Sport utility vehicle quoted by Collins are few, and the term is not recognised at all by Chambers. A Hemmings article defines the sport utility vehicle as bridging the gap between cars and trucks, "combining car-like appointments and wagon practicality with steadfast off-road capability"; also especially emphasizing the grand view – "Jeep called it chair-height seats and picture-window visibility," but AutoTrader editor concluded that the "SUV" acronym "is still used to describe nearly anything with available all-wheel drive and raised ground clearance." In recent years, the term SUV has come in the US to replace the use of "jeep" as a generic trademark
Criticism of sport utility vehicles and SUVs were "characterized by a poor environmental performance." Another study found that family size internal combustion vehicles still produced fewer emissions than a hybrid SUV. Various eco-activist groups, such as the Earth Liberation Front or Les Dégonflés have targeted SUV dealerships and privately owned SUVs due to concern over increased fuel usage. In the US, light trucks and SUVs are held to a less-strict pollution control standard than passenger cars. In response to the perception that a growing share of fuel consumption and emissions are attributable to these vehicles, the Environmental Protection Agency ruled that by the model year