Many credit the new increased safety in SUVs to electronic stability control. This technology is a new computer-based system that helps keep control of the vehicle during quick, jerky maneuvers and on slippery roads. Declining death rates accompany all new model SUVs as nearly every new SUV in the United States is sold with this technology. It greatly reduces the risk of skids and rolloovers in these new vehicles.

"It's a dramatic change and a testament to the incredible effectiveness of electronic stability control," said Anne McCartt, the Institute's senior vice president for research.

The death rate for SUV drivers dropped nearly 70 percent, from roughly 80 per million vehicles for 1999-2002 models to just under 30 per million for 2005-2008 models, according to USA Today.

"The rollover risk in SUVs used to outweigh their size/weight advantage, but that's no longer the case, thanks to ESC," McCartt said.

If you were to compare each vehicle by their death rates, minivans have the best record with a death rate of 25 driver deaths per million registered vehicles, followed by SUVs at 28 and pickup trucks at 52. Cars have a death rate of 56. Smaller cars have an even worse rate than the rate of sedans and other luxury cars, at 46 deaths compared with 82.

In this measure, the Camry is rated the best among all sedans, even besting the Volvo 850. Compared to the Camry's Drivers' Death Rate normalized as 1, rates in other cars are higher: Nissan Maxima 1.32, Mercedez C-Class 1.40, Mazda 626 1.59, Accord 1.68, Altima 2.11, Avalon 2.16...

Domestic cars are rated teribble. Worst is the GM Sunfire at 5.37. The only car rated better than the Camry is the luxury Infinity J30 at 0.54

Myths and Realities about SUVS

Myth: SUVs are safer than cars.

Reality: SUVs are no safer than cars for their occupants, and pose much greater dangers for other road users. SUV occupants die slightly more often than car occupants in crashes. The occupant death rate in crashes per million SUVs on the road is 6 percent higher than the death rate per million cars. The occupant death rate for the largest SUVs, which tend to be driven by middle-aged families, is 8 percent higher than the occupant death rate for minivans and upper-midsize cars like the Ford Taurus and Toyota Camry, which are typically driven by similar families. SUV occupants are much more likely than car occupants to die in a rollover, which accounts for about 1,000 more deaths a year than if the same people had been in cars. In collisions with other vehicles, however, SUVs are nearly three times as likely as cars to kill other drivers, inflicting another 1,000 unnecessary deaths a year among motorists who would have survived if hit instead by cars of the same weight. SUVs also contribute much more than cars to air pollution, causing up to 1,000 extra deaths a year among people with respiratory ailments.

насчет AWD и 4WD уже было сломано много копий во многих форумах. я думаю, что путаница случилась по вине некоторых несознательных граждан из департаментов маркетинга, которых давно пора сжечь. определение all-wheel-drive отражает явно суть идеи, реализация же ее в разных ипостасях и ее название на рынке есть дело производителя.

Статистика дело хорошее, но смерти на SUV были в основном при переворотах,потому как от просто удара пострадает скорее маленькая машина.
После начала установки, 2-3 года назад, установки контроля стабилизации, переворотов стало меньше, ну и смертей тоже.
То что я приводил, это свежая статистика.
То что вы ниже, неизвестно откуда.
Давайте столкнём SUV среднего размера( как Highlander) и Nissan Vensa и нам никакая статистика не нужна.

Ты consume report проверил бы. А то года 4 назад у них там была проблема с трансмиссией. Я думаю, пофиксили конечно, но может еще что вылезло. Toyota в последнее время обнаглела - стала гнать машины достаточно дерьмовые, выезжая на старой славе. Моя кемри 2001 году до сих пор бегает без проблем, но это как раз и был взлет их славы.

Нельзя сравнивать SUV и седаны
Это как апельсин и яблоко...для разных нужд

6 цилиндров лучше....расход бензина не намного выше
Работает тише, ощущение машины приятнее
Диски без разницы.....алюминиевые красивее

Гибрид иногда есть смысл...Highlander в городе 13 литров/100км, а гибридный 7.5
5.5 литров экономии это много
Окупится быстро....разница всего 6-7 тысяч в цене.

Ну так я 90% езжу по хайвеям.

Значит не проверял ... а зря батенька. Делов то 5 минут. Видно боишся стереотипы поломать.

Что совсем не ездит?