Occasionally industry sources will refer to this as the “B-SUV” segment in relation to the B-Segmet that refers to subcompact cars. This includes the Honda HR-V, Hyundai Kona and Nissan Kicks. Though the lines have begun to blur due to the sheer volume of SUVs and crossovers flooding the market, the subcompact segment represents the smallest offerings available in the U.S., vehicles which generally measure less than 173.2 inches in length. How we group types of SUVs Compact (small?), Midsize, Largeįorbes Wheels groups SUVs and crossovers into subcompact, compact, midsize and full-size segments.

Whereas some crossovers are essentially hatchbacks with added ground clearance, some crossovers-the Ford Bronco Sport, Jeep Renegade and Toyota RAV4, to name a few-are actually pretty competent when the pavement ends. Often, a crossover shares a platform and some of its mechanical and interior components with a traditional sedan or hatchback counterpart, leading industry insiders to refer to crossovers as “car-based SUVs.” Marketing aside, crossover generally refers to a unibody vehicle (unit construction instead of a body-on-frame like a full-size truck or SUV) that features a hatchback or small wagon body style, a slightly higher ride height, all-wheel drive, semi-rugged design cues and often an outdoorsy or clever naming scheme.

Originally a stand-alone descriptor, marketers started adding “SUV” in an effort to create a broader understanding and appeal. Toyota is believed to have coined the term with the introduction of its RAV4 in the mid-1990s. What is a crossover SUV?Ī crossover SUV, sometimes abbreviated as “CUV,” or simply “crossover,” is a vehicle that combines the attributes of a traditional car with those of an SUV. The proliferation of SUV-like vehicles in the late twentieth century gave rise to the term crossover to help delineate between truck-based and car-based vehicles. Since then, the term SUV-or some form of it-has been stretched to have a much broader definition, including smaller unibody vehicles like the Jeep Grand Cherokee.

The first use of the “SUV” abbreviation is generally credited to a Jeep Cherokee advertising brochure from 1974 traditionally, SUV is still reserved for body-on-frame vehicles like Jeep Grand Wagoneer and Chevrolet Suburban. But it was also capable of a day’s work, offering increased tow ratings, the capability to mount a plow in the front and providing safe, secure transport for home improvement supplies and tools in the back. However, unlike a station wagon, the sport utility was built on a rugged trucklike frame and offered four-wheel drive as its marquee option just the thing to get to those remote camping and fishing spots or make it through a snow squall en route to the slopes. Like a station wagon, it provided room for passengers in the front with ample cargo space in the back for the attendant gear of the emerging middle-class post-war suburban family. SUV is an abbreviation of “Sport Utility Vehicle.” Though the roots of Sports Utility Vehicles trace back to truck-based military personnel, light combat vehicles and industrial trucks, most experts agree the 1963 Jeep Wagoneer was the first commercially available sports utility vehicle.

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