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Hatchbacks frequently include fold–down rear seats, which enable a substantial portion of the interior space to be used as a cargo area. Usually, the rear seat can be folded partially (for instance 1/2, 1/3 or 2/3) or completely to expand the cargo space. Hatchbacks typically have a parcel shelf: a rigid shelf covering the cargo space that is hinged behind the rear seats and lifts with the tailgate. An alternative is a flexible roll–up tonneau cover.

In many countries, where a hatchback and a conventional sedan are available Сfor the same model, sedans are typically more popular. This is not the case in France which has an old tradition of building hatchbacks and where sedan models are sometimes not even sold, like the Renault Laguna or in Great Britain where the 1997–2009 Toyota Avensis Hatchback outsold its StationWagon and Sedan

иthan the Mazda3 sedan. High performance variants of hatchbacks are now common, known as « hot hatches».

models. Manufacturers have even been forced to offer a notchback version of cars that are sold only as hatchbacks elsewhere to comply with the preferences of clients, as with the Citroën C–Triomphe. Costwise, hatchbacks are priced differently than their sedan counterparts. For example, the Nissan Versa hatchback

is cheaperбthan Versa sedan, while the Mazda3 Sport hatchback is more expensive

Sedan

Sedan car (AmericanАEnglish) or saloon car (British English) is a passenger car with two rows of seats and adequate passenger space in the rear compartment for adult passengers. The vehicle usually has a separate rear trunk (boot in British

Sedan car

styles for modern automobiles. Д

English) for luggage, although some manufacturers such as Chevrolet, Tatra, and

A sedan seats four or more people and has a fixed roof that is full–height up to the rear window. The roof structure will typically have a fixed «B» pillar on

Volkswagen have made rear–engined models. It is one of the most common body И

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.

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. Historically, this has been a popular and arguably the most traditional form of passenger vehicle.

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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

Сthe trunk lid – the 2006 4–door Honda Civic is 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 иincrease 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.

TheбSociety 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 (includingАthe 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 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) areДcalled coupés.

In 1970 GM introduced its first subcompact car. The Chevrolet Vega two– door sedan was referred to as a 'thin–pillar' sedan.

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 isИa «quad coupé». Although this may simply be vernacular, based on a possible copyright by General Motors, for its Saturn Ion Quad–Coupe.

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 hardtop), or it can be called a hardtop sedan. During the 1960s and 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

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Japanese manufacturers worldwide, the hardtop design was popular among luxury sedans throughout the 1990s.

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

Сsedans (three–door sedans), by the same technical explanation for two–door sedans. Examples of this design are the Volkswagen Golf, and Chevrolet Chevette.

Strictly speaking limousine sedans have a separate compartment for the driver and the passenger compartment is long enough to contain at least two иcomfortable, forward facing bench seats. The term limousine can refer to a large sedan, especially if hired from a limo service. Chauffeured limousines are primarily used by individuals for weddings, businesses for meetings, as well as for airport and sightseeing transportation. Vehicles used for these means are usually Lincoln TownбCar, Cadillac, or Mercedes. Chauffeurs are professional drivers, usually with experience in the 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, Аmay also be stretched into limousines that are capable of seating up to twenty people.

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,ДMexico, 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. The first automobile to use that configuration was the 1899 Renault Voiturette Type B.

The derivation from the town of Sedan in ИFrance, 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.

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 usually just called hatchbacks; chauffeured sedans are 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 and New Zealand, the American term sedan is used, albeit with the British terms boot and bonnet being retained. In other languages, sedans are known as berline (French), berlina (European Spanish, European Portuguese, Romanian, and Italian); although these

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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.

Station wagon

This modified MG ZT–T became the world's fastest estate/station wagon in 2003. A station wagon is a passenger automobile with a body style similar to a sedan but with the roofline following the full, sometimes extended rear cargo area,

Сan extra row of sometimes rear–facing seats, ending with a more vertical door than on a hatchback.

Also sometimes referred to simply as a wagon, the term 'station wagon' is used in American, Australian, Canadian and New Zealand English, while the term estate иcar or simply estate is used in British English. European manufacturers such as Audi, BMW, and Mercedes–Benz have often referred to their wagons as «Avant», «Touring», and «Estate» respectively to distinguish them from their sedan counterparts.

Certainбcars with this body style have historically been called a shooting brake, a British term. A few models are referred to as a break, using the French term (which is sometimes given in full as break de chasse — literally « hunting break»). A common German term for this type, Kombi, is also sometimes used. Volkswagen's proprietary name for a Kombi is Variant, Opel sometimes uses the word Caravan, BMWАuses Touring, Wartburg used Tourist, and Audi's examples are traditionally called Avant. Fiat often uses the term Weekend, while Alfa Romeo uses Sportwagon. Some British makes under BMC used Traveller or Countryman for the type. Peugeot and Land Rover have sometimes used « station wagon» even in markets which use British English. Another term infrequently used by some American car makers is stationДsedan.

Most station wagons are modified sedan–type car bodies, having the main interior area extended to the near–vertical rear window over what would otherwise be the trunk (boot) of the sedan version. A hatchback car, although meeting a similar description, would not enjoy the full height of the passenger cabin all the way to the back; the rear glass of a hatchback beingИsloped further from vertical, and the hatch tending not to reach fully to the rear bumper, as it commonly would in a station wagon. Station wagons also have side windows over the cargo area, whereas some hatchbacks have thick «C» pillars and no cargo area windows. Two exceptions to this rule include Rambler station wagons (1952–62) on which the roof line subtly dipped down over the cargo area, and GM's Oldsmobile Vista Cruiser (1964–72) and Buick Sport Wagon (1964–69) on which the rear roof section was slightly elevated and combined with three (1968–69 Buick, 1968–72 Olds) or four (1964–67) skylights; the «sportwagon» name has been popularized again in recent years by some manufacturers. Certain models of Land Rover have also been described by the manufacturer as station wagons (even in British usage); these had a tall wagon–like body with extra « alpine lights», or windows, above the cargo bay side windows.

The rear door is usually top–hinged, but on many four–wheel drive–style vehicles it is side–hinged. The original Range Rover, and a few traditional sedan–

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based wagons, have a horizontally split two–piece rear door rather than a single hatch. The Morris Minor and Mini Travellers, amongst other examples, have a vertically split pair of doors at the rear.

The popularity of the minivan in the 1980s, sport utility vehicles in the mid– 1990s, and crossovers in the 2000s is credited with the decline of the traditional station wagon in North America. The majority of North American customers (especially in the US) have generally found the styling of trunked cars to be more

Сelegant and dignified than that of hatchbacks and station wagons. While hatchbacks have enjoyed some resurgence since the mid–2000s due to high gas prices, mass market station wagons have all but disappeared from North America, as wagon versions of midsize cars such as the Ford Taurus were phased out by the

иinterior area extended to the near–vertical rear window over what would otherwise be the trunk (boot) of the sedan version. A hatchback car, although meeting a similar description, would not enjoy the full height of the passenger cabin all the

2000s, while the Chevrolet Malibu MAXX and Dodge Magnum had short production lives. The only long–time running wagons in the North American market are the luxury offerings from Audi, BMW, and Mercedes–Benz.

Comparison with hatchbacks

way to the back; the rear glass of a hatchback being sloped further from vertical,

and the hatch tending not to reach fully to the rear bumper, as it commonly would

Mostбstation wagons are modified sedan–type car bodies, having the main

Cruiser (1964–72) andАBuick Sport Wagon (1964–69) on which the rear roof section was slightly elevated and combined with three (1968–69 Buick, 1968–72

in a station wagon. Station wagons also have side windows over the cargo area,

whereas some hatchbacks have thick «C» pillars and no cargo area windows. Two

exceptions to this rule include Rambler station wagons (1952–62) on which the

roof line subtly dipped down over the cargo area, and GM's Oldsmobile Vista

Olds) or four (1964–67) skylights; the « sportwagon» name has been popularized again in recent years by some manufacturers. Certain models of Land Rover have

also been described by the manufacturer as station wagons (even in British usage);

(much) larger load area. The typical hatchback roofИrakes down steeply behind the C–Pillar, resulting in very little car length behind the rear wheels and thus no room for a side window over the load area. A good example of the difference can be seen in the 1999–2007 Ford Focus, which offers both a wagon (Focus ZTW) and hatchback (Focus ZX3 and ZX5) models. The 2002–2007 Mazda 6 also came in five–door hatchback and wagon configurations.

Typically, most compact cars offer a hatchback configuration, while midsize and larger cars have a wagon style. There are some exceptions, with compact wagons such as the BMW 3–Series (E36), Ford Focus ZTW, Toyota Corolla Fielder, and Mercedes–Benz C–Class Estate. These four lineups have or had hatchback configurations as well, such as the 3–Series hatchback, Focus ZT3 and

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