Talk Morgan Forums Community The Malvern Arms Soft top names

The Bimini top has been left out. A parasol top for open cars.

Yes, you're right, Image.Even the James Dean Porsche 550 was called the Spyder. And I also remember the revolutionary Elise 1 competitor of Renault, their Spider, now that you mention it.

Graham, unfortunately Google found the lovely picture in the Mercedes press downloads and not in front of my "estate“

Ah, now that's something different altogether.

Estate, station wagon, shooting brake......who can tell ?

Indeed, Giles, unlike the DaveW estate, we live on the back of our station wagon.

Well if you lot really like "angels on the head of a pin" type arguing, why not go for it and try to say what makes a sports car

I'm no 'Thread Drift' zealot ..... take it where it goes !

To recap:

All the terms have fallen prey to modern marketing and are used pretty randomly in that context.

However, generally

DHC .... full height doors .... possibly 'fixed hood' like a pram

Spider ..... open sporty car .... must be two seats

Convertible/Cabriolet ..... two or four seater ....has a hardtop equivalent

Roadster ..... two seater .... sidescreens

Or maybe not

K

A DHC is what it says. A coupe is a regular car (no half doors or side screens) usually a 2 seater and with two doors, and often with a lowered roof to the rear (coupe=to cut, ie seats and/or roof). A DHC is the same thing, but convertible (drophead).
A three position drophead can be entirely closed, open above the front seats, or entirely open.
Many of the body style names, coupe among them, derive from carriages. There used to be many more in use--when was the last time you saw a Salamanca motoring around?

when was the last time you saw a Salamanca motoring around?.....

When the apprentice made a balls (technical term) of lighting it!

I told him to dip the rag in paraffin, wrap around the end of the stick and light it before shoving it through the Salamanca (Victorian garage heater invented by the devil with the sole purpose of killing mechanics when it blew up which they did with alarming frequency) flame check window.

He decided after it failed to light to pour petrol in through the window and try again... it blew the 6 foot chimney half across the workshop and got him on car valeting for a week!

BR
Colin 🤣

A DHC is what it says. A coupe is a regular car (no half doors or side screens) usually a 2 seater and with two doors, and often with a lowered roof to the rear (coupe=to cut, ie seats and/or roof). A DHC is the same thing, but convertible (drophead).
A three position drophead can be entirely closed, open above the front seats, or entirely open.
Many of the body style names, coupe among them, derive from carriages. There used to be many more in use--when was the last time you saw a Salamanca motoring around?
A fixed pram hood = a faux coupe.

JCX ..... couldn't think how to describe it easily .... didn't mean a 'fake' hood but one of the modern type that is fixed to the car and goes up and down in one piece .... as opposed to the type on older British cars, for instance, that had a hood frame and a seperate hood more like erecting a tent!

K