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Suicide door
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A suicide door is a car door that is hinged on the edge closer to the rear of the vehicle, known as the trailing edge. These doors are rarely used on vehicles in modern times because of their numerous problems.
name reflects the increased danger of the door falling open if it becomes unlatched while the car is moving. The potential risk is obvious: when driving at high speed, the fast moving air around the car creates an area of low pressure, which acts as an outward force on the door, trying to open it.
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Encyclopedia
A suicide door is a car door that is hinged on the edge closer to the rear of the vehicle, known as the trailing edge. These doors are rarely used on vehicles in modern times because of their numerous problems.
Origins of the name
The name reflects the increased danger of the door falling open if it becomes unlatched while the car is moving. The potential risk is obvious: when driving at high speed, the fast moving air around the car creates an area of low pressure, which acts as an outward force on the door, trying to open it. This usually doesn't matter as the latch or lock is keeping the door closed. Consumer Reports reported that the door on a Subaru 360 they were testing did open into the wind while driving with a partially latched door.
On a conventional car, if the door becomes unlatched, the fast moving air around the car, which is going in the opposite direction to the car, will force the door closed. Whereas with suicide doors, the fast moving air, again moving opposite to the car, pushes the door open. This can be dangerous if the occupant is not seat-belted.
This problem is greatly increased when driving around a bend. Lateral G-force combined with the low-pressure air moving around the car will fling open an unlatched door, and the occupant will be thrown out if not wearing a seatbelt. In reality, this is very unlikely to happen because the locks and latches for suicide doors are specially built to withstand greater forces than most locks and latches. Most modern cars with rear suicide doors have front doors which overlap the rear doors so the latter can't open unless the front door is open. Another safety device is to use a lock that prevents the rear doors being opened unless the vehicle is stopped, such as used in the Rolls-Royce Phantom. By using this electronic safety, the Phantom doors can be opened independently.
Some erroneously believe that the name stems from the fact that if, in an emergency, the user exits the vehicle whilst it is moving forward, the door will hit them upon exit. In rural areas people believe the term originated before modern drunk driving laws. While the car was still moving, an intoxicated driver would open the door to vomit and would be pulled out of the vehicle.
Use of the term
Because of the term's negative connotations, it is avoided in major automobile manufacturers' promotional literature in favour of terms such as "rear-hinged doors", "coach doors" (Rolls-Royce), and "freestyle doors" (Mazda). However, the phrase "suicide doors" is familiar to many English-speakers and is often used openly in the custom-car trade.
History
Suicide doors were not uncommon on cars manufactured in the first half of the 20th century. They were especially popular in the gangster era of the 1930s because "It's a lot easier to shove somebody out with the wind holding the door open", Dave Brownell, the former editor of Hemmings Motor News stated.
Post-World War II examples are almost universally the rear doors of four-door cars. The most well-known use of suicide doors on post-World War II automobiles was the Lincoln Continental sedan from 1961 through 1969, and on the unique Lincoln Continental four-door convertible from 1961 through 1967 (the last four-door convertible built in the United States prior to the introduction of the 4-door Jeep Wrangler in 2007.) Since the four-door Lincoln convertible did not have a centre "B" pillar, the rear door glass was designed to electrically retract a few inches when the rear doors were opened in order for the weather-stripping to clear the front door glass. This meant that if the battery was dead, the only way out of the back seat was to crawl over the front seat.
Modern use
For a time, the last true, independently opening suicide doors on a private car were fitted on the Ford Thunderbird four-door sedan from 1967 through 1971. The 1971 model was the last American production automobile to feature rear suicide doors, because after this time, safety concerns prevented their use. 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 extended cab pickup trucks, the Saturn Ion QuadCoupe, and the Mazda RX-8. In 2003, true independent suicide doors reappeared, this time on the new Rolls-Royce Phantom. The Spyker D12 officially presented in 2006 also has suicide doors. The Rolls-Royce Phantom Drophead Coupe four-seat convertible, based on the 100EX show car also has suicide front doors.
Rear passenger suicide doors had been a constant feature of Hackney carriages, otherwise known as Black Cabs. However, with the replacement of the Austin FX4 by the new TX models suicide doors were replaced with standard hinged doors.
Advantages
- An advantage of rear-hinged doors is that it makes entering and exiting the vehicle much easier. This is because the occupant can enter in a natural way; walking forward towards the vehicle, and then turning as they go to sit, and exit by stepping forward out of the vehicle.
- The doors provide a security and privacy advantage by shielding the occupants as they exit or enter a car.
- Another advantage of rear-hinged back doors (especially with front-hinged front doors) is that this arrangement makes it easier for a person in the front seat (for example, a chauffeur) to exit the car and reach the handle of the back door to open it for the passenger. Austin FX4 taxi drivers were able to reach the rear door handle through the driver's window without getting out of the vehicle.
- If the door is hit whilst reversing out of a garage the damage will be less. This was the reason the Saab 92 used suicide doors.
Disadvantages
Other than the disadvantage that gave this type of door its name, the door arrangement also has other disadvantages, and instills other negative perceptions.
- While the vehicle is parked, such a door could hide an entering or exiting passenger from the view of passing cars. The result of the door being hit by another vehicle would be catastrophic since the door would be slammed shut onto the passenger although, it could otherwise spread the force of the colliding vehicle.
- Another problem presented by conventionally hinged doors in front and suicide doors in the back is a passenger traffic conflict. Unless the vehicle is very large, it is almost impossible for passengers to exit from the front and rear seats simultaneously due to the limited space between the front edge of the rear door and the rear edge of the front door.
- If, in an emergency, the user exits the vehicle whilst it is moving forward, the door will hit them upon exit.
Models
Here is a list of a select few cars that use suicide doors. For a more complete list, see List of Cars with Suicide Doors.
See also
External links
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