SUV Buyers Defy High Price of Gas in France

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RENEE MONTAGNE, host:

Gas prices in America might be high, but they're nothing compared to Europe, where a gallon of fuel now costs as much as $7. Many consumers are turning to carpooling, public transport and bicycles. Not everyone seems worried. As gas prices soar in France, strangely enough, so have sales of SUVs. Eleanor Beardsley sent this report from Paris.

ELEANOR BEARDSLEY reporting:

Ben Diyon(ph) and his wife Monique(ph) both drive SUVs. With gas prices now topping 1 euro 50 a liter in France, each of their vehicles costs nearly $100 to fill. Diyon began driving an SUV three years ago, he says, to protect himself from aggressive Parisian motorists. He says rising gas prices will not make him switch from an SUV.

Mr. BEN DIYON: (Through Translator) For now, it's still OK and, yes, I plan on keeping it, but it's true. If gas goes up 2 euros a liter, my next SUV will certainly be a hybrid.

BEARDSLEY: Diyon says he used to get a lot of stares, but today, he has plenty of company. The French are as environmentally conscious as anyone else in Europe. That doesn't seem to have stopped at least a section of the population from buying gas-guzzling vehicles. That's clear on any Paris street.

(Soundbite of horns)

BEARDSLEY: In the first six months of the year, sales of SUVs in France surged 17 percent, triple that of overall car sales. The number of SUVs on French roads has increased fivefold in the last five years. Good news for Ugcha Shan(ph) who runs a Land Rover dealership near the Vua de Balongna(ph).

(Soundbite of phone ringing)

Mr. UGCHA SHAN (Owner, Land Rover Dealership): (Through Translator) Clients who buy SUVs, especially Land Rovers, are usually people who used to drive sports cars and can't drive fast anymore because of speed restrictions and police radar. So they're looking for another way to experience the road, and the SUV gives them that.

BEARDSLEY: French carmakers, who have so far missed the trend, are scrambling to come out with their own models. Renault will produce an SUV next year, and Peugeot Citroen will follow in 2007. Alexandre Gilette(ph) of the weekly Journal de Automobile(ph) says the manufacturers aren't worried gas prices will dampen this new enthusiasm for SUVs.

Mr. ALEXANDRE GILETTE (Journal de Automobile): (Through Translator) The proof is that the French carmakers, Renault and Peugeot, who have no SUVs, are developing models. They wouldn't invest in a niche market if they didn't think it would remain lucrative for a long time.

(Soundbite of horns)

BEARDSLEY: Still, Paris is not the most welcoming city for the SUV driver. Traffic snarls the grand boulevards, parking is a nightmare and the mayor recently threatened to ban the vehicles from the city center during rush hour. There's even a clandestine group of militant ecologists who patrol Paris streets by night, letting the air out of the tires of any SUV they come across. None of this dissuades Alan Capaldi(ph), who is driving his third Land Rover.

Mr. ALAN CAPALDI: (Through Translator) You get used to it. And as long as the gas prices go up little by little, it'll be fine. But if tomorrow half my salary is gouged out at the pump, yeah, maybe then I'll think about driving something else.

(Soundbite of laughter)

BEARDSLEY: For NPR News, I'm Eleanor Beardsley in Paris.

MONTAGNE: This is NPR News.

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