Although I currently do not own an SUV, I continue to see people opening their lift-gates and having to move back so that it does not hit them in the chin when it opens or on the head when it closes. The way typical lift-gates open and close also makes it difficult to operate when a vehicle is parked close behind. Why not make a dual-hinged lift-gate whereby the bottom half of the lift-gate remains vertical while the upper half opens normally (see example, shown below). When someone opens the lift-gate it will essentially move straight up and not out. The mechanism might be a little bit complicated, but not impossible.