I believe there exists this same concern on the 3rd gen LX forums (thread locked), and folks pointed out that BOF vehicles while are "battering rams" can have deformable crumple zones. Dont know if thats true or not, but historically BOFs have not faired all that well model to model (or even inside the same model but diff trim)

 

Well that would require me to read and comprehend! lol

I would buy that answer. I think theres a niche for that sort of buyer, and that need is pretty well met with those products and manufacturers don't see growth there like they do with crossovers.

 

Lol, this thread is hilarious. A few people who clearly love BOF gets worked up because a few others bring facts and not opinions that show crossovers are objectively more desirable from a sales standpoint to BOF SUV's. Whats there to get worked up about?

Here is my opinion, I would definitely drive a RR, I don't care what anybody else thinks. I think most anybody who has spent any real time driving the latest one, would agree too. Its a very desirable vehicle.

 

The RR is an awesome vehicle, the X7 is the only other large SUV I've driven that comes close in terms of driving quality...

 

All we are missing is the Tesla folks

 

RR is nice, but last time I drove one, I was not impressed with the infotainment system at all. This is a very very important point.

But that was back in 2017, not sure if they made any improvements.

 

The infotainment is all new since then, I agree it was very bad.

 

Different people have different uses/tastes in a vehicle. Luxury buyers are far less likely to want a BOF SUV than an average joe because who is going to take their $80,000 luxury SUV off-roading?

To me it would make more sense to have BOF offerings in the mainstream brands(Toyota, Nissan, Ford, GM, Dodge) and then keep the luxury brands to mostly CUV's(exceptions for the Navigator and Escalade of course, and perhaps the LX).

As I've argued in Mike's car vs CUV threads, there is clearly an overwhelming shift in the market towards CUV's so I don't see them going away, nor do I think they should. They serve a lot of buyers very well. It's just hard for those of us who do see a use for a rugged BoF suv to accept that they're going away. My parents have a 98 Mitsubishi Montero Sport and it's been fantastic for off-roading. It's smaller than my truck so it handles well, but rugged due to the BoF design. There really isn't a replacement for it unless you want to drop $$$ on a 4Runner. I think Ford is answering a clear call by bringing back the Bronco as a Ranger-based BOF SUV(God knows they don't need another CUV, although a Baby Bronco CUV is coming).

 

Your definition of huge does not jibe with mine. At the risk of quoting myself from another thread:

Only 3 of the top 30 selling SUVs are BOF. The Jeep Wrangler at 8th, Toyota 4Runner at 21st, and Chevy Tahoe at 25th. Overall, BOF SUVs make up just 9% of SUV sales. Ford and GM each sell more light pickups than all BOF SUVs combined, from all brands. Put another way, the Rav4 and CR-V together move nearly 20% more units than all BOF SUVs combined.

So, single-digit marketshare and shrinking every year.

 

In some cases, you just might care what this guy thinks.

 

Yes, there is a fair amount of truth to that, but let's see what happens when Ford's BOF Bronco debuts in the spring. I personally think there will be enough interest in it to see some respectable sales, especially compared to the crossover Blazer.

 

You sort of have to bake "truck sales" into the equation. A Sequoia would not exist if there was no Tundra. An Expedition would never exist if there was no F-150. Same with Tahoe etc etc.

 

The topic is BOF SUVs. not pickup trucks.

As for the Bronco, it will be a niche vehicle. Comparing sales to the Blazer will make no sense as they will not compete with each other at all.

 

True, but most BOF SUVs come from pickup trucks.

I don't think you are giving it enough credit...but we'll see. It's difficult to make any real predictions without seeing the final product, but, right now, I'm reasonably confident it will outsell the Blazer. But, I've been wrong before. I thought, for instance, that both the 2-seat Chrysler Crossfire and the recent Lincoln Continental would sell better than they did.

^^^ Exactly......and that's the problem. The Blazer should be competing against it as an BOF RWD/AWD, not as simply another one of a million different mid-sized crossovers in the American market.

 

Exactly.

​​​​​​The Blazer is a flop. You were the only one to really see it coming