Whew..I also thank God that the SUV fad are over..
The main reason I gave it up is the gas price & it's getting expensive to maintain plus..I need to save up for a house..that's why for the past 5 years before I got the house, Ive been driving a Mercury Villager :o

From a business point of view this smaller SUV could be a good idea. The smaller to medium sized stylish SUV's are usually driven by soccer moms and mid level executives who need room for kids and or clients.

My boxster was in the shop last year July 4th weekend and Champion Porsche gave me a Cayenne for the weekend. I have to admit that it is a pretty incredible vehicle. I won't trade in my Boxster for a Cayenne but it is a good product for Porsche to expand its clientelle. The people who should really be ticked about this are the people who paid up for Cayennes. Higher prices and a weak economy do not bode well for large SUV's and a lower priced more fuel efficient small SUV will further deteriorate Cayenne values. Maybe, I will get a great deal on a base model Cayenne as I got a great deal on my Boxster last year.

My only real complaint about this light SUV is the name. Rockster sounds too similar to Boxster. Let's hope that the suits at Porsche can smoke a bowl and be a little more creative with a cool name for the new SUV.

I've never quite understood why what other people drive bothers so many. I have the boxster and an SUV and drive the box as much as possible. Here is a take from my point of view.

First, my SUV gets better mileage than my Box, so that's not an issue.

Second, most people want a vehicle with some room. Go back a couple of decades and it was large family stationwagons or the typical 'boats' most domestics produced. The SUV's were just the long awaited answer. SUV's typically have better perceived comfort than a midsize car.

My wife loves the small size of the Box, but in the winter she just always feels safer in an SUV than any car. I think that is typical.

Lastly anyone who owns a house would love to have a full size pickup at their disposal. Just so many projects that practicaly require it. A full size pickup with extra cab and 4x4 is around double the price of the unibody suv's, chew way more fuel and are hard to park / manouever for many. The SUV is a reasonable compromise for this reason.

Just my .02