Coupé

Coupé (French: [kupe]) is based on the past participle of the French verb couper ("to cut") and thus indicates a car which has been "cut" or made shorter than standard.[2] It was first applied to horse-drawn carriages for two passengers without rear-facing seats.[1] These berlines coupés[3] or carosses coupés ("clipped carriages") were eventually clipped to coupés.[4]

There are two common pronunciations in English:

• /kuːˈpeɪ/ (koo-PAY) – the anglicized version of the French pronunciation of coupé.
• /kuːp/ (KOOP) – as a spelling pronunciation when the word is written without an accent.[4][5] Commonly used in the United States,[6] this change occurred gradually before World War II[7] and features in the Beach Boys' hit 1963 song "Little Deuce Coupe".

1955 Cadillac Coupe de Ville

A coupé is a fixed-roof car with a sloping rear roofline and one or two rows of seats. However, there is often debate surrounding whether a coupe must have two doors[8][9][10] or whether cars with four doors can also be considered coupés.[11] This debate has arisen since the early 2000s, when four-door cars such as the Mazda RX-8 and Mercedes-Benz CLS-Class have been marketed as "four door coupés" or "quad coupés".

In the 1940s and 1950s, coupes were distinguished from sedans by their shorter roof area and sportier profile.[12] Similarly, in more recent times, when a model is sold in both coupé and sedan body styles, generally the coupe is sportier and more compact.[1][13][14]

The 1977 version of International Standard ISO 3833—Road vehicles - Types - Terms and definitions—defines a coupé as having two doors (along with a fixed roof, usually with limited rear volume, at least two seats in at least one row and at least two side windows).[15] On the other hand, the United States Society of Automotive Engineers publication J1100[16] does not specify the number of doors, instead defining a coupe as having a rear interior volume of less than 33 cu ft (934 L).[1][13][17]

The definition of coupé started to blur when manufacturers began to produce cars with a 2+2 body style (which have a sleek, sloping roofline, two doors, and two functional seats up front, plus two tiny seats in back).[18]

Some manufacturers also blur the definition of a coupé by applying this description to models featuring a hatchback or a rear door that opens upwards.[19][20] Most often also featuring a fold-down back seat, the third door or hatchback layout of these cars improves their practicality and cargo room.[21]

Example of a coupé carriage

The coupé body style originated from the berline horse-drawn carriage. The coupé version of the berline was introduced in the 18th century as a shortened ("cut") version with no rear-facing seat.[3][22][23][24] Normally, a coupé had a fixed glass window in the front of the passenger compartment.[25] The coupé was considered an ideal vehicle for women to use to go shopping or to make social visits.[26]

The early coupé automobile's passenger compartment followed in general conception the design of horse-drawn coupés,[27] with the driver in the open at the front and an enclosure behind him for two passengers on one bench seat.[28][29] The French variant for this word thus denoted a car with a small passenger compartment.[27]

By the 1910s, the term had evolved to denote a two-door car with the driver and up to two passengers in an enclosure with a single bench seat.[30][31] The coupé de ville, or coupé chauffeur, was an exception, retaining the open driver's section at front.[32]

In 1916, the Society of Automobile Engineers suggested nomenclature for car bodies that included the following:[31][33]

Coupe: An enclosed car operated from the inside with seats for two or three and sometimes a backward-facing fourth seat.

Coupelet: A small car seating two or three with a folding top and full height doors with fully retractable windows.

Convertible coupe: A roadster with a removable coupé roof.

During the 20th century, the term coupé was applied to various close-coupled cars (where the rear seat that is located further forward than usual and the front seat further back than usual).[34][35]

Since the 1960s the term coupé has generally referred to a two-door car with a fixed roof.[36]

Since 2005, several models with four doors have been marketed as "four-door coupés", however reactions are mixed about whether these models are actually sedans instead of coupés.[37][38][39] According to Edmunds, an American automotive guide, "the four-door coupe category doesn't really exist."[40]

1974–1978 AMC Matador coupe, unlike the 4-door models

In the United States, some coupés are "simply line-extenders two-door variants of family sedans", while others have significant differences to their four-door counterparts.[63] The AMC Matador coupe (1974–1978), had a distinct design and styling, sharing almost nothing with the 4-door versions.[64] Similarly, the Chrysler Sebring and Dodge Stratus coupes and sedans (late-1990 through 2000s), had little in common except their names, with the coupes engineered by Mitsubishi and built in Illinois, while the sedans were developed by Chrysler and built in Michigan.[65]

Coupés may also exist as model lines in their own right, either closely related to other models but named differently – such as the Alfa Romeo GT – or have little engineering in common with other vehicles from the manufacturer – such as the Toyota GT86.

• 
  A 2017 Ford Mustang from behind.
• 
  A 1937 Buick 37 46S. An Opéra coupé.
• 
  A 1932 Ford Model 18. An example of a three-window coupé.
• 
  A 1946 Ford V8. An example of a club coupé.
• 
  A 1978–1987 Saab 900. An example of a combi coupé.
• 
  A 2010 Mazda RX-8. A modern, four-door coupé.
• 
  A 1961 Ferrari 250GT. An example of a Berlinetta coupé.
• 
  A 1948 Bentley coupé de ville.

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Coupes.

• Convertible
• Grand tourer
• Car classification
• Fastback
• Hardtop