This will be a relatable truth to anyone who’s ever made the mistake of looking at their own years-old social media posts, but life is all about improvement. Things we once did, opinions we once held, and yes, words we once used may no longer hold water or be looked upon favorably today. But as long as we recognize the error in our ways and correct ourselves going forward, it’s fine. That’s life.
With all that in mind, I come before you today to formally point out one car-related colloquialism that should probably be retired for reasons that are obvious once you’ve actually thought about it for more than two seconds: “suicide doors.” Even if you’re not a car expert, you probably know the term. It refers to the doors on a car that open the opposite way they usually do—insides facing forward, not back—but their common name needlessly invokes a very morbid and very real mental health issue.
According to J.D. Power, the term was popularized by Ralph Nader in his 1965 book Unsafe at Any Speed: The Dangers of the American Automobile. That style of door was a lot more popular back then, but cars were also getting faster, making them actual safety hazards—hence the alarmist but mostly well-meaning moniker.
Modern car doors rarely swing this way, but when they do, we have technology like latches and locks that keep them in place, so the danger Nader was trying to convey is no longer relevant. And as Jason eloquently points out in Slack, the name was never even factually that accurate. “They were never really suicide, logically, because they got the name because the wind would catch them and they’d fly open; so it was more of a manslaughter door.”
Instead, I think we should borrow from the world of interior design (and refrigerators), where there is indeed a very simple name for a pair of doors that open like the ones on the car above: French doors. After all, if Whirlpool can figure out how to make its opposing-hinged products sound classy, Ferrari probably deserves the same dignity.
Topshot: Lincoln
Maybe start calling them Epstein doors. Or Trump’s best friends doors ????
I’m imagining a world where door hinge orientation correlates with political belief. Just what we need…
Why are people so resistant to changing a word that might be hurtful to others? It’s spiteful for no reason. Saying “I’m not offended so I won’t change” is 100% irrelevant because it’s about other people, not you.
Say your kid comes out as gay. Will you continue using the word gay derogatorily? In front of your kid? Will you let your dad do it? And if so, what does it say about you?
Kindness costs nothing. Not everything is about you. Other people feel and think differently.
Society has become more callous in many ways. Live and let live.
If anything, the fact that we’re even having this discussion means society has become LESS callous, since I dont believe there’s been any other period in history where people would be paying attention to this sort of thing
30 years ago, I would have said that was true. Since then a certain sector of society has been tightening its grip
30 years ago, people would have looked at you like you had two heads if you tried to explain why “master bedroom” was offensive. Hell, historic house museums in the south were still pretending that slaves were “servants” until some time in our current century
Yes… I still often refer mine with a built in a bath as a master bedroom, with full knowledge of the cultural associations related. I’m far from perfect, but try to be open and non-judgemental.
Well, I think it mainly referred to the master of the household, but people tend to associate words with multiple definitions exclusively with the worst one. Eg, the plantations in Rhode Island & Providence Plantations just meant large agricultural settlements, but people today associate it exclusively with large agricultural estates worked by slaves, so the state changed its name
It’s a mixture of both IMO. Many people who used to use certain words thoughtlessly because it wasn’t something people were aware of have realised it’s important to think about how some words can hurt others, and have adjusted their behaviour accordingly.
Meanwhile, others have dug in their heels and made it their personal mission to remain inconsiderate while everyone around them is trying to to better, because being kind to people society has been unkind to is… Weak? I guess? Because it’s totally the underdog’s responsibility to “toughen up” so you can continue to be an a-hole with impunity?
The world is changing, some behaviours are no longer socially acceptable, and some people are facing consequences for their bad behaviour for the first time in their lives. Instead of trying to grow, they’re regressing to even baser behaviour. Oh well.
Be based, not base.
This, terminology that was common in my childhood can be seen as offensive now. Hearing the reasoning behind it, I overall agree. Little kids are dicks.
What is offensive, derogatory or unkind about the term suicide doors? The author takes it as a given rather than saying why he thinks it is so.
Ok
Maybe because Nader used it as a derogatory term in the first place? Do you know what “suicide” means in English?
Well growing up in my generation we had a thing parents used to teach sticks and stones may break my bones but names will never hurt me. Frankly it is a good lesson because there is no way to get bigots to change so stand up and be proud and adopt it like gay is no longer a stigma. I never did put much stock in what a-holes thought anyhow.
But names and ridicule do hurt, perhaps moreso and longer than a punch. I didn’t really find myself and a cohort until college. High School was just a misery.
High School was misery for a lot of people, but language choices weren’t usually at the core of it.
Playing Devil’s Advocate, I’m offended that the homosexuals co-opted the word “gay” which originally meant “lighthearted and carefree“
While we’re at it, let’s stop abbreviating “transmission.” Y’all know what I mean.
I prefer the fluidity of a CVT. All of the spectrum of ratios…
Where’s Jatco CVT when you need them…
I’m sorry I used that shortened term in a comment while back.
But you probably won’t again! That’s a win.
Sorry can’t do it. I have use it way to much at work to say the full thing for what feels like no reason. From context it is obvious I’m not saying anything demeaning about lgtq folks. If there was any confusion I think a quick explanation would clear it up.
I mentioned suicide doors once and had a coworker get really insistent that the term meant “lambo doors.” How he got scissor and suicide confused, I’ll never know.
“Coach doors” seems like the best of the options given. The term “clamshell doors” also works, though it seems to be mostly linked to extended cab pickups and/or other situations with a smaller rear door, which seems weird because clamshells aren’t known for being mismatched.
While I am not triggered by the term (despite at least 6 suicides close to me and some ideation on my part), I do think an industry standard term that doesn’t have negative connotations would be appropriate. I also did know a woman who struggled with any mentions of suicide in the weeks following her daughter’s attempt, so I do think sensitivity is appropriate here.
Sorry but no These are so rare and it’s a door. It’s also OK to not change longstanding names that aren’t hateful.
Manslaughter door does sound pretty metal and avoids any negative connotations with Ralph Nader.
I never like “Suicide Doors” and always wondered why they are named like that, back-hinged doors is good enough or whatever the manufactures want to call them, no need to keep the morbid name.
The name far predates Nader, going back to the 1930s or 1920s, the idea was that, if you were getting out at the curb on the traffic side, and an oncoming car smashed the back door, it would move forward on its hinge and potentially crush you against the car, instead of folding forward away from the door opening
Really? It seems to me that, in that same situation, the car that clobbered the rear-hinged door hard enough to squish you would instead hit you first, squishing you against your front-hinged door.
I always thought they were called suicide because, if you really wanted to dive out of a speeding car to kill yourself, it would be a lot easier to open a rear-hinged door to do so, because the wind would be helping it open, not preventing it. Have you ever tried opening a front-hinged door at speed? It’s pretty difficult.
A front hinge door would swing away, not into. That’s one of the things BMW had to work out on the Phantom, a new type of breakaway hinge that would cause the door to fall off and away from the car if hit on the outside edge.
It just strikes me (haha) as kinda splitting hairs over edge cases. A friend of mine was exiting her Mitsubishi Galant in a parking lot when a passing car clipped the edge of her door, which she was grasping the interior handle as she pushed it open. The door being flung open dislocated her shoulder, when a rear-hinged door might have just bruised it. But there are mere inches between sideswipes that just catch the edge of the door (arguably better for the opener of front-hinged doors in some circumstances, certainly) and those that fairly thoroughly clobber the door and its opener, in which case it probably doesn’t matter which way the door is hinged.
Splitting hairs over edge cases is basically what 1/4 of the FMVSS are
Well, it’s also what we do right here in the Autopian comments!
Don’t you mean what we do middlely here in the Autopian?
I guess it depends which direction the car hitting you is going
*tries to fully open door on highway to confirm*
I was told if you were trying to shut the door solidly because it wasn’t shut the whole way while driving the wind would pull the door open and suck you out like an airplane.
That was definitely an issue on the Subaru 360, in that case, I think the ultra light weight of the doors themselves contributed, you needed more force to get them to latch since they didnt have enough bulk to help themselves swing shut
Finally, someone explains where the name came from.
Thank you.
The car would kill you just as easily as the car smashing the door into you, though. Drivers need to be more careful around parked cars, and should have been a century ago, too.
Except that Nader did not coin the term. More stuff proposed here, without enough research?
This is the correct reason and history, to my knowledge. I’m surprised the author didn’t find this out, and that it’s buried in the comments with so few votes.
Of course it’s the EV intern trying to pull this nonsense
I don’t see the connection other than you appear to dislike changes to language, EVs, and possibly interns. Still, ad hominem attacks are unnecessary (and lazy). If you can’t come up with a better way to disagree with someone, maybe keep your thoughts to yourself?
the truth about cars may be more your speed.
Hey Diego you have to put JK or LOL some people here get offended really easy so you have to explain it is a joke.
Naw we get it’s supposed to be a “joke,” we just don’t think it’s funny.
I wouldn’t find anything funny if my only goal in life was to get outraged by things said on the internet either ????
Sounds like you’re one of those folks who feel you should be able to say anything as long as it’s a “joke.” Closely related to folks who feel they should be able to do anything as long as it’s a “prank.”
I’m not sure why you think I’m outraged. All I did was point out I thought your comment was unnecessary and unkind and then 15 fellow readers agreed. There are PLENTY of places on the internet where you can go and say all the unkind things you want without being challenged. Sorry for you this isn’t one of them.
Are you not challenging someone now and telling them they are wrong?
Speaking of jokes, I have friends that are gay, or black, asian, hispanic, oxford comma loving, and some are even gay & insert-colour and they have the best “straight white pipo” jokes. Not only are their jokes funny as hell they are also quite educational from the standpoint of seeing truth illustrated through stereotypes.
I’m telling someone that on this site we don’t insult contributors (or readers) based on things like their age, experience, or subject matter expertise. Respect, and disagreeing respectfully, are norms of this community and the reason so many of us are here. I don’t know anything about Diego other than they posted a comment many of us find unhelpful and unkind. Letting comments like that go unchallenged will only lead to more, and that will only make the site worse.
Yes, the last thing we want is to turn this site into what jaslopnik has become.
There is free speech.
And there is stupid speech.
The trick is to avoid contributing to the latter.
That’s a great reframing. If all the “I have a right to free speech” people made a slight adjustment to “I have a right to stupid speech!”, we’d all be in agreement.
It’s supposed to be a joke? Well, I’ll be.
Having lost both my wife and my brother to suicide, this hits close to home. I can’t say I’m triggered by the use of the term in the automobile door context, but I do agree it’s time to retire it. Not because it’s offensive or triggering necessarily, but it’s outdated and inaccurate and just needs to go.
I cannot imagine what you went through/go through. Thank you for sharing your perspective.
So sorry for your losses Sam. God bless.
I understand the sentiment, but this seems like needless sanitization.
I think it’s because it’s such an infrequently used term. I’ve had reason to say it maybe a dozen times in my life? If half the cars on the road had this setup we’d have made the switch a long time ago (at least in part because no marketing department is going to use a term related to death in their car ads).
I guess. I don’t really care either way; if we want to call it something else that’s cool by me. I just get a little irritated when something that’s honestly, pretty benign comes under scrutiny. See my other comment though.
Being so infrequently used makes it almost impossible to change.
It costs nothing to use a different word that would be kinder to others.
And if you don’t care one way or the other (like me), then it’s easy enough to use a different word.
Except you’ll have to explain yourself, likely using the term you were trying to avoid in your explanation.
Correct and also if it is still totally eliminated in the 1% of times the word is used referring to car doors it will be used in the terminology of when a person does commit the act 99% of the time we see it. And if we eliminate it entirely and rename the act something else the new term will be just as triggering. It isn’t the word it is the remembering of the loss and it doesn’t matter what word is used those affected will unfortunately always have pain when they remember the loss of the loved one.
At times like these, I miss George Carlin.
His comedy can be applied to a huge variety of situations. Pretty much always accurately too. He was the best!
He did a whole bit specifically on this.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hSp8IyaKCs0
I’m familiar and I love it.
Sorry. I just assume people on the web are much younger.
I’m 40. It seems odd to think of that as young, but I suppose it is for a Carlin fan
He’s been dead for 17 years. It’s safer to assume people are unfamiliar at this point.
My youngest sister is 40 and she went to see Dane Cook live. (A long time ago, but still.)
I’m 23 and I like Carlin; I think I have you beat.
I would say the new term could even be more triggering as the person hearing it now processes the word multiple times in the instance.
Think of it as ripping a bandaid off of a scab twice.
I don’t have a problem saying “suicide doors” or suicide in general. It’s been in my life before, no big deal. I don’t have a different word to use, nor do I really think there should be a new one. I’m just saying if there is a new one, that’s fine. No sweat either way.
*edited for decency*
No disagreement here, it just doesn’t strike me like other words that marginalize other people that we’ve replaced. For example, the R word, or offensive words for little people.
For what it’s worth, I don’t think I’m qualified to be the arbiter of these things, but I think sometimes we make a bigger deal of things than we need to.
Yeah I don’t think anyone is arguing this is the biggest issue in the automotive world and maybe we are all over analyzing it. I take the author’s point to be “hey, this term we all know and have never thought much about might be hurtful.”
Still, someone made the point of knowing someone who was triggered by the word in the time after their child’s suicide. I don’t think any of us would say that the mom/dad needs to lighten up. Even if only a small number of people are hurt by it, seems like reason enough to call it something else.
I agree but what was the situation? Was hearing it in relation to car doors or another act of another in pain cutting their life short?
That I agree with 100%. As much as I don’t like policing language, free speech doesn’t mean we shouldn’t be sympathetic or considerate of what we say.
Not really true but not going to argue
I realize I’m probably about to get laughed at but I literally didn’t know that term meant these doors until today. So on top of the “why use a hurtful term when a non-hurtful term is available” factor, there’s also… it’s just not a very clear term to begin with.
Nah, the name shouldn’t be changed since that’s what they are called and have been for decades. Sick of people changing things that don’t need to be changed; just for the sake of change and to not offend people
Yeah. I’m sick of this Canola Oil nonsense. My granddaddy and his granddaddy called it Rapeseed Oil. Name should never have been changed since that’s what it was called for decades. Sick of people changing things that don’t need to be changed; just for the sake of change and to not offend people.
ha ha ha – noice.
Yeah, and don’t get me started on “unalive” That is very unhealthy mentally. Coming up w/ cutesy words to hide/cover up realities of life is dangerous. Then they can’t deal w/ issues, then THAT can push them over the edge. I’ve been there
I think those are two different issues. As someone who works in the field, I agree it’s important to use honest language and avoid euphemisms like “passed away” in place of “died.”
Here’s an analogy: a person should feel comfortable using whatever term they want to describe their sexual identity. If they have a partner, their family ought to call the person by whatever title they want (ie: not “roommate.”). All that can be true and it can still be not ok to say “that car is gay.” People can, and do, use the same argument that gay people should grow a tougher skin and we’re somehow doing a disservice to them by not using their term of identity as synonymous with “bad.”
OR, we can just all try not to be jerks and acknowledge words have meaning. Does the term actually bother people? Don’t know, don’t really care. I’m not hurt by erring on the side of sensitivity.
Yes but in that perfect world there would be no problems and everyone would be as happy as smurfs. I think an honest approach as opposed to a rose colored view of the world is going to allow better decisions to help people. Leave Santa Claus and the Easter Bunny to the kids it is a lethal approach to sell a depressed individual.
“Unalive” started because of aggressive algorithms that filtered out death-related content as potentially graphic: not a way to avoid talking about death, but a way to talk about it when it wasn’t allowed. It wasn’t supposed to be cutesy, but subversive.
I also heard my kids’ teachers refuse to kill time (pun intended) by letting the kids play Hangman. You know the innocent and beloved children’s game where kids take turns playing executioner and draw someone getting killed. How could anyone have a problem with that? I was even willing to accept Hangperson to be more inclusive, but the teacher stopped responding to my emails.
Oh yeah, almost forgot about that game…it was fun!
Played that many times on a monochrome Apple II in gradeschool.
Funny but remember the LOL
I thought “canola” was a portmanteau of “Canada” and “oil”. Not to be inflammatory, but what did your granddaddy and his granddaddy call black people? If it’s the same thing my granddaddy called them then maybe using the same language now isn’t the best idea. That being said, “rapeseed” is the name of the seed, and is in no way offensive. It is a weird thing to name a seed though…
I was being sarcastic, trying to demonstrate the absurdity of the OP’s argument. I heard the Canada oil thing too — I believe someone in Marketing gently suggested they may increase sales by considering a rebrand.
And yeah, there is nothing wrong with “rapeseed.” It’s just, unfortunate? Sort of like a “murder of crows.” That one gets a pass (I think) since how often are we talking about groups of crows? But if instead it was “murder of cows” or whatever, well I’d just rather not have to somewhat regularly use or hear a word with a violent/tragic connotation, even if it’s usage was innocent.
“Niggardly” is also completely unrelated to the slur linguistically. Still, I’d be real skeptical of anyone who insisted on using it rather than saying “cheap.”
Fair enough! Sounds like we are on the same page. Other than the fact that a “murder” of cows is objectively hilarious. Crows have always been associated with darkness and evil and whatnot. Other than the Diablo secret cow level, cows haven’t. Which makes that term that you just invented great. I guarantee you no one has ever user the term “murder of cows” to describe a group of cows before now. There is always innovation at the Autopian
The joys of etymology will set you free…
Frankly I think trying to make changes to the terms in English to make them less offensive actually cause more damage. I mean wars are avoided when we have people remember the atrocity and actually want to avoid it. Making it inoffensive might make it easier for someone to commit it rather than avoid it and seek help. I mean if we change it to self induced sleepytime is it going to make anyone hurt any less? So making it serious just might stop someone whether it is a stigma or they are worried about going to hell. Isn’t that a better idea?
I really don’t think it’s about banning the word suicide. We ought to be talking about it more, not less. But let’s talk about it as what it is: the act of taking one’s own life, almost always as the result of severe mental illness so crushing that non-existence is preferable.
I also don’t think we’re talking about renaming these dumb doors in order to somehow help people who express suicidal ideation. It’s for people whose lives have been upended by suicide who might not love hearing the term used irreverently to describe a car door.
CANadian Oil Low Acidity.
That’s not nearly as bad as Phillip Morris, the tobacco company, changing its name to “Altria”. Where is the altruism, do they think reducing the population through horrible diseases is beneficial to the planet?
Yeah, let’s go back to the n word and f word!!11!!1 freedom!!1!!1
(/s in case it’s not obvious).
Well, now you’re just being silly…that’s a racist word.
Also, most people still use the F word anyway
Ok
My friend, Dale is gay and often refers to himself as a F****t. I once asked him why he uses the term as it is derogative. He had a perfect response “I am a proud gay black man and I can call myself whatever I want and no one can tell me I am wrong for what I can say or who I can F**k.”
Have you ever asked him how he’d feel if you started calling him that?
I like Dale.
I think the removal of potentially painful works will leave us all gypped.
I’m all for bringing back the N word.
I’m so tired of calling them Lactation Ports.
The White House supports your position.
It’s almost as if calling it something else would require almost no effort on your part and doing so would not affect your life in any conceivable way.
Well, that can apply to anything. Just because it requires little effort (which hardly has anything to do w/ the point of this) doesn’t mean that I have to use a new cutesy word for something that is already called 1 thing and has been for decades. Oh, and it requires you very little effort to keep calling it what it IS called. Nice try on the propaganda though
Jazz was called “colored music” for decades. Things change. Society evolves to become kinder and more sensitive, or at least it ought to. Look, I’m a jerk. But I try to be less of one today than I was yesterday. I just don’t understand the mentality of “I don’t care if I’m hurting people” which, once you are made aware and continue to double down, becomes “I care about hurting people.” I know those people exist and I do my best to avoid them.
You’re delusional and out of touch w/ reality. It’s there and always will be. Sheltering too much and not teaching about recognizing those things in the world doesn’t help anything. I’m not going to stop calling something what it’s been called for decades. It’s a description for a car door, this is a car site, so let’s talk about car stuff! Everyone is too serious these days and no fun. I’m not offended at being kinder, what I’m saying is not being “unkind” it’s just pointing out a reality which you don’t understand and won’t. I’m done w/ you
Ok
If it helped I’d be all for it. But even if we called it bunnies hugging puppies the people who suffered from the loss of a loved one and still associate it to the act and feel pain. Calling it something else is like painting a car with a blown head gasket or putting lipstick on a pig. It won’t help
True but it would do absolutely nothing to remove the pain the person is feeling from the loss of a loved one. They are just transferring the pain of the event on to a word because we have to blame someone or something.
Non-Epstein doors.
OK that’s good.
As an i3 owner with young kids, I suggest Pain in the Ass Doors.
I’m curious – what makes them a PITA?
(oooh, that’s another possible name: “PITA, za Doora”)
We once called our daughter PITA
It’s a good question and despite wanting an i3 for years, it never occurred to me until I actually owned one.
There are two issues:
I’ve got two kids with two different size car seats. For the kid on the passenger side, she can’t get out without either climbing over her sister’s seat or waiting for me to walk around, open the front passenger door, followed by the rear door. But this is only slightly more inconvenient than the same situation with a two door car.
The real problem is parking lots. If there are cars on either side, I have to:
Open my door.
Get out, walk toward the front of my car, and leave my door slightly open.
Reach to unlatch the back door.
Have kid step out, be stuck in the “triangle” formed by the two doors that pen in the kid because of the neighboring car.
“Shimmy” the kid toward me, enough to be able to close her back door.
“Shimmy” the kid away from me to be able to close the front door. (Sometimes I “close” the front door first and she walks to me, then I reopen it so I can close the back door since it needs to be latched first).
It’s almost impossible to get both kids to fit in the “triangle” so I have to repeat the process.
Unlike a normal two door car, the i3 is designed to make use of the back door and there isn’t really room to push the front seat forward and have someone get out unless you open it.
Counting down the years until they’re old enough to sit in the front seat…
On the other hand, if there’s not a car next to you, being able to open both doors makes a huge opening since there isn’t a B pillar.
Makes total sense and I wouldn’t have thought about that specific problem. Thanks!
I smile whenever I see these doors – they make me happy – so Jason’s suggestion of “man’s laughter” doors seems to be an appropriate name to me.
Seriously, I love this style of door and it’s so much more practical for entry and exit. I think “coach doors” is the best option I’ve seen so far.
I’ll take ‘The Rapists’ for 500 Alexish. /s
As someone who has had two friends commit suicide, and whose close family member has attempted suicide, I think I’m well-positioned to weigh in on my feelings on the subject: I am not traumatized, triggered, depressed, or otherwise harmed by the use of the term. Believe me when I tell you that those of us left behind don’t forget about friends and family members who have left us only to be “re-injured” by the “insensitive” use of this term or others like it. “Suicide door” has been in use for a long time. No need change it, IMHO, tho “Chicken Catcher” does have a certain charm.
There has been a suicide in my family too, and I also am not triggered to dpression and such by the use of the term. But someone else may be, and someone-elses do actually matter. You say there’s no need to change it, but there is no need to continue it as it has zip to do with the doors.
It’s like calling a chef’s knife a homicide knife as a matter of course. We don’t do that. It would be stupid. And “suicide door” is stupid.
The fact that a word or phrase has had longstanding prior usage does not justify continued usage. Appropriateness of meaning can, and the meaning shouldn’t be in conflict with the phrase. And every time I see a review of a car with a rear-hinged door, I wish I didn’t have to go thru the needless momentary brain loop of – that’s not how suicide works, by accidental door openings aided by wind – it has nothing to do with door hinges – you could nearly as easily kill yourself by jumping out of a front-hinged door at speed – why don’t they just say front-opening door or opposing door – another lazy writer.
Beautifully said. It’s wild people would care about the name. Unlike folks who get worked up about no longer naming military bases after America’s Finest Racists, you can’t even pretend to claim the term suicide door is “important” to you. You have not shaped your identity around anachronistic hinge setups. You have no fond childhood memories oiling these hinges with your daddy who made you promise to always call them by their proper name. There is absolutely no reason to want to keep this term, other than “knowing someone doesn’t like something makes me want to say it.”
That, on the other hand, IS an identity. It’s called being a dick. So, please, own it: stop pretending you care strongly about a door you’ve never even used and say it loud and proud: “I’m gonna keep saying it because I like being a dick.”
Also beautifully said.
Ugh… you ever lived in a country besides America? A country that is primarily of one colour? I assure you, they are no less racist than what you can find in America. Often, more so as poverty and education levels are lower and both issues breed ignorance.
You know who you remind me of, JJ? Colonialists from the past centuries who went to educate the poor, dick, heathen hordes in backwards lands who need to be Saved and brought into the “modern” world -one way, or another…
That’s painting with a broad brush there. Countries aren’t racist, people are. I don’t understand why it’s relevant that racist people exist in other parts of the world too. And yes, I’ve spent considerable time living abroad and met plenty of the folks you describe. I’ve also met plenty of folks working to make their countries better.
From your other comment, I’m sorry you’ve been shot at. That’s something I can’t relate to and honestly can’t even imagine. I’m also glad you do not get triggered (sorry, bad pun) by firearm analogies. That has to make life easier for you.
I think this is the misunderstanding we (collectively) seem to be having: some people read the article and comments as people saying “you can’t say suicide doors anymore!” I can only speak for myself: I don’t care what you do or don’t say. Truly.
I’ve learned you are the victim of gun violence. Therefore, I’m never going to throw you a surprise birthday party at laser tag. Even if it doesn’t bother you, it’d still be a dick thing to do.
Similarly, using the term “suicide” somewhat irreverently to describe a car part could also upset people. So I’m not gonna say it. That’s where my ethics lead me. If yours lead you elsewhere, cool.
A cousin of mine took his own life 15 years or so ago. I’m not triggered by the term, but respect those who are.
Thank you.
Walk in your shoes? Why, yes! Exact same circumstances in my life and I feel the same way as you. Maybe the people triggered, depressed, or otherwise harmed, are looking to be as they don’t have enough real world troubles to deal with? I have been shot at in the past. Do I think we need to change the terms for Shot, Shoot, device that expels projectiles in a focused manner with explosive force, need to be changed as everytime I hear or see one of these words I curl up into a fetal ball? No, because I don’t allow those words to affect me. Besides they are just words and not effing bullets…
“aero brakes”
I like it. If we want to lean in on the aviation imagery, “speed brakes” would work well. Maybe on EVs “regen enhancers” or “regen boosters.” The pedantic among us may insist you don’t actually get more regen, however you do get it faster and the marketing department can tell you why that’s better.
Then you could imagine a very cool car with both speed holes and speed brakes!
A car with speed holes is called David Tracy’s Jeep.
We used to call the half-doors on extended-cab pickups “third doors”. When they went to both sides, then the truck had 2 third doors.
(Not a true independent door though; these are like the RX or Saturn.)
This is something I’ve never given much thought to but now that you’ve brought it to my attention, I’m on board. I won’t be using the old term anymore, thanks.
Clam Doors
After 22 years of owning an RX8, they’re the cargo bay doors. You can fit an unbelievable amount of stuff in that car as long as it’s not 4 people, in large part due to the doors.
(To me french doors don’t seem right because you can’t open them independently)
And it’s not a Renault, Citroen or Peugeot – in which case any doors are French.
We don’t call sliding doors “Shoji” or “Patio Doors” either – do we?
Was the RX8 named “Hal”?
I’m afraid I can’t answer that, Dave.
I like “coach doors,” myself.
That sounds fine. And “french doors” really doesn’t work on a Ferrari.
Having saved two people from suicide, this is the first time that I’ve been bothered by the name—not for the connotation, but because it was popularized by Ralph Nader. I had always assumed it was a prewar term (when the doors were far more popular) I took as a dark humor comment on the danger of opening them in motion or even in choosing a car that had them from a time when people were more apt to blame themselves than a corporation’s questionable design decision. I’m all for changing it as it’s outdated with safety mechanisms that resist dangerous opening and doors don’t fly open as easily as in the past due to better construction. Coach doors is a bit pretentious sounding, but isn’t as clunky or bland as “reverse-opening” or “rear-hinged”. French doors only works if there are opposing pairs on one side and seems wrong for the cars whose pairs opened from the center pillar (for how often those are never encountered outside of a concours lawn). I don’t like “freestyle doors” as it sounds too goofy or something, but certainly more egalitarian than “coach”. I wonder what the funeral industry used to call the rear doors on a side loader hearse. Referring to those as suicide doors could seem more that a bit callous depending on circumstance, so perhaps they had a suitable alternative.
It is a prewar term, Nader maybe brought it back into wider use or something, but he certainly didn’t coin it
“Suicide doors” on a Rolls Royce is only wishful thinking on the part of the other 99%.
I’ve always stuck with Mazda’s “freestyle doors” nomenclature. Let’s just make that standard. It sounds good
I like this for the added benefit of it seemingly recalling the 80s/90s car design ethos that “fun” was a valid automotive pursuit!
Unless it’s a coupe with front opening doors – such as the Rolls-Royce Phantom Coupe/DHC, Dawn, Wraith and Spectre.
Remember too that “Sedan”, “Coupe”, “Cabriolet”, “Wagon”, “Landaulet” and “Brougham” are also based on centuries-old descriptors for types of horse-drawn conveyances.
I believe “Coach Doors” does just fine.
In Poland we call these “kurołapki” – chicken-catchers. You could catch chickens when driving through villages 😉
Yes. I absolutely think we should start calling them chicken catchers. That’s great.
This is a perfect suggestion. Around me, they could be considered “rabbit catchers.”
So I’m imagining 2 guys sitting in the back of an RX8 grabbing chickens as they’re driving down the street. (I guess that means there’s two guys choking the chicken back there?) Once they grab them what do they do with them? Throw them into an oversized KFC bucket that sits in the front seat? Shove them through the ski pass-through into the trunk? How many chickens is considered a good haul? Where do you take these chickens? So many questions, but I love the name.
Are the RX8 rear doors able to be opened while the front doors are closed? I think that’s the key difference between old time self harming doors and modern rear doors that open from the front.
No, and you can’t close the front doors while the back ones are open. Maybe not the most practical car for chicken catching.
nothing an extra long ratchet strap can’t fix.
“Self-harming doors” really paints a picture.
Accurate though. If the wind catches one at speed, assuming you stay in control and behind the wheel, by the time you bring the car to a stop, the door panel, rear fender and door hinge are likely all damaged.
Out of curiosity, what is the last car that allowed the rear doors to open rearwards independently of the front doors? Maybe there’s still some fancy Rolls or something, but overall I assumed we would have figured out that’s a really bad idea by the 60’s – 70’s.
I assumed/was told the danger with these doors was you couldn’t see what was coming up from behind you before you opened them, so you risked getting the door hit by a passing car. From the comments it seems like maybe the risk is inadvertently opening the door while the car is moving and having the wind make it “slam” open?
And, also, if an oncoming car clips the open back door while someone’s getting in or out, the door will be pushed against them, instead of pushed forward away from the door opening
Look at how many dead chickens you can put in this trunk! – Norm McDonald, possibly.