>A related factor, in this country anyway, is the false sense of security felt by SUV drivers. They think because they're in a 4000 pound behemoth, sitting several feet above the ground, they can't get hurt. Guess again. Small cars don't stand much of a chance in head-on collisions with SUVs, but being more maneuverable they are less likely to be involved in a crash in the first place.
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>And don't even get me started about SUVs on slippery roads. Many of the drivers seem to think they are impervious with 4WD. A snowy road is still dangerous to ANY driver. And ice, forget it. No vehicle is safe on ice. But these guys bomb down the road at 50 or 60 like they've got some gold immunity star on their a**. I have seen more than a few of them off the road with puzzled looks on their faces.

I think the car makers are somewhat to blame for this. Their ads tout their vehicles as safer, and the "closed course, professional driver" is in such a small print that it's unreadable on most of the TVs, and stays only for a second or two. What you do see is these tanks driving on water poured over asphalt, on ice, on pretty much anything, stopping dead on, zigzagging over mountain roads etc.