Crossovers have come to dominate the market. In a lot of ways they’re like an invasive, non-native species. Over the years they’ve silently displaced traditional cars, becoming the go-to vehicle for many families. But are they really tantamount to Asian carp, zebra mussels or nutria?
Some die-hard automotive enthusiasts may despise these elevated vehicles, but they’re actually not without their benefits. There are quite a few good reasons why you should consider a crossover instead of a sedan, at least 10 in fact. So limber up your clicking digits because we’re exploring this topic in the following pages.
Vanity befalls the best of us. Perhaps you just bought some yoga pants when really a pair of elastic-waist jeans would have been a more appropriate fit. In any event, crossovers have a certain visual appeal that mainstream sedans often lack. Typically they will have chiseled good looks and rugged features. These are hard to beat if you’re lusting after a stylish, high-riding vehicle.
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Thanks to their elevated dimensions and resultant higher seating positions, crossovers can also provide better outward visibility. Fewer blind spots are not just a convenience, they’re a safety feature and one they don’t even charge extra for! Sitting upright also allows you to see over “lesser” traffic for a suitably commanding view of the road ahead. Of course there are exceptions to this rule but we’re going to ignore them for the sake of brevity and suggest you do the same.
As Isaac Newton said, Force = Mass x Acceleration, or something like that (admittedly we’re not what you’d call mathematically proficient). Still, in crashes bigger vehicles tend to be safer than smaller ones. The laws of physics don’t take time off, not even for Susan B. Anthony’s birthday. Underscoring this point, the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) just evaluated several small cars and the results were mixed at best. In comparison many crossovers have earned Top Safety Pick+ status from the IIHS, their highest accolade.
SEE ALSO: Small Cars Struggle in Latest IIHS Crash Test
A lot of crossovers can be had with a third-row seat, meaning they can carry more people than comparable sedans. Some of those rear-most benches can even accommodate adults, though to be fair many of them are for kids only. If you haul a number of people around on a regular basis you’d be smart to at least consider a crossover vehicle, but perhaps a minivan would be an even better choice, but that’s a subject for another day.
Along with more places for people crossovers typically have more space for stuff. This is a major reason why drivers purchase these vehicles; they want abundant room in a reasonably efficient package. It’s pretty obvious, the “V” in crossover stands for “Versatility.”
When’s the last time you towed anything with a front-wheel-drive family car? If you’re like most sedan owners the answer is probably “never.” In fact, models like the Toyota Camry and Hyundai Sonata are not even rated to drag anything by their manufacturers. If you’ve got a small boat, a lightweight camper or a snowmobile trailer that needs moving, a crossover will probably be able to handle it without breaking a sweat, just don’t try to pull a house off its foundation or a disabled class-eight truck.
Likewise crossovers often have better ground clearance than cars. This is another dividend paid by their elevated ride heights. The ability to handle light-duty off-roading is a major benefit, especially in unexpected situations. Of course if you want to really traverse difficult terrain might we suggest a Jeep Wrangler or a Range Rover? They’re both FAR more capable than car-based crossovers.
Not many mainstream sedans offer the traction-enhancing advantage of all-wheel drive. The Ford Fusion, Chrysler 200 and of course Subaru Legacy are three that come to mind. But if you cast a lust-filled gaze toward the crossover segment you’ll notice that practically all of them offer this feature. When you couple this with greater ground clearance these utility vehicles become quite useful in adverse conditions. Go ahead, laugh at that thunderstorm bucketing rain on you, scoff the washed-out dirt road your sibling lives down and flip Old Man Winter the bird, with all-wheel drive you’re ready for practically anything. Except black ice; it’s not going to help you there.
Believe it or not a lot of car-based crossovers are quite frugal, though perhaps not as thrifty as freegans that climb through dumpsters in search of discarded treasures. Still, the proliferation of things like downsized, turbocharged gasoline engines; high-gear-count transmissions; and better aerodynamics continue to improve the breed and slash your fuel bill. Increasing hybridization is another major way manufacturers are cutting crossover consumption.
SEE ALSO: Top 10 Most Fuel Efficient Three-Row SUVs
Finally one of the most important reasons to get a crossover instead of a sedan is because you want one. In America we’re reasonably free (for how much longer is anyone’s guess) and by golly if you want to drive a bigger, roomier, more stylish vehicle you ought to be able to. If you feel like commuting to work 100 miles a day in a diesel-powered heavy-duty pickup truck you ought to have the right to do that as well, as long as the rest of us don’t have to pay your fuel bill.
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