[tony20009]

Clearly you can tell the taxonomy of cars these days is far from straight forward. Coupes have four doors. Sedans have three or two. What is it with car makers that they can't just call a spade a spade?

Consider our beloved BMW which stated that 2-door cars would get even numbers and 4-door cars would get odd numbers. Yet we have:

• M135 with two doors
• 6GC with four doors
• 3 GT with 5 doors
• 4GC (coming) with four doors

There must be some good reason for all these labels that make no sense and simply ignoring Shakespeare. I realize they are cars and not rose, but the buying public, I think, doesn't really care (within reason) what a car is called. (To an extent...It'll be interesting to see how well the 4 series sells in China. Superstitious as the Chinese are, I cannot imagine they will be keen to ride around in car that is death by name.) I think most people look at the car, decide whether they like the looks, and go from there.

Trying to make some sense out of the car's naming might have made some sense when the numbers referred to something literal like displacement, or liters of oil, or cylinders, or something. Defining a rule about the quantity of doors and then immediately breaking that rule is just ridiculous. Perhaps I've worked with IT types too long and just don't like rules that cannot be relied upon.

[turbolag]

Originally Posted by tony20009

Clearly you can tell the taxonomy of cars these days is far from straight forward. Coupes have four doors. Sedans have three or two. What is it with car makers that they can't just call a spade a spade?

Consider our beloved BMW which stated that 2-door cars would get even numbers and 4-door cars would get odd numbers. Yet we have:

• M135 with two doors
• 6GC with four doors
• 3 GT with 5 doors
• 4GC (coming) with four doors

There must be some good reason for all these labels that make no sense and simply ignoring Shakespeare. I realize they are cars and not rose, but the buying public, I think, doesn't really care (within reason) what a car is called. (To an extent...It'll be interesting to see how well the 4 series sells in China. Superstitious as the Chinese are, I cannot imagine they will be keen to ride around in car that is death by name.) I think most people look at the car, decide whether they like the looks, and go from there.

Trying to make some sense out of the car's naming might have made some sense when the numbers referred to something literal like displacement, or liters of oil, or cylinders, or something. Defining a rule about the quantity of doors and then immediately breaking that rule is just ridiculous. Perhaps I've worked with IT types too long and just don't like rules that cannot be relied upon.

The Audi A4 sells well in China, no?

I think it's more of Coupe as in body shape, not as in doors. For example, MB classified the CLS as a Coupe...

The 3er TOuring and 5er Touring both are odd numbers, so I wouldn't think too much of the 3GT.

[dinonz]

And "Firestone is a car company".

Yeah. Right.

[Naambezet]

The 1 series only comes with 3 or 5 doors.

[Ti335]

Originally Posted by Naambezet

The 1 series only comes with 3 or 5 doors.

This another thing I could never understand. Why is a hatchback's trunk cover considered a "door" while a sedan's or coupe's is not?

[jjrandorin]

Originally Posted by Ti335

This another thing I could never understand. Why is a hatchback's trunk cover considered a "door" while a sedan's or coupe's is not?

Maybe ( speculating) because it enters directly into the car and a regular trunk has something between the inside of the truck and the car (back seats)?

[tony20009]

Originally Posted by Ti335

This another thing I could never understand. Why is a hatchback's trunk cover considered a "door" while a sedan's or coupe's is not?

True, and I could see a case for the following: the hood is the door to the engine compartment and the trunk lid is the door to, well, the trunk. That the flap that gives access to the fuel tank is sometimes called a door seems evidence to me that not all doors have to yield onto empty spaces where humans sit.

[tony20009]

Originally Posted by turbolag

The Audi A4 sells well in China, no?

...

I don't know, does it? I see A8s all over the place, but I don't see A4s that much at all, and eight is a highly desirable -- as far as I know, the most desirable -- number in Chinese number preference.

[crono06]

Originally Posted by tony20009

I don't know, does it? I see A8s all over the place, but I don't see A4s that much at all, and eight is a highly desirable -- as far as I know, the most desirable -- number in Chinese number preference.

Yes, you are correct. The phonetic sound of 8 is very similar to wealth or fortune.

[tony20009]

Originally Posted by crono06

Yes, you are correct. The phonetic sound of 8 is very similar to wealth or fortune.

Well, the i8 should do well in China then.

[hawkrak]

The phonetic sound of 8 is very similar to wealth or fortune.

[Jeff@TopGearSolutions]

My brain hurts in here LOL

[BlueBill]

Try to get a license plate with many 8s over there - it's just unaffordable if you are not one of the "lucky" ones in China

[tony20009]

Originally Posted by BlueBill

Try to get a license plate with many 8s over there - it's just unaffordable if you are not one of the "lucky" ones in China

Trying to get a lot of eights is fine, but I think it's more important to simply to have no fours than it is to have even one eight. Unless you want to die rich, in which case perhaps you need one of each???

[-Wingman-]

Coupes have four doors?

The only coupe I can think of with four doors is the Mazda rx-8.

Perhaps the trunk of a hatchback is considered to be a door because both the window and the boot are attached, and open together much like how a door does.

[tony20009]

Originally Posted by -Wingman-

Coupes have four doors?

The only coupe I can think of with four doors is the Mazda rx-8.

Perhaps the trunk of a hatchback is considered to be a door because both the window and the boot are attached, and open together much like how a door does.

BMW thinks coupes can have four doors.




Mercedes and Audi also seem to think so.

Of course, all this 4-door coupe crap is nothing but marketing crap. Frankly, I 'd have had nothing to say about it other than the fact that these car companies have done nothing but put a new skin on an existing chassis and jack up the price. It doesn't bother me what kinds and shapes of cars any car company offer to sell as long as they do so with some integrity.

A car of any design and build is what it is and calling it something it isn't, when I can plainly see what it is, is asking for me to willingly suspend disbelief. I'll do that for a fictional movie. I'll do that for a novel. Why anyone would do that over a tangible object they can see and tough (and drive) is beyond me. My name is not Alice. This is not Wonderland.

[ryankossuch]

If you want to buy BMW wheels and rims, MVP Wheels is a best option.They providing free shipping order over $149.

[Fume]

Originally Posted by tony20009

I don't know, does it? I see A8s all over the place, but I don't see A4s that much at all, and eight is a highly desirable -- as far as I know, the most desirable -- number in Chinese number preference.

Also, I'm fairly certain that 4 sounds similar to the word for death in Mandarin (and other East Asian languages too). Not sure how much of an affect that has though.

[tony20009]

Originally Posted by Fume

Also, I'm fairly certain that 4 sounds similar to the word for death in Mandarin (and other East Asian languages too). Not sure how much of an affect that has though.

Yes it does.

[ptack]

Originally Posted by tony20009

True, and I could see a case for the following: the hood is the door to the engine compartment and the trunk lid is the door to, well, the trunk. That the flap that gives access to the fuel tank is sometimes called a door seems evidence to me that not all doors have to yield onto empty spaces where humans sit.

Ask the English guys what a boot is.

[tony20009]

Originally Posted by ptack

Ask the English guys what a boot is.

??? boot in the UK = trunk in the US. I went to an event in London which my companion described as "a glorified boot sale" for charity. An American would have said "a glorified garage sale" for charity, though I didn't know that until I asked what he meant. But I'm not sure what it is you were getting at with your post...sorry.