Sedan (automobile) 1

Sedan (automobile)
A sedan car (American English, pronunciation /sɪˈdæn/) or saloon car
(British English) is a passenger car in a three-box configuration with
A, B & C-pillars and principle volumes articulated in separate
compartments for engine, passenger and cargo.[1] The passenger
compartment features two rows of seats and adequate passenger space
in the rear compartment for adult passengers. The trunk (boot in British
English) is typically in the rear, though manufacturers including
Renault, Tatra, Volkswagen and Chevrolet have marketed rear-engined
models. It is one of the most common body styles.

Types of sedan
Several versions of the body style exist, including four-door, two-door,
and fastback variants of both.
A sedan seats four or more people and has a fixed roof that is Typical pillar configurations of a sedan (three
full-height up to the rear window. The roof structure will typically box), station wagon (two box) and hatchback
(two box) from the same model range.
have a fixed "B" pillar on sedan models. Most commonly it is a
four-door; two-door models are rare, but they do occur (more so
historically). In the U.S., the term sedan has been used to denote a car
with fixed window frames, as opposed to the hardtop style without a
"B" pillar and where the sash, if any, winds down with the glass.
However, true hardtops have become increasingly rare.

Four-door sedans can have either two or three side windows: One in Diagram of a sedan (three box) over a station
each door (vent windows not counted), and the third integrated in the wagon (two box) from the same model range.
"C"-pillar.

Notchback sedans
A notchback sedan is a three-box sedan, where the passenger volume is
clearly distinct from the trunk volume of the vehicle (when seen from
the side). The roof is on one plane, generally parallel to the ground, the
rear window at a sharp angle to the roof, and the trunk lid is also
parallel to the ground.
1962 Chevrolet Impala, a typical notchback sedan
Sedan (automobile) 2

Fastback sedans
A fastback sedan is a two-box sedan, with continuous slope from the
roof to the base of the decklid, but excludes the hatchback feature.
Marketing terminology is often misleading in this area - for example,
Daimler AG calls the Mercedes-Benz CLS-Class sedan a four-door
coupé because its semi-fastback design tries to give the impression of a
coupé. Certain sedans are edging close to being one-box vehicles,
where the windshield is steeply raked from the hood and the rear
window slopes toward almost the end of the car, leaving just a short
rear deck that is part of the trunk lid - the 2006 4-door Honda Civic is
1941 Plymouth fastback sedan
an example of this. They are not fastbacks because their bodyline
changes from the roof to the rear deck. Their steeply raked rear
windows end with a decklid that does not continue down to the bumper. Instead, their rear ends are tall - sometimes
in a Kammback style - to increase trunk space.

Typically this design is chosen for its aerodynamic advantages. Automakers can no longer afford the penalty in fuel
consumption produced by the traditional notchback three box form.

Two-door sedans
The Society of Automotive Engineers defines such a vehicle as any
two-door model with rear accommodation greater than or equal to
33 cubic feet (0.93 m3) in volume (a calculation made by adding the
legroom, shoulder room, and headroom). By this standard, the
Chevrolet Monte Carlo, Ferrari 612 Scaglietti, and Mercedes-Benz
CL-Class coupés are all two-door sedans. Only a few sources, however
(including the magazine Car and Driver), use the two-door sedan label
in this manner.

In the popular vernacular, a two-door sedan is defined by appearance Opel Kadett B two-door sedan
and not by volume; vehicles with a B-pillar between the front and rear
windows are generally called two-door sedans, while hardtops (without the pillar, and often incorporating a sloping
backlight) are called coupés.
The Mazda RX-8 meets the volume requirement to be called a sedan, but it has vestigial rear-hinged rear doors, so
some call it 2+2-door sedan. Another term for a coupé endowed with rear-hinged doors is a "quad coupé." However,
this may simply be vernacular, based on a possible copyright by General Motors, for its Saturn Ion Quad-Coupe.

Hardtop sedans
See main article: Hardtop
In historic terminology a sedan will have a frame around the door
windows, while the hardtop has frameless door glass. A true hardtop
sedan design also has no "B" pillar (the roof support behind the front
doors). This body style has an open feel, but requires extra underbody
strengthening for structural rigidity. The hardtop design can be
considered separately (i.e., a vehicle can be simply called a four-door
1958 AMC Ambassador hardtop sedan
hardtop), or it can be called a hardtop sedan. During the 1960s and
Sedan (automobile) 3

1970s, hardtop sedans were often sold as sport sedans by American manufacturers and were among the top selling
body styles. During the 1980s, automakers in the U.S. focused on removing weight and increasing strength, and their
new four-door sedans with B-pillars were called pillared hardtops or pillared sedans. The sport sedan term has since
been appropriated for other uses. In Japan, and among Japanese manufacturers worldwide, the hardtop design was
popular among luxury sedans throughout the 1990s.

Hatchback sedans
Hatchback (a.k.a. liftback) sedans typically have the fastback profile,
but instead of a trunk lid, the entire back of the vehicle lifts up (using a
liftgate or hatch). A vehicle with four passenger doors and a liftgate at
the rear can be called a four-door hatchback, four-door hatchback
sedan, or five-door sedan. An example of such is the Chevrolet Malibu
Maxx. There can also be two-door hatchback sedans (three-door
sedans), by the same technical explanation for two-door sedans. Chevy Malibu Maxx hatchback sedan
Examples of this design are the Volkswagen Golf, and Chevrolet
Chevette.

Chauffeured sedans
Strictly speaking limousine sedans have a separate compartment for the
driver and the passenger compartment is long enough to contain at
least two comfortable, forward facing bench seats. Vehicles used for
these means are usually Lincoln Town Car, Cadillac, Mercedes, or
Rolls-Royce or Maybach for the more wealthy. The term limousine can
refer to a large sedan, especially if hired from a service. Chauffeured
limousines are primarily used by individuals for weddings, businesses
for meetings, as well as for airport and sightseeing transportation. The Lincoln Town Car is used as a chauffeured
Chauffeurs are professional drivers, usually with experience in the car in the U.S.

transportation industry or tourism industry. Chauffeured sedans are

owned either by private owners, livery services, or corporations. Large corporations as well as governments
commonly provide luxury sedans to top executives, as well as VIP guests. Chauffeured sedans, such as the Lincoln
Town Car, may also be stretched into limousines that are capable of seating up to twenty people.

Terminology

Origin
The word sedan is possibly derived from a southern Italian dialect
derivative of Italian sedia "chair" (the first sedan was said to have been
introduced from Naples). However, Portuguese and Spanish navigators
and colonists encountered litters of various sorts in India, Japan,
Mexico, and Peru. They were imported into Spain in the late sixteenth
century. Soon the fashion spread into France and then England. All the
names for these derived from the root "sed-" from the Latin "sella" -
the traditional name for a carried chair.[2] The first automobile to use
Sedan chair carried by two people
Sedan (automobile) 4

that configuration was the 1899 Renault Voiturette Type B. The First closed car, for at least 4 persons, which used
the word sedan was the 1911 Speedwell sedan, which was manufactured by the Speedwell Motor Co in Dayton,
Ohio.[3] But even before that time completely closed cars were called saloons or limousines, like the 1905 Rational
4-door limousine[4] or the 1907 Renault 4-door limousine[5] or the 1910 Stella 2-door saloon.[6] . But the word saloon
or limousine do not inevitable mean a fully closed car like the word sedan. There are many photos of half open
limousines and saloons in the book "The Complete Encyclopedia of Motorcars: 1885 to the Present" by Georgano
which prove that, but cars which are called sedans are always fully closed.
The derivation from the town of Sedan in France, where it was said to have been made or first used, lacks historical
evidence, according to OED. The word sedan was later used to refer to a litter or windowed box containing a
passenger seat carried by two or more bearers.

International terminology
In North American English and American Spanish, the term sedan is used (accented as "sedán" in Spanish).
In British English, a car of this configuration is called a saloon and has its engine under the bonnet at the front, and
has a boot for luggage at the rear. Hatchback sedans are known as hatchbacks (not hatchback saloons);
long-wheelbase luxury sedans may be referred to as limousines.
The British English term is sometimes used by British car manufacturers in the United States. For example, the
Rolls-Royce Park Ward was sold as a saloon in the United States, while the smaller Silver Seraph was called a
sedan.
In Australia the American term sedan is used, albeit with the British terms boot and bonnet being retained. In New
Zealand the British terms are used, but the American terms are understood by most of the population. In other
languages, sedans are known as berline (French), berlina (European Spanish, European Portuguese, Romanian, and
Italian); although these terms also may include hatchbacks. These terms, besides sedan, derive from types of
horse-drawn carriages. In German, the term Limousine is used for sedans, as well as for limousines.

See also
• Sports sedan
• Car body style

References
[1] "Car Design Glossary - Part 2: One-Box (Monospace or Monovolume)" (http:/ / www. cardesignnews. com/ site/ home/ new_cars/ display/
store4/ item131867/ ). Car Design News. . "The principal volumes of the traditional sedan can be split into separate compartments or boxes:
the hood/bonnet is the first box; the passenger compartment the second, and the trunk/boot the third - i.e. it's a 'three-box' car."
[2] T. Atkinson Jenkins. "Origin of the Word Sedan", Hispanic Review, Vol. 1, No. 3 (Jul., 1933), pp. 240-242.
[3] Georgano, G.N. (1985). Cars: Early and Vintage, 1886-1930. London: Grange-Universal. page 87
[4] Georgano, G. N.: The Complete Encyclopedia of Motorcars: 1885 to the Present, 2. Ausgabe, E. P. Dutton, New York (1973), page 573,
ISBN 0-525-08351-0
[5] Georgano, G. N.: The Complete Encyclopedia of Motorcars: 1885 to the Present, 2. Ausgabe, E. P. Dutton, New York (1973), page 578,
ISBN 0-525-08351-0
[6] Georgano, G. N.: The Complete Encyclopedia of Motorcars: 1885 to the Present, 2. Ausgabe, E. P. Dutton, New York (1973), page 649,
ISBN 0-525-08351-0