Extreme Commuting in the 2012 Chevrolet Suburban, 2012 Toyota Yaris and 2012 Fiat 500 Abarth

The 2012 Chevrolet Suburban and 2012 Toyota Yaris we tested for this edition of Extreme Commuting are two ends of the commuter-car spectrum. The large Suburban takes the comfort angle, while the tiny Yaris takes a more frugal approach. I also put the punchy Fiat 500 Abarth through my lengthy commute.
 
The Yaris is cheap and gets decent gas mileage, making it the more traditional commuter car. Not everyone is a fan, though; it finished midpack in our mileage challenge of $16,000 subcompacts earlier in the year. The SE we tested here is considerably more fun to zip around corners in than the base L model we drove in our Subcompact Shootout. A little bit of on-ramp fun was had before the inevitable bumper-to-bumper traffic buzz-kill. The Yaris over-delivered on its 30 mpg city rating with 33.3 mpg.

Comments

Another article tooting excess and waste. Funny how cars.com says that it tries to help people in the car buying decision. Hmm, apparently they ignore current economic trends. People who buy the Suburban for its "road-owning ride" are probably passive-aggressive jerks lacking in two areas. Not to mention in the current economy who can afford $4 a gallon gas or the expense of a mammoth SUV. It would be nice to see cars.com stick to their mission of giving 'good' advice.

Hold on a minute, Forward thinker...Properly equipped the 'Burban can seat twice as many people as the Yaris or Abarth. Suppose that the "wasteful" owner only wants one car that meets their commuting, family hauling, and towing needs rather than having one tiny commuter car, one car for family and cargo hauling, and another that can tow. Suppose also that the Suburban owner is a forward thinker and arranges to carpool, fitting seven others in their gas guzzling behemoth. Now, all of a sudden there's one less car on the road! I think one Suburban getting 16.8 mpg is better than two Yarises (Yari? ) getting 33. I agree that the Suburban is not the ideal choice for a single commuter, but single commuting is not the ideal choice for any car. Being a good steward of the environment and making wise choices with the resources you have is the best way to protect the planet. Not all who drive Suburbans are passive aggressive jerks...a little less knee-jerk judgmentalism, please, and a little more sensitivity!

I never said they all were passive-aggressive, I said anyone who buys a car for its "road-owning ride" is. Nobody owns the road, we share it. And personally, my experience with large SUV drivers is that they're unaware and dangerous drivers because their large vehicle lulls them into a false sense of security.

As far as the rest of your point, it would be good if people did do all that... but c'mon, you know as well as I do that the road is clogged with large SUVs with a single occupant.

FT,
We cover every vehicle for every type of buyer. If we only focused on small, economy models we wouldn't be "Cars.com" we'd be "smallcars.com"

That said, check out my recent Chevy Tahoe review where I point out repeatedly how the more efficient Traverse is the better option for folks needing the passenger capacity, but for towing there is great utility to be had. You can't take three kids to school and head to work in a Yaris so you need a mix of vehicle types and sizes.

As for current economic trends, there is actually an uptick in large SUV sales right now. Chevy sold twice as many Tahoes and Suburbans than Toyota sold Yaris' last month.

I never want to live in Chicago. That's what this article taught me. I would buy a Suburban so I guess I also learned that.

Bowrider,
Living in Chicago is great. Driving in Chicago is a different story. I have a 23 mile commute. Can take 90 minutes in the a.m.

I'm sorry but larger families than the ones we see now managed for generations without massive SUVs. Furthermore, fertility per woman in the US is right about 2; which has declined from an average of 3 decades ago. Families are getting smaller, not larger.

The mindset that each child needs a full captain's chair with enough space that each body part never touch another surface (with the exception of the behind) has to change. Most people in other countries don't have the luxury of worrying about whether their knees graze the backs of the seat in front of them, or whether they can fully stretch their wingspan in the vehicle.

But I will agree with you, the Traverse is superior in every respect to the Tahoe with the exception of towing. If you're going to rationalize a large car, at least get one that can properly handle and brake; and has a semblance of fuel economy.

My 15-mile commute takes me about 20 minutes...I'm going to stay right where I am thank you!

That commute is nuts to me, DT. Too much of my life spent in a vehicle means less time of my own and higher stress levels.
I say that and I live in DC right now. But, DC traffic moves, albeit slowly, and there are workarounds.

My wife's dad has a '73 Suburban 4X4 with the 454 and the THM400 which he continues to drive daily in spite of the fact that his best mpg is 6mpg going downhill with the wind at his back.

And in those honkers you needed to use Premium gas or they'd rattle and ping like crazy.

He also owns two modern 2WD Suburbans for the real estate business and one thing I noticed when riding in his Suburbans with him driving is that people get the hell out of the way and think three times before crossing the intersection when they see a Suburban coming.

I'm not sure that the Yaris or Abarth would instill the same amount of fear in other drivers.

The price of gas is but a small price to pay to arrive in comfort.

I'll take bigger anytime, even commuting in Chicago or Los Angeles or even NYC.

Usually these reviews use similar cars, I don't get the idea behind using a large suburban, a 4-door family hatch, and a sports hatch. It's pretty clear that in long journeys the Suburban would be the best bet. This is article is nonsense.