Wikipedia

Notchback

Anotchbackis a car design with the rear section distinct from the passenger compartment and where the back of the passenger compartment is at an angle to the top of what is typically the rear baggage compartment.[1]Notchback cars have "a trunk whose lid forms a distinct deck."[2]In profile view, the body has a step down from the roof with a downward inclined passenger compartment's rear window to meet an almost horizontal trunk lid extending to the rear of the car.[3]

Thethree-box,notchback design of theFiat 124 Coupé
Athree-boxliftback in notchback form—with its vestigialthird box,theEuropean Ford Escort

The category may be characterized as having athree-box designwhere thetrunkvolume is less pronounced than the engine and passenger compartments.[4]

Many models ofsedans,coupés,orhatchbackscould be classified as notchbacks. However, the category has limited salience outside American car manufacturers, who distinguish the three-box models from other body styles in the same model range. For example, theChevrolet Vegarange included both a notchback coupe and afastbackcoupe.

North America

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One of the first cars marketed as a notchback is the 1938Cadillac Sixty Special.[5][6][7]

In a major design change among U.S. automakers for the 1952 model year, a notchback version of theNash Ambassadorwas introduced.[8][9]This was in contrast to the previousfastbackaerodynamic body shape that made the 1949 through 1950 Nash Ambassadors the "most streamlined form on the road."[10]The new cars had a distinctive reverse slantingC-pillarand featured boxier styling that became a design trend.[11][12]

In 1971,Chevroletmarketed thethree-box sedanmodels of theChevrolet Vegaas anotchbackto differentiate them from thefastbackVega models.[13][14]For the 1973model year,the car's name was changed to "Vega Notchback".[15]

English-speaking countries

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While many car models have notchback characteristics, the category is largely unused outside North America, with their body style being described using other terms. For example, athree-boxsedan[17]is more generally known as a "saloon" in British English.[18]"Notchback" has appeared in a few British English publications; however, it is not a term that is used in common parlance in Britain.[19][20]

See also

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References

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  1. ^"Notchback definition and meaning".Collins English Dictionary.Retrieved1 April2021.
  2. ^"Definition of Notchback".Merriam-Webster Dictionary.Retrieved1 April2021.
  3. ^Tudose, Sergiu (30 September 2023)."Fastback Revolution: Here's Why You'll Soon Be Saying Goodbye to All Four-Door Sedans".autoevolution.Retrieved11 January2024.
  4. ^Hearst Autos Research."What is a Sedan? Car Buying Tips".Retrieved11 January2024.
  5. ^"1940, The Cadillac Sixty Sets Another Styling Trend".General Motors: Generations of GM Wiki Timeline. Archived fromthe originalon 17 August 2011.Retrieved7 December2017.
  6. ^McCourt, Mark J. (23 September 2018)."1938-'40 Cadillac Sixty Special".hemmings.com.Retrieved11 January2024.
  7. ^"Take Me to Your Style Leader: The 1938–1942 Cadillac Sixty Special".ateupwithmotor.com.Retrieved16 June2018.
  8. ^Floyd, Clymer (September 1952)."The Owners Report on the 1952 Nash Ambassador".Popular Mechanics.98(3):90–94.Retrieved11 January2024– via Google Books.
  9. ^Gunnell, John (1992).Standard Catalog of American Cars, 1946-1975.Krause Publications. p. 468.ISBN9780873412049.Retrieved11 January2024– via Google Books.There was new styling for the Ambassador and Statesman. A new notch back body created by Italy's Pininfarina was the fashion hit of the marque's 50th year
  10. ^Auto Editors of Consumer Guide (6 November 2007)."1949-1951 Nash Airflyte".auto.howstuffworks.com.Retrieved11 January2024.
  11. ^Foster, Patrick R. (1998). "1 - The Designers".The Nash Styling Sketchbook.The Olde Milford Press. p. 1.ISBN9780966201901.Retrieved11 January2024– via Google Books.
  12. ^McClurg, Bob (2016).The History of AMC Motorsports: Trans-Am, Drag, NASCAR, Land Speed and Off-Road Racing.CarTech. p. 20.ISBN9781613251775.Retrieved11 January2024– via Google Books.
  13. ^"Chevrolutionary! - 1973 Chevrolet Vega GT Millionth Edition, 1976 Chevrolet Cosworth Vega".hemmings.com.Retrieved16 June2018.
  14. ^"How the Chevy Vega Nearly Destroyed GM".popularmechanics.com.Retrieved16 June2018.
  15. ^Chevrolet Vega brochures- years 1971–77.Chevrolet.
  16. ^McCourt, Mark J. (December 2014)."1961 Rambler Ambassador V-8 Custom" America's First Compact Luxury Car "".Hemmings Motor News.Retrieved1 April2021.1961 Ambassador's reverse-slant C-pillar
  17. ^"sedan".Chambers 21st Century Dictionary.Retrieved18 April2017.
  18. ^"saloon".Chambers 21st Century Dictionary.Retrieved18 April2017.
  19. ^Stevenson, Angus; Waite, Maurice, eds. (2011)."notchback".Concise Oxford English Dictionary(Luxury ed.). Oxford University Press. p. 978.ISBN9780199601110.a car with a back that extends approximately horizontally from the bottom of the rear window so as to make a distinct angle with it.
  20. ^Barnard, R.H. (1996).Road Vehicle Aerodynamic Design.Longman.ISBN9780582245228.
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