Let's face it, the only thing more exciting than a good car is a great woman! And that fact has inspired songwriters ever since an internal combustion engine was affixed to a hay wagon you could steer.  

A man and his dog, singing about cars!

But darn it, that’s about a car. What if you love the big-boy poise and power of a truck? Well, let's get to the answer by taking the long way: Once upon a time we would park our blue VW Bug alongside a mountainous highway and pull on the backpacks. Then, after a day of hiking, it would be time to either camp out in the rough, or we would have made it to a rustic shelter somewhere along our week-long trek.

The Ford Edge is not too big, but just right.

Buick Enclave has good looks, great capacity.

So, with some low-velocity strumming, and a quiet voice, Michael Gaither (who lives in Watsonville, Calif.) sang the following song titled, “Good God Man, How Big A Car Do You Need?”

We’re giving you these lines by permission, and they are copyrighted:

Mercedes GL 550 has size and prestige.

Good God man, how big a car do you need?

There’s a Hummer ahead—I just don’t understand?Why not just get a Jeep and then torch $80 grand??They’re crowding the highways — lined up ‘round the block?I wouldn’t mind it so much?If they’d just learn how to park

The Subaru Tribeca is a very attractive vehicle.

When I was younger — cars were cool?We had a ’49 Plymouth — and an old Malibu?Now size is all that matters — apparently?Good God man, how big a car do you need . . ..

It goes on, but you get the idea. And, now, with gasoline prices skyrocketing and the sales of some SUVs stagnant, you at least have to smile at the words. However, we've included several small SUVs or crossover vehicles in this article that even Mike will like!  And, because we're convinced you will too, we have full test drives on each in our Reviews Section.

But, if you’d like more information about getting one of Michael Gaither's CDs — including a song about treacherous Highway 17 — visit michaelgaither.com. For a brief clip of the Good God song, click on Good God Man (clip).mp3.? 

And, try this link to his podcast about "The Highway 17 Song": Michael's Blog.

And, try this as well: http://cdbaby.com/cd/gaither.

The spunky new Torrent can stay outta the way!

Next, maybe something about Bonneville where the cars and trucks hit blistering speeds. Maybe something about the Freightliner that we wrote about one time that hit 223.991 mph. But instead of a softly rolling folk song, it would have to be hard-charging rock and roll!