Klauss Bischoff is the head of design over at Volkswagen, and he recently claimed that the self-driving cars trend that has caught many car manufacturers might just mark the end of the SUV and crossover trend which has been going on recently. The statement is clearly too early to make in an autonomous evolution process that has just begun, and coming from someone of higher regard like that, it is truly surprising.
Vehicles which have the Level Five autonomy feature in them will definitely be different from what we have as cars right now. The Level Five autonomy level is the highest rank when ranking self driving cars, which would mean a driver has been replaced and they are no longer capable of making alterations but rather will be nothing but a spectator who will not have any control over the car itself. However, this does not mean that it would spell the end of the SUV or the crossover for that matter, and here is why.
One of the most obvious reasons why something like that would not happen is because of the selling point of the SUV; the fact that they are safe. People trust the big and huge machines and believe that they are much more safer, and they do make people feel safe.
The reason might be based solely on the fact that both the crossover and the SUV are pleasing to the eye and many people see the car to be attractive, giving them a sense of security and that is what people will definitely be looking for in the autonomous cars that will come in the near future. The feeling of being big on the street more than anyone else gives car drivers a confidence that is needed for when you are on the road. It gives the drivers a certain assurance that if things were to go wrong and was to get out of control, then they would still be safer than those who are in a smaller car.
The second big argument for defending the SUVs would be the fact that there is space. In his comments, Bischoff said that designers will be able to have some unprecedented freedom when it comes to the electric, and autonomous cars which will be largely due to the removal of some of the strenuously plenty car components which are seen in the current fuel powered cars.
SUVs however will definitely be offering more legroom, headroom and cargo space over the smaller electric cars. Luxury wise, bigger and better passenger area will always be a selling point and is what attracts many people to cars. So the issue of removing fuel economy and also gas emissions will no longer be factored into buying a car, therefore SUVs might actually gain from the electric market.
