The Chevy suburban.Google search will be happy to tell you the first use Sports Utility Vehicle was in the 80s or maybe the '74 Jeep Cherokee, but Bronco had a Sports Utility model in their advertising way back in '66. Go Bronco!
Seat belts, roll cages, reliability, nah...
According to my state, there are like...3 classifications of private vehicles, maybe 4. There is Pickup Truck, Passenger Car, and Station Wagon. There might be a 4th but I don't remember what it is if it still exists.I was/ am under the impression the Bronco was the first vehicle to be marketed as a Sport Utility.
Which gets us into the argument of was it an SUV if it didn't identify as an SUV
Kind of like the pickup truck debate; what makes a vehicle a truck?
Some say it can't be a unibody, has to be body on frame. But most older cars were body on frame, so was the Model T a pickup truck ? No.
So can a unibody Honda Ridgeline be a pickup truck? Yes.
Anyway, my point is, Madison Ave will market anything anyway they want. Many vehicles being sold today as an SUV are not what I'd personally call a sports utility vehicle. Here's a head scratcher, if an SUV is sold in the 2 wheel drive version, is it still an SUV?
Not even going to talk about crossovers.
Station wagons, minivans, SUVs they keep morphing into each other so soccer moms feel good about their ride. But in the last few years, off roading has resonated hard with many people and they want their vehicle to be apocalyptic proof. Now we're talking the weekend outdoors dads.
Anyway, that's a lot of words to basically say, it depends on how you want to define everything, and there is no correct answer, just interpretations.
Short answer - Broncos are NOT trucks.I was/ am under the impression the Bronco was the first vehicle to be marketed as a Sport Utility.
Which gets us into the argument of was it an SUV if it didn't identify as an SUV
Kind of like the pickup truck debate; what makes a vehicle a truck?
Some say it can't be a unibody, has to be body on frame. But most older cars were body on frame, so was the Model T a pickup truck ? No.
So can a unibody Honda Ridgeline be a pickup truck? Yes.
Anyway, my point is, Madison Ave will market anything anyway they want. Many vehicles being sold today as an SUV are not what I'd personally call a sports utility vehicle. Here's a head scratcher, if an SUV is sold in the 2 wheel drive version, is it still an SUV?
Not even going to talk about crossovers.
Station wagons, minivans, SUVs they keep morphing into each other so soccer moms feel good about their ride. But in the last few years, off roading has resonated hard with many people and they want their vehicle to be apocalyptic proof. Now we're talking the weekend outdoors dads.
Anyway, that's a lot of words to basically say, it depends on how you want to define everything, and there is no correct answer, just interpretations.
And I loved the IH Travelall that came out in 1953. My university's geology department had a number of these, I got to drive one on some field trips, and that hooked me on the format
