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Caught short: The SUVs that will fit in the driveway

Because it’s all fun and games until you can’t get into your own garage.


Given we drive a new car every week, the journalists at CarAdvice are very familiar with the particularly frustrating scenario of not being able to fit a car in your driveway, garage or tiny inner-city street.

Regardless of whether you have off-street parking or not, being able to safely store a vehicle not only decreases your likelihood of being side-swiped, but also substantially improves your stress levels (it’s science).

This becomes even more of an issue if you’re the proud owner of more than one car. Getting both vehicles to co-exist in your driveway – or finding two non-restricted street parking spots – is a complicated ballet that can often end in tears.

And few things can make you feel more exposed than having your car’s butt hanging out on the street, blocking footpaths or attracting the ire of council cronies.

If you’re making your next car purchase and are considering a small or medium SUV, chances are this problem has already crossed your mind.

As a guide, the minimum recommended length for an average Australian garage is 5.4m. Pending you’ll need around a metre or so to store your junk, let’s say the most you can fit is a car that’s 4.5 metres long.

That might seem like a fair bit, but the reality is even small SUVs are getting larger and genuinely ‘compact’ versions are becoming harder to find.

For example, when the Toyota RAV4 first launched in 1994, it measured 3.7m long. These days, it’s 4.6m long. Thus, it doesn’t make this list.

With all that in mind, here’s every ‘SUV’ (compact, crossover, medium and everything in between) that’s 4.5m long or under.


Susannah Guthrie

Susannah Guthrie has been a journalist for over a decade, covering everything from world news to fashion, entertainment, health and now cars. Having previously worked across titles like The New Daily, Elle, Harper's Bazaar, People Magazine and Cosmopolitan, Susannah now relishes testing family cars with the help of her husband and two-year-old son.

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