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Podcasts Take Two
The Wheel Thing: Don't call it an SUV. Americans are crazy for crossovers
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Oct 30, 2014
Listen • 5:12
The Wheel Thing: Don't call it an SUV. Americans are crazy for crossovers
They're kind of like SUVs, but a bit more like cars. Crossover vehicles now make up a quarter of all U.S. auto sales. A look at some new ones hitting showrooms.
Crossover vehicles now make up a quarter of all U.S. auto sales. Honda will introduce a compact model, the HR-V, at the LA Auto Show in November.
Crossover vehicles now make up a quarter of all U.S. auto sales. Honda will introduce a compact model, the HR-V, at the LA Auto Show in November.
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American Honda Motor Co.
)

They're kind of like SUVs, but a bit more like cars. Crossover vehicles now make up a quarter of all U.S. auto sales. A look at some new ones hitting showrooms.

For generations, the station wagon was a staple in American garages.  But as the 20th century ended, U.S. drivers embraced a new, roomy vehicle, the SUV.

A generation later, many have eschewed the Sports Utility Vehicle for its cousin, the crossover. Built in unibody fashion, like a car, rather that the body-on-frame construction of an SUV, crossovers now account for a little more than a quarter of all U.S. auto sales.

And within the crossover sector, the most popular are the compacts. These get great gas mileage, have lots of room for gear, and are popular with everyone from aging baby boomers to millennials.

Our car critic Susan Carpenter tells us about the differences between SUVs and crossovers (sometimes called CUVs.) And she fills us in on some new models from Honda and Mazda.

Plus she has some news about the Chevy Volt. GM is adding more power and more range to its signature alternative vehicle.

Carpenter, who is auto and motorcycle critic for the OC Register, joins us each week to talk about personal transportation on The Wheel Thing.