Anti-SUV protests are nothing new, and have existed pretty much ever since the large vehicles—too large, to some—became increasingly popular in the 1990s and early 2000s. Those of us who were there remember the Hummer salute, for example. Calls for a ban on SUVs have surfaced now and again over the years. In 2019, anti-SUV activists protested at the Frankfurt auto show, calling out the "SUV-ization" of the industry. These protesters were glad to make their claims in public, where they were certain to be not only noticed but also apprehended.
Now, a new wave of attacks on SUVs is taking place way, way out of sight. Or, at least, that's the idea. As first reported by The Drive, a decentralized group called the Tyre Extinguishers (the spelling hints at the group's U.K. origins) is promoting the idea of deflating the tires of as many SUVs as possible to help make it "impossible to own a huge polluting 4x4 in the world's urban areas." By deflating enough tires on these "massive, unnecessary vehicles," the group hopes to cause enough "inconvenience and expense for their owners" that people just stop driving big vehicles in crowded areas.
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