Would you drive a smaller car and risk your safety?

My girlfriends and I have been discussing this for quite a while now. With the higher price of gas and global warming etc. They are all looking at getting smaller cars.





But I just like the feeling of being able to climb into my SUV and feel safe while driving.





I just don't want to risk my safety by driving a smaller car.





If I have to pump out some extra green house gases to do that then that is the way it just is gonna be.





Is that selfish?





Please tell me what you drive.|||I drive a Toyota Corolla.





I used to drive a much smaller car that got better gas mileage. I didn't feel safe at all in it. My Corolla is safe enough-- while I was sitting at a stop sign, I got hit by a big van who was running the stop sign. There was $8300 of damage to my car but I walked away with just a sore neck (and only because my head was turned) and a bump on my knee.





The size of the car just isn't about safety and gas mileage either. I'm only 5'2" and I've driven much larger cars. I hated them! They felt way too big and I could barely see out of them. Plus, I live in the city where the roads are narrow as are the driveways.





For me, a small car just made sense and I'm very happy with it in all aspects.|||It is really what you feel comfortable driving. I have a 2003 Monte Carlo SS that I get 28-30mpg with and a 93 S-10 pickup and an 89 S-15 Jimmy that are around 22mpg. I would not trade any of them for any of these little foreign cars. But the safety has improved, most cars have airbags, ABS, and crush zones front and rear.|||FYI size doesnt matter anymore, modern automobiles provide a plethora of safety devices, i.e anti-lock brakes, airbags, traction control, electronic stability control. It is the age of the vehicle that matters now - the newer the safer, well anything made since lets say 1995.


Suv's, trucks, vans have higher ground clearance and thus are capable of rollovers more easily (im sure you've heard that before) well its true, and you hear it over and over because rollovers are very serious and dangerous for the occupants.