All cars are divided into several categories and types. In the factory registers, each model is assigned to a specific class. Comparison of machines is subject to strict criteria. The subcompact class includes cars with engine power up to 90 hp, the race car class is distinguished by a speed norm of over 240 km / h. Executive class - these are luxury cars, soft and smooth on the go. Sports cars are recognized by their characteristic exterior, swift lines of a low-sitting body and a revving engine.
Each car has a set of distinctive features. However, any model tends to lose its attractiveness over time. Then the manufacturer takes up the update. Comparison of machines that have already passed part of their resource with new models is usually not in favor of the former. In the automotive industry, there is such a thing as
modification. This means that any car can be modified with a change in design and exterior, but the make, class and category of the car will remain the same. Sometimes the modification is cardinal, the car after the alteration changes its shape so much that it is impossible to recognize. In the case of profound changes, the car gets an additional name as a continuation of the main one, for example, an
Opel Cadet Turbo, or a
Mercedes 220 cruise. There are countless options. It is the variety of modifications that makes it possible to regularly compare machines of different categories and choose the best options for further production.
Most often, a new car is created in three versions, the main difference between which is the shape of the body. This is a car with sedan, hatchback and station wagon bodies. The sedan is an all-metal body, divided into three compartments: a motorized one to accommodate the engine with associated components and assemblies, then a salon for the driver and passengers and, finally, a luggage compartment. In cars, the engine is always separated from the passenger compartment, the tightness of the partition is a prerequisite for the characteristics of the car. The trunk of the sedan is also insulated by a special partition.
The hatchback has a slightly different body structure. The engine compartment, like the sedan, is hermetically separated from the passenger compartment, but the trunk is a continuation of the passenger compartment, there is no partition. The role of the partition is performed by the rear seat back, but the separation of the trunk and the passenger compartment in the hatchback is purely conditional. From the back of the seat to the glass of the tailgate, a horizontal panel of extruded fiberboard glued with a dense cloth is installed. The principal difference between a car with a hatchback body and other cars is a shortened rear overhang and, as a result, a reduced luggage compartment. The advantage of the hatchback is a large rear door. With the door open, it is convenient to load any cargo.
A wagon has similar characteristics to a hatchback, the body of which is designed in the same way. Comparison of cars with a hatchback and a station wagon reveals a significant difference. The station wagon in the rear is much longer, which gives a significant gain in the amount of luggage space. The door of the rear aperture of the station wagon is located more vertically, and this allows an extensive overview. On some models, the rear door may be in a sloping position, like a hatchback, but the rear overhang of the car in any case remains elongated.
This
type of body is called "liftback". However, this type of special distribution is not received due to inconvenience when using the luggage door.
Comparing cars by characteristics is the best way to determine the most successful designs. And if we apply in production the results that a comparison of cars by parameters can give, then in the near future there will be new modern cars that incorporate the best qualities of their predecessors.