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[[File:1948_Delahaye_135MS_Cabriolet_Chapron.jpg|right|300px|thumb|A suicide door on a [[Delahaye]] Type 135]]
[[File:1948_Delahaye_135MS_Cabriolet_Chapron.jpg|right|300px|thumb|A suicide door on a [[Delahaye]] Type 135]]


A '''suicide door''' is a [[car door]] hinged on the edge closer to the rear of the vehicle, also known as the trailing edge.<ref name=diseno>{{cite web |url=http://www.diseno-art.com/encyclopedia/terms/suicide_doors.html |title=Suicide Doors |publisher=Diseno-Art.com |accessdate=9 January 2013}}</ref><ref name=chalk>{{cite web |url=http://www.chalkhillmedia.org/Museum/historic_automotive_terms.htm |title=Dictionary of Historic Automotive Terms |publisher=Chalk Hill Media |accessdate=9 January 2013}}</ref><ref name=Mayersohn>{{cite news |title=Don't Call Them Suicide Doors |first=Norman |last=Mayersohn |url=http://www.nytimes.com/2003/07/11/travel/driving-don-t-call-them-suicide-doors.html |newspaper=[[The New York Times]] |date=11 July 2003 |accessdate=9 January 2013}}</ref> Such doors were originally used on [[Horse-drawn vehicle|horse-drawn]] [[carriage]]s,<Ref name=ABFHS>Anthony Bird & Francis Hutton-Stott, ''Lanchester Motorcars, A History'', page 96, Cassell, London 1965</ref> but they are rarely used on modern vehicles, due primarily to safety concerns. Although the term is common in the [[custom car]] trade,<ref>{{cite news |first=Martin |last=Zimmerman |title='Suicide doors' resurrected by car designers despite safety concerns |url=http://www.latimes.com/classified/automotive/highway1/la-fi-garage15sep15,0,5887067.story?coll=la-class-autos-highway1 |newspaper=[[Los Angeles Times]] |date=15 September 2007 |accessdate=11 June 2009}}</ref>{{dead link|date=September 2010|bot=H3llBot}} it is avoided by major [[Automotive industry|automobile manufacturers]] in favour of terms such as "coach doors" ([[Rolls-Royce Motor Cars|Rolls-Royce]]),<ref name=Mayersohn/> "FlexDoors" ([[Opel]])<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.topgear.com/uk/car-news/vauxhall-meriva-new-2010-01-05 |title=New Meriva: unhinged |work=[[Top Gear (2002 TV series)|Top Gear]] |date=5 January 2010 |accessdate=24 January 2011}}</ref> "freestyle doors" ([[Mazda]]),<ref name=Mayersohn/> "rear access doors" ([[Saturn Corporation|Saturn]]),<ref name=Mayersohn/> and "rear-hinged doors".<ref name=diseno/>
known as the trailing edge.<ref name=diseno>{{cite web |url=http://www.diseno-art.com/encyclopedia/terms/suicide_doors.html |title=Suicide Doors |publisher=Diseno-Art.com |accessdate=9 January 2013}}</ref><ref name=chalk>{{cite web |url=http://www.chalkhillmedia.org/Museum/historic_automotive_terms.htm |title=Dictionary of Historic Automotive Terms |publisher=Chalk Hill Media |accessdate=9 January 2013}}</ref><ref name=MayePresident [[John F. Kennedy]] was [[Assassination of John F. Kennedy|assassinated]] in a modified 1961 Continental convertible, known as the [[SS-100-X]].

==History==
[[File:Fiat Multipla 600.jpg|300px|thumb|The [[Fiat_600#The_Multipla_.281956.E2.80.931965.29|Fiat 600 Multipla]] is an example of a car with both suicide and conventional doors.]]
Suicide doors were common on cars manufactured in the first half of the 20th century.<ref name=diseno/> In the era before [[seat belt]]s, the accidental opening of such doors meant that there was a greater risk of falling out of the vehicle compared to front-hinged doors, where airflow pushed the doors closed rather than opening them further. Suicide doors were especially popular in the [[gangster]] era of the 1930s, supposedly due to the ease of pushing passengers out of moving vehicles with the feature, according to Dave Brownell, the former editor of ''[[Hemmings Motor News]]''.<ref name=Mayersohn/>

After [[World War II]], the use of suicide doors was mostly limited to rear doors of four-door [[Sedan (automobile)|sedans]]. The best-known use of suicide doors on post-World War II automobiles was the [[Lincoln Continental#Fourth generation (1961–1969)|Lincoln Continental]] sedans and [[convertible]]s in the 1960s.<ref name=Mayersohn/> [[Oliver Wendell Douglas|Oliver Douglas]], the protagonist of American television show ''[[Green Acres]]'' owned a Lincoln Continental convertible.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://imcdb.org/vehicle_235295-Lincoln-Continental-74A-1967.html |title=1967 Lincoln Continental Convertible (74A) in 'Green Acres, 1965–1971' |publisher=Internet Movie Cars Database |accessdate=15 September 2009}}</ref> Also, Joe Mannix's boss, Lew Wickersham, drove a black Lincoln Continental with suicide doors in the first season of the TV show ''[[Mannix]]''. US President [[John F. Kennedy]] was [[Assassination of John F. Kennedy|assassinated]] in a modified 1961 Continental convertible, known as the [[SS-100-X]].


Since the four-door Lincoln convertible did not have a center [[Pillar (automobile)|B-pillar]], the rear door glass was designed to electronically retract a few inches when the rear doors were opened in order for the [[weatherstripping]] to clear the front door glass; consequently, passengers in the back seat had to crawl through to the front seat to exit if the car's [[Automotive battery|battery]] was dead. This problem was not universal, however. The [[Fiat_600#The_Multipla_.281956.E2.80.931965.29|Fiat 600 Multipla]], introduced in 1956, and the [[SEAT 800]], introduced in 1963, were both four-door cars featuring front suicide doors and rear conventional doors, with all four doors connected to the B-pillars.
Since the four-door Lincoln convertible did not have a center [[Pillar (automobile)|B-pillar]], the rear door glass was designed to electronically retract a few inches when the rear doors were opened in order for the [[weatherstripping]] to clear the front door glass; consequently, passengers in the back seat had to crawl through to the front seat to exit if the car's [[Automotive battery|battery]] was dead. This problem was not universal, however. The [[Fiat_600#The_Multipla_.281956.E2.80.931965.29|Fiat 600 Multipla]], introduced in 1956, and the [[SEAT 800]], introduced in 1963, were both four-door cars featuring front suicide doors and rear conventional doors, with all four doors connected to the B-pillars.
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==Modern use==
==Modern use==
[[File:Lincoln-concept-Suicide-Doors.jpg|300px|thumb|left|A [[Lincoln Motor Company|Lincoln]] [[concept car]] from 2009 with suicide doors; note the total lack of a [[B-pillar]]]]
[[File:Lincoln-concept-Suicide-Doors.jpg|300px|thumb|left|A [[Lincoln Motor Company|Lincoln]] [[concept car]] from 2009 with suicide doors; note the total lack of a [[B-pillar]]]]
For a time, the last mass-produced car model with indep
For a time, the last mass-produced car model with independently opening suicide doors was the [[Ford Thunderbird#Fifth generation (1967–1971)|Ford Thunderbird]] four-door sedan from 1967 to 1971. The 1971 model was the last American production automobile to feature rear suicide doors; safety concerns prevented the subsequent use of such doors.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://automotivemileposts.com/autobrevity/suicidedoors.html |title=Suicide Doors |work=Auto Brevity |publisher=Automotive Mileposts |accessdate=9 January 2013}}</ref> More recently, rear suicide doors that cannot be opened until the regular front doors are opened have been appearing on a number of vehicles, including [[Pickup truck#Extended cab|extended-cab pickup trucks]], the [[Saturn S-Series#Second generation SC|Saturn SC]], the [[Saturn Ion|Saturn Ion QuadCoupe]], the [[Honda Element]], the [[Toyota FJ Cruiser]], and the [[Mazda RX-8]].<ref name=diseno/> In 2003, the new [[Rolls-Royce Phantom (BMW)|Rolls-Royce Phantom]] reintroduced independent suicide doors. Other models with classic suicide doors include the [[Spyker D8]] and the [[Rolls-Royce Phantom Drophead Coupe]] four-seat convertible.


Rear passenger suicide doors had long been used on [[Austin FX4]] [[hackney carriage]]s. However, these models are being replaced by [[TX1]]s, which lack suicide doors.
Rear passenger suicide doors had long been used on [[Austin FX4]] [[hackney carriage]]s. However, these models are being replaced by [[TX1]]s, which lack suicide doors.

Revision as of 19:21, 7 February 2013

A suicide door on a Delahaye Type 135
known as the trailing edge.[1][2]Cite error: The <ref> tag has too many names (see the help page).

Other car manufacturers who have produced models with suicide doors include Austin, Citroën, Opel, Panhard, Rover, Saab, Saturn, Škoda, and Volkswagen.

Advantages

An open rear suicide door on a Rolls-Royce Ghost

Rear-hinged doors make entering and exiting the vehicle much easier. They allow a passenger to enter in a natural way, by walking forward toward the vehicle and turning to sit, and to exit by stepping forward out of the vehicle. In combination with traditional front doors, they also make exiting easier for the driver, who can then reach the handle of the back door to open it for a passenger. In Austin FX4 taxis, drivers were able to reach the rear door handle through the driver's window without getting out of the vehicle.

Disadvantages

Lloyd LT 600 van with a front suicide door

Conventional doors in the front and suicide doors in the back make exiting from the front and rear seats simultaneously difficult, due to the limited space between the front edge of the rear door and the rear edge of the front door.

Suicide doors can create several unique hazards not applicable to conventional doors. If a passenger exits through a suicide door on a moving vehicle, the door will hit him or her.[3] Additionally, suicide doors can pose danger for passengers exiting towards the street; if a passing car hits the open door, the door can fling closed, injuring the exiting passenger. Despite the use of safety latches or locks, aerodynamic factors can still lead to suicide doors being opened during driving. In 1969, Consumer Reports reported this problem on a Subaru 360.[4]

See also

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Automobiles with suicide doors.

References

  1. ^ "Suicide Doors". Diseno-Art.com. Retrieved 9 January 2013.
  2. ^ "Dictionary of Historic Automotive Terms". Chalk Hill Media. Retrieved 9 January 2013.
  3. ^ "FAQ - Exotic Door Tutorial". DeftRacing.com. Retrieved 9 January 2013.
  4. ^ "The Subaru 360 (Not Acceptable)" (PDF). Consumer Reports. April 1969. pp. 220–222. Retrieved 24 January 2011.
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