Sedan, SUV, or Sprinter: Choosing the Roadshow Vehicle

The most common mistake on a roadshow is choosing the vehicle by prestige instead of by the day. The right answer is usually mundane: how many people, how much luggage, how tight is the curb, and does the team need to work between stops. Here is how we decide.

Business sedan

The default for fast Midtown roadshow legs with one or two principals and light bags. A sedan's small footprint is an advantage at busy buildings where an SUV struggles for curb space, and it threads the grid more nimbly. If the day is two executives moving quickly between meetings, the sedan is not a downgrade — it is the correct tool.

Executive SUV

The pick the moment luggage or a third passenger enters the picture, and the standard for airport runs. An SUV carries roller bags and a small team without anyone holding a case on their lap, and the higher seating eases in-and-out at a dozen stops. The trade-off is curb access at the tightest buildings — worth flagging to the desk when a stop is known to be awkward.

Executive Sprinter

Group transport for analyst teams, offsites, and any day where the team needs to work, eat, or regroup between stops. A Sprinter turns transit time into working time, and it consolidates a group that would otherwise need two or three cars. For five or more, it is usually both more comfortable and more economical than a convoy of sedans.

Mixed convoy

Large boards and conference moves often run best as a small convoy — sedans for principals who need to peel off, an SUV or Sprinter for the rest — dispatched and timed together so the group does not fragment across the city.

A simple rule

Match the vehicle to the tightest constraint of the day, not the average one. If one leg has five people and luggage, that leg sets the floor even if the rest of the day is a solo executive. When you sketch the day in the roadshow timing planner, note the headcount and bags at each stop — then let the desk recommend the mix.