What is the difference between a hatchback and a sedan. Which is better: sedan or hatchback? We understand what is better to choose

Body type when choosing a car - the same important point how or on which will work future car. In my previous articles, I have already raised the topic of choosing a body type, then it was about what is better to choose. Today I decided to continue a series of articles and figure out what better sedan or hatchback.If you have made up your mind and already know the exact make and model, but are facing a dilemma: sedan or hatchback, this article will be useful to you and help you decide.

Without unnecessary preambles, let's go directly to listing the "pluses" of the sedan

• Clear separation of the trunk and interior. In sedans, everything that is in the trunk in no way can affect the comfortable ride of passengers. Smells and extraneous sounds, which may be present in the trunk do not enter the passenger compartment, which is very convenient and important for a comfortable ride.
• In the event of an accident (rear impact), sedans have an advantage and a kind of buffer that will protect the rear row passengers and avoid depressurization of the cabin.
• Opening the trunk of a sedan, you do not open the interior, which is very important in winter. In addition, in the cold season, the interior of the sedan warms up faster, and in the summer, on the contrary, it cools down, due to the isolation of the trunk from the passenger compartment.
• The rear window of sedans gets dirty differently than hatchbacks, although in this case it all depends on the specific model.
• Sedans look more solid, for good reason, because most executive class cars are made in the sedan body.

"Cons" sedan

• Perhaps the biggest drawback of the sedan is its trunk. In the trunk of a sedan, it is impossible to carry anything large, at most, a pair of wheels, or purchases from a supermarket. There is really one function that cannot be ignored - the ability to lower the back of the sofa, after which part of the load is placed in the cabin. This feature allows you to carry long, flat items, which is very convenient, but you will not be able to put someone in the back row of seats with this transport.
• Dimensions. Parking on sedans is more difficult and less convenient than on hatchbacks, so very often for beginners the body type "sedan" becomes a big problem.

Now let's look at the "pros" of hatchbacks

• Compactness. Easier to park, easier to maneuver.
• Wide and spacious trunk, often allowing you to carry cargo large sizes, and with the rear row of seats folded down, it is completely capable of accommodating, for example, a medium-sized refrigerator or a washing machine.
• Price. Hatchbacks tend to be cheaper compared to sedans, so if you don't have enough money for a particular model, look carefully, there may also be a hatchback model.
• More sporty appearance. If you want to look sporty or if you're looking for a racing or tuning car, a hatchback is perfect for you.
• Lighter, therefore more economical in terms of .

"Cons" hatchback

• As I said above, everything that you will transport in the trunk of a hatchback will be in the cabin. That is, if you "stocked up" somewhere in the market with fresh meat or fish, then all the passengers of your car will know about it. In addition, if the load is creaky or rumbling, then it will also be perfectly audible.
• If the car is assembled poorly, then over time there will be a lot of problems from the fifth door and the shelf. Poor sound insulation will also add unnecessary sounds to the cabin from the trunk, which is not separated from the cabin.
• In winter, the hatchback will warm up longer, and in summer it will cool down.

Summing up

If you are not a fan of outdoor activities, do not have a dacha or do not plan to carry something from there, are not going to carry large loads and confidently park in any conditions - a sedan is ideal for you. For a business person, a sedan is also an opportunity to emphasize their status.

Otherwise, it is better to give preference to the hatchback. This type of body will allow you to carry various cargoes, make any maneuvers in city traffic and conveniently park, in addition, when buying, you can save a lot of money.

That's all. Now you know about the "pros" and "cons" of each of the applicants, it remains only to decide for yourself what is more priority for you. Be that as it may, the choice is yours, I hope it will be the right one ... Thank you for stopping by and reading to the end. See you again at.

The same model is produced in several versions, among which there are usually a sedan and a hatchback. What is better to choose? Consider the advantages and disadvantages of both options.

Advantages and disadvantages of a sedan

Advantages:

Disadvantages:

• large dimensions are not always convenient on city streets clogged with transport. Owners of such cars may have difficulty parking;
• unlike the hatchback, the sedan has a low ground clearance, which makes it poorly adapted to driving on country unpaved roads.

Advantages and disadvantages of a hatchback

Advantages:

• a car with a shortened tail section is more maneuverable than a sedan. The hatchback wheels are located exactly at the edges of the body, the load during movement is evenly distributed between the axles, so the car is easy to drive: the driver “feels” the dimensions of the car. Because of this feature, such cars are often called "ladies' cars": it's no secret that many motorists have difficulty parking - and here a nimble and obedient car will come in handy;
• the hatchback has more clearance than the sedan, and the suspension is stiffer, as a result of which the hatchback feels much better on country roads;
• the trunk of the car can be easily increased by folding rear seats. In such a luggage compartment it is convenient to transport bulky and long items, such as bicycles or repair materials;
• hatchbacks are more fuel efficient than sedans;
• hatchbacks are cheaper than sedans, though not by much, but.

Disadvantages:

• if there is something foul-smelling in the trunk of the car, then all the aromas will be felt in the cabin;
• lack of sound insulation: if something rings or rumbles in the trunk, everything is clearly audible in the cabin;
• because of the "cropped tail" rear glass the car is very dirty, and you can’t do without a janitor.

How to make the right choice between a sedan and a hatchback

The sedan is a typical "citizen". If you are not going to travel far out of town or your dacha is located near a highway with good coverage, a sedan is quite suitable for you, especially since you can put a lot of things intended for country life in its voluminous trunk. True, for drivers who are not very confident in their abilities, perhaps on a hatchback: it is much less likely to get into an unpleasant situation during the parking process.

Unlike the "aristocrat" of the sedan, the hatchback is a "workhorse". The hatchback is often chosen by people who have to travel a lot both around the city and beyond. A car of this design is perfect for parents who often take small children with them and are forced to carry a pram in the trunk. However, if you are allergic or intolerant unpleasant odors, think thrice: in this case, transporting an ordinary canister of gasoline in the trunk of a hatchback will become flour for you.

Thus, considering the question of which is better: a sedan or a hatchback, be guided by your tastes, habits and lifestyle.

The choice of car is always very individual: for someone important role it plays the engine size and power of the car, for someone - the presence of free space in the cabin, and someone just wants to buy the most economical vehicle etc.

In general, one way or another, buying a car often becomes a real test, especially for those who do it for the first time and have not yet decided on the criteria for their search. Today we will try to deal with one of these criteria and find out: what is better than a sedan or a hatchback, what are their main positive and negative sides and how they generally differ.

Sedan: advantages and disadvantages.

The sedan can be described as follows: passenger car, which has a closed body and two or three rows of full-size seats. It is distinguished by:

1. two-volume body;
2. practicality and presentable appearance (by the way, it was this characteristic that made the sedan the most popular body type among motorists);
3. absence of a lifting door in the rear wall.

Advantages of the sedan:

• trunk isolated from the passenger compartment, which means that in winter it heats up faster and retains heat better,
• the rear window is not as dirty as, for example, the same hatchback.

Disadvantages:

• dimensions of the car, which often cause difficulties with parking.

Hatchback: advantages and disadvantages.

A hatchback can be characterized as follows: a passenger car with one or two rows of seats, in the back wall of which there is a door, while the rear overhang itself is shortened.

The hatchback body is one-volume, the trunk is part of the cabin and it is located behind last row seats. The trunk lid is an opening door through which you can get inside the cabin.

Advantages:

• this body type has compact dimensions and good maneuverability;
• the rear seats fold down, which makes it possible to carry a fairly large load in the trunk;
• hatchback is considered to be a light and economical car.

Disadvantages:

• poor sound insulation
• in winter, the interior warms up for a long time;
• interior space is quite limited.

Who is better?

As you probably already guessed, the answer to the question posed in this article will, of course, be a sedan. Why?

History of creation

The hatchback is a fairly popular body type in our time, which has long been a serious competitor to the sedan. The word "hatchback" is formed from two English words"hatch" - hatch and "back" - behind. The body began its history in the pre-war years. In the distant 40s of the twentieth century, the first cars with a wide rear hatch began to be produced by Citroen, later the American company Kaiser Motors picked up the baton, releasing two models into the world: Frazer Vagabond and Kaiser Traveler. Hatchbacks gained wide popularity thanks to the efforts of the Japanese. In Europe, the fashion for these bodies began after the release of the French Renault 16.

What does a hatchback look like

The hatchback is a 3- or 5-door body, has one or two rows of seats, as well as a short rear overhang, in addition, it has a door in the rear wall. The length of a hatchback is often shorter than that of a sedan, which gives it a number of advantages in urban environments. As a rule, a hatchback has a sloping roof, which smoothly, without steps, passes into the trunk lid. Also this body it can be three-volume, but even in this case, the lower overhang remains shortened.

What is better to choose a hatchback or a sedan?

In order to make it easier for you to decide on the choice of the body of the future car, we provide a list of the advantages and disadvantages of the sedan and hatchback. By familiarizing yourself with it, you will receive useful information to help you make a choice.

Hatchback. Advantages:

• Quite compact in size, while not burdened with a "tail", which allows them to maneuver perfectly on the streets of the city.
• wide opening luggage compartment, which allows you to load large items (TVs, washing machines etc.)
• Attractive appearance, bearing some resemblance to sports cars(in demand among young people).

Hatchbacks also have several disadvantages:

• The absence of a partition and sound insulation between the passenger compartment and the luggage compartment leads to the fact that while driving you will hear and feel all the sounds and smells that come from the trunk.
• Also, due to the fact that the volume of the cabin increases due to the trunk, it is difficult to warm up the car in winter.
• The size of the trunk becomes larger than the trunk of a sedan, only in the case of dismantling or folding the rear row of seats.

Sedan. Advantages:

• First of all, I would like to note that the sedan has a more presentable appearance than the hatchback. This makes it a favorite with older car enthusiasts.
• Insulated trunk. A feature that is a minus for a competitor is absent from a sedan. You will not hear any extraneous noise from the trunk while driving.

Of the shortcomings, we note:

• Perhaps the most unpleasant drawback for sedans is the small trunk, as well as the small amount of space in the cabin.
• Compared to hatchbacks, sedans are bulkier, making it harder to drive in city traffic.

Hatchback and station wagon. What is the difference?

If we analyze these two bodies, then several differences can be noted at once:

1. Price. As trite as it sounds, it's true. Station wagons are much more expensive than hatchbacks.
2. Luggage size. Station wagons have a much larger luggage compartment than hatchbacks.
3. Design. The elegant forms of hatchbacks look much more attractive than the strict lines of the station wagon.

It's time to sum it up.

Hatchbacks are great cars for a small family. They combine comfort, practicality and attractive design. The hatchback is ideal for outdoor trips, its trunk will fit all the things you need on vacation. And within the city, maneuverability and small size this vehicle help you get through the traffic jam faster. Dreaming of a hatchback? Go to directory cars which will help you sort out the prices.

Hatchback examples:

Without cars with a two-volume body, called a hatchback, it is difficult to imagine modern transport traffic. Meanwhile, the history of this type of body has a little more than sixty years, many motorists, visually imagining what a hatchback is, do not understand it. technical differences from station wagons, coupes, microvans.

What does hatchback mean?

Formally, the main feature of the body was a shortened rear overhang (compared to the same type of sedans, station wagons). An example that demonstrates the differences well is the domestic Lada Kalina, in which the station wagon body is much longer.

Lada Kalina Universal (top) and Lada Kalina hatchback (bottom). Pay attention to the size of the window to the luggage compartment, because of the shortened overhang on the hatchback, it is much smaller.

The fifth door, which combines the volumes of the passenger compartment and the trunk, cannot be considered the main difference between the body structure; it is equipped with liftback, station wagon, coupe, microvan bodies. The configuration of the stern, the number of doors do not matter either - there are hatchback models with a vertical, sloping rear overhang, three or five doors. Most often, the body is confused with the liftback, which many experts consider a type of hatchback, and not a separate design.

Comparing the body structure to sedans gives many automakers the ability to name the model arbitrarily. So, the Czech "Skoda" (models "Octavia", "Superb", "Rapid") in Russia are sold as hatchbacks, although the length of the overhang allows them to be called liftbacks. Other hatchback varieties that change their name according to the configuration of the stern are fastbacks (with a sloping roofline), comebacks (with a vertical overhang of the fifth door), notchbacks (European name american models with a weakly expressed third volume).

The popularity of the universal city body was expressed in the appearance of models that have no analogues in sedan or station wagon bodies. Only in the hatchback body were produced such popular models how Hyundai Getz, « Daewoo Matiz”, “Honda Jazz”, Chevrolet Spark, “Toyota Yaris”, “ Kia Picanto”, “Mazda 2”, “Nissan Micro”, “Peugeot 107”. Of the domestic models that were not produced with sedan bodies, the three-door hatchback Oka (VAZ 1111) can be noted.

Five-door version of the Peugeot 107 hatchback.

Many models with coupe bodies, small front-wheel drive crossovers, microvans can be classified as hatchbacks. The designs differ only in size, body height, configuration tailgate. This can be said about the microvan nissan note, increased in height, "SUV" Mitsubishi ASX, Nissan Juke. The trade definition of the body structure, positioning of the model depends on the policy of the automaker.

Hatchback pros and cons

Historically new model body was driven by the need for more compact, versatile machines than long, bulky sedans. The increase in the number of urban transport, the complication of parking, dictated such parameters of the new body as:

• compactness;
• convenience for four passengers (short-term presence of the fifth passenger);
• small trunk size, sufficient for urban purchases;
• possibility of transformation if necessary long trips, transportation of bulk cargo;
• simple assembly, low operating costs.

The first hatchback model was produced by Renault under the name Renault 4L (1961). cheap car simple design already had the most important hatchback differences - the fifth door, sliding seats with the possibility of dismantling. The car with a low-power (0.7L) engine was a resounding commercial success, by 1994 eight million cars had been sold.

Renault 4L - considered the first hatchback, released by Renault in 1961.

Subsequently, the requirement for a minimum configuration disappeared, as did the reduced cost of models with this type of body, but the main advantages of hatchbacks remained the same. Combining the luggage compartment with the passenger compartment in one volume also determined the main drawbacks of the body structure. The disadvantages of hatchbacks include:

• underestimation of the actual cubic capacity of the trunk (full load clutters the rear window);
• odors and dust from the luggage compartment;
• difficulty warming up the rear;

Hatchback video

Iconic hatchback models

Having released the first hatchback, Renault designers did not stop developing a new body concept. The chroniclers of the history of the concern consider the first mass hatchback not the simple Renault 4L, but the later model Renault 16 (1965). For ten years, the car became a hatchback model in terms of proportions, the angle of inclination of the rear door. Becoming the "Car of the Year" in 1966, the Renault 16 stayed on the assembly line for another fourteen years. The popularity of the model was expressed in two million sales.

Renault 16's first real competitor was Volkswagen Golf(1974), who gave the name to the "golf class" of urban compact models. Its advantages were constant design updates, a wide range of bodies, an increase in engine power, and the number of “comfort options”. The popularity of the model is evidenced by the appearance of the seventh generation of the car, in which the body became lighter (due to the use of porous materials, plastics), the power of the two-liter turbodiesel increased to 150 hp.

Renault 16 - considered the first mass hatchback

For many years, the French Peugeot 206 (1998) became a sample of reference hatchback design. The enlarged proportions of the model were transferred not only to other models of the Peugeot concern (Peugeot 307, 407, 207, 308), but also copied by other automakers. The originality, aggressiveness of the slanted headlights, far reaching on the wings, embossed bumpers, body stampings were repeated in many models, becoming a sign of compliance with automotive fashion. Not all imitative hatchback variants managed to achieve proportionality, completeness of the silhouette of the French model.

The search for a compromise between the avant-garde ideas of designers and the traditional tastes of European, American buyers became the same difficult task. It is characteristic that the Peugeot 206 sedan, released to develop the commercial success of the brand (2006), did not even reach a small share of the popularity of the iconic hatchback. On the contrary, in America about the success of huge sedans, powerful SUVs hatchback manufacturers can only dream of.

By the number of technical innovations, "comfort options" embodied in the model compact hatchback, undoubtedly, the A-Class (third generation) of the German concern Mercedes-Benz is in the lead. Continuing the benefits of the second generation (2009), the new model, released in 2013, has become a model for combining sporty design with high standards of comfort.

The Mercedes-AMG A 45 4MATIC is a great example of a modern hatchback body style.

The hatchback is available in three versions, the names of which ( AMG Sport, Urban, Style) are quite eloquent. Journalists immediately called the model with the AMG Sport index “hothatch” (hot hatchback). The sporty variant stands out for its aggressive design features (aerodynamic body kit, powerful bumpers, big wheels), power turbocharged engine(2.0L, 360 hp).

more modest specifications engines for versions Urban, Style (1.6 - 2.0L, 122 - 184 hp). All configurations are characterized by the possibility of installing sports options (anatomical racing-type seats, aluminum pedals). The original interior design is enhanced by combined, leather upholstery, a kind of “nozzles” of ventilation deflectors, and a steering wheel truncated from below. Already in the base, A-class hatchbacks are equipped with an electromechanical power steering, Start-Stop, PreSafe (preventive security), and parking assistance systems.