Comments on: We'll have fun, fun, fun til grandma takes the Aerio away. But why?

Question: We'll have fun, fun, fun til grandma takes the Aerio away. But why?

unSane — Wed, 05 Sep 2007 19:33:21 -0800

Why is the Suzuki Aerio, and in particular the hatchback, overwhelming driven by senior citizens?

By: gergtreble

gergtreble — Wed, 05 Sep 2007 20:13:01 -0800

Confirmation bias?

By: crinklebat

crinklebat — Wed, 05 Sep 2007 20:14:02 -0800

I have never seen a senior citizen driving an Aerio, so I can't say I really know. However, I drive like an old lady, and I think I'd like driving an Aerio because I'd imagine it's very forgiving of terrible parking skills since it's small enough that it'll probably make it into the space regardless, and the hatchback makes it easier to tell if you're about to hit something behind you. It's a smaller car so it's not hard to climb in and out of and even people of short stature can see over the dash. Also, a lot of old people are on fixed budgets and the Aerio is both inexpensive and small (hence less spending on gas).

However, as I said, I have really never seen an old person drive one. Is it possible that one old person in your area got one and told all her friends what a fun, zippy little car it is, and they all got them too?

By: crinklebat

crinklebat — Wed, 05 Sep 2007 20:14:53 -0800

Oh, and what gergtreble said, of course.

By: unSane

unSane — Wed, 05 Sep 2007 20:34:44 -0800

I doubt it's confirmation bias as it's known as the 'grannymobile' around here.

By: qvtqht

qvtqht — Wed, 05 Sep 2007 20:44:34 -0800

Cheap decent quality car, not so cool image. Old people generally don't care about image as much.

By: Forktine

Forktine — Wed, 05 Sep 2007 21:25:09 -0800

Don't they have a relatively upright seating position? If so, then it's the same reason you see old people driving Honda Elements and those boxy Scions -- easy to get in and out when your hips or knees hurt.

By: BrotherCaine

BrotherCaine — Thu, 06 Sep 2007 00:39:10 -0800

Room in the back for an electric scooter?

By: Myself

Myself — Thu, 06 Sep 2007 02:55:34 -0800

I'm 29 and after driving my Toyota Matrix for a few months, I started noticing how awkward it was to get into and out of other cars.

The medium form factor, taller than a sedan but shorter than a minivan, makes it possible to simply step into or out of, rather than climbing up or down. My knees curse at me every time I ride in my brother's Saturn SC1.

By: Carbolic

Carbolic — Thu, 06 Sep 2007 10:33:51 -0800

I was amused to discover a friend's mother had purchased a new Mini-cooper. It was one of the higher end, tricked out models with the racing stripes. I asked what led to her decision and it coincided with one mentioned by crinklebat. As she'd gotten older she found she was running into things with her Buick in tight parking situations. The only reason she'd purchased the flashy model was that it was the only one on the lot with some option she wanted. I think it was something that helped with parking.

By: altcountryman

altcountryman — Thu, 06 Sep 2007 11:18:32 -0800

Expanding on what crinklebat said about word-of-mouth, and what others have said about a slightly taller vehicle making for easier in & out, maybe there's been a write-up in AARP or another publication somewhere recommending the Aerio.

Another possibility is that there's a combination Buick/Suzuki dealer in your town, or a Suzuki dealer next door to a Buick lot.

Around here, I see them, but they're generally not skewed toward older drivers.

By: tremspeed

tremspeed — Thu, 06 Sep 2007 12:40:47 -0800

i've seen every 'gen y' marketed car driven by an overwhelming number of OLD PEOPLE: pt cruisers, new beetles, honda element, scion xb, and especially mini coopers.

By: tremspeed

tremspeed — Thu, 06 Sep 2007 12:41:16 -0800

my mother is 58 and drives an eclipse convertible 'remix edition' with RIMS.

By: skuchinskas

skuchinskas — Thu, 08 May 2008 09:13:19 -0800

I just inherited my mom's Aerio after she stopped driving at 82. She still loves the car -- and thinks it's a great-looking car. I find it comfortable but ugly. (She used to drive a trans am, though -- with racing stripes.)