can't do those things just as well as a compact car or minivan. That's a question of engineering.

Newton's 2nd Law, by contrast, is not a matter of engineering. The more massive the car, the less the acceleration experienced by the driver in a collision.

As they say in basketball, "you can't coach size".

[P.O.E.]

I drive a Mazda MPV. Great safety rating, comfortable, handles well, approx 20mpg. Can haul all 4 kids to Disney & back to PA with plenty of room for them & their stuff. Can carry plywood, and 12-ft long 2x4's.

[oceanview]

try a VW Passat 4MOTION

[oceanview]

thats true, the Mercedes SUV is very safe, but not just because its big.

[buickmackane]

Without expressing an opinion one way or the other about SUVs, I have to say that the interview with Rapaille really intrigued me, too. Did you see his luxurious home -- he's sure living large off that "reptilian" schtick he's been feeding to the Fortune 500!

[buickmackane]

PS: I hit the Post button too soon. I forgot to mention the line that cracked me up the most. While citing all this "survivalism" stuff as a rationale for buying SUVs, Rapaille quipped that he actually told Detroit that the vehicles would sell a lot better if they were equipped with a machine gun on top. ROFLMAO!

[Paladin2]

Actually Corvettes have one of the highest rollover rates of all vehicles, but it is rarely mentioned. I'm not sure where the actual experience of Porches is for roll over, but it could also be high.

[Ditter]

Thats telling 'em! I have always driven Surburbans & Tahoes. I can haul my grandchildren, my animals & my STUFF! They are safe for me & mine & if they are worried that I will hit them (I haven't hit anyone yet) they can stay out of my way! I don't commute 50 miles per day & I get a lot more than 10 mpg. A girl rearended me while I was sitting at a redlight last week. She wrecked her whole front end, both fenders & the hood. I didn't have a scratch. Should I feel bad about that???

[UNGN]

"Rapaille quipped that he actually told Detroit that the vehicles would sell a lot better if they were equipped with a machine gun on top. ROFLMAO!"

http://www.ibistek.com/cobra.html

[ValerieUSA]

*L* I had to giggle every time he said "reptilian" so seriously. He has quite the scam going. Apparently he makes more with this reptilian line than psychics do with their 900 phone numbers.