A
supermini is a British
car classificationCar classification is hard to do since many vehicles fall into multiple categories or do not fit well into any. The following are the most commonly used classifications. Where applicable, the equivalent Euro NCAP classifications are shown. Car rental companies often use the ACRISS Car...
term that describes
automobileAn automobile, motor car or car is a wheeled motor vehicle used for transporting passengers, which also carries its own engine or motor...
s larger than a
city carA city car is a small, moderately powered automobile intended for use in urban areas.It is comparable in size and features to a neighborhood electric vehicle , has four seats, and is typically long. These cars have been sold in Europe since the 1960s, and now are an official car classification....
but smaller than a small family car. This car class is also known as the
B-segment across Europe, and as Subcompact in North America.
In 2008, the best selling cars in
BelgiumThe Kingdom of Belgium is a country in northwest Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts its headquarters, as well as those of other major international organizations, including NATO...
, the
Czech RepublicThe Czech Republic is a country in Central Europe that is sometimes considered to be Eastern European. The country borders Poland to the northeast, Germany to the west and northwest, Austria to the south and Slovakia to the east. The capital and largest city is Prague...
,
FranceFrance , officially the French Republic , is a country located in Western Europe, with several overseas islands and territories located on other continents. Metropolitan France extends from the Mediterranean Sea to the English Channel and the North Sea, and from the Rhine to the Atlantic Ocean...
,
HungaryHungary , in English officially the Republic of Hungary , is a landlocked country in the Carpathian Basin of Central Europe, bordered by Austria, Slovakia, Ukraine, Romania, Serbia, Croatia, and Slovenia. Its capital is Budapest. Hungary is a member of OECD, NATO, EU, V4 and is a Schengen state...
,
ItalyItaly , officially the Italian Republic , is a country located on the Italian Peninsula in Southern Europe and on the two largest islands in the Mediterranean Sea, Sicily and Sardinia. Italy shares its northern, Alpine boundary with France, Switzerland, Austria and Slovenia...
, the
NetherlandsThe Netherlands is a country in Northwestern Europe, constituting the major portion of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. It is a parliamentary democratic constitutional monarchy. The Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east...
,
PolandPoland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe . Poland is bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
,
PortugalPortugal , officially the Portuguese Republic , is a country located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula. Portugal is the westernmost country of mainland Europe and is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the west and south and by Spain to the north and east...
,
SlovakiaThe Slovak Republic is a landlocked country in Eastern Europe with a population of over five million and an area of about . Slovakia borders the Czech Republic and Austria to the west, Poland to the north, Ukraine to the east and Hungary to the south. The largest city is its capital, Bratislava...
and
SloveniaSlovenia , officially the Republic of Slovenia , is a country in Central Europe bordering Italy to the west, the Adriatic Sea to the southwest, Croatia to the south and east, Hungary to the northeast, and Austria to the north...
were all superminis. Overall in 2008, of the fifteen best selling types of car in Europe, seven were superminis.
Origins of the term supermini
The term "supermini" appeared around 1985. The influential
Consumers' AssociationThe Consumers' Association, which now trades as Which?, is a charity, registered in England and Wales No 296072. Which? Ltd is its wholly owned trading subsidiary. It is a consumer rights organisation in the UK, founded in 1957 by Michael Young....
first used the term in its annual Car Buying Guide in October of that year. Because the term was a new one, it gave an explanation at the start of a section entitled
Small Hatchbacks. It said small hatchbacks were known popularly as
superminis and while similar to the
MiniThe Mini is a small car that was produced by the British Motor Corporation and its successors from 1959 until 2000. The original is considered an icon of the 1960s, and its space-saving front-wheel-drive layout influenced a generation of car-makers...
they were more spacious inside and more versatile. This definition made clear that a "supermini" was something larger than a Mini yet smaller than a typical car of the time. In its 1985 report, it included such cars as the Austin Metro,
Volkswagen PoloThe Volkswagen Polo is a supermini car manufactured by Volkswagen. It is sold in Europe and other markets worldwide in hatchback, saloon, coupé and estate variants.-History:...
and
Ford FiestaThe Ford Fiesta is a small front wheel drive supermini car designed by the Ford Motor Company and built in Europe, Brazil, Argentina, Mexico, Venezuela, China, India and South Africa...
. Smaller or more basic cars were grouped under a
Bargain Basement heading and included the Mini,
Citroën 2CVThe Citroën 2CV was an economy car produced by the French automaker Citroën from 1949 to 1990. It was technologically advanced and innovative, but with extremely utilitarian and deceptively simple Bauhaus inspired bodywork, that belied the sheer quality of its underlying engineering...
,
Fiat 126The Fiat 126 is a city car introduced in October 1972 at Turin Motor Show as a replacement for the Fiat 500. Most were produced in Poland as the Polski Fiat 126p until 2000...
and
Renault 4The Renault 4, also known as the 4L , is a hatchback economy car produced by the French automaker Renault between 1961 and 1994. It was the first front-wheel drive family car produced by Renault....
.
The 1986 Car Buying Guide, published in June of that year, was more confident of the term and this time headed the section
Small hatchbacks or 'superminis. The Mini and 2CV were still relegated to the cheaper category of Bargain Basement
. By the time of the 1989 Car Buying Guide, there was no longer any need to explain what supermini
meant and the title appeared without comment. In its introduction, the Guide said superminis were available as three-door and five-door hatchbacks, and sometimes as saloons with a boot. The Mini and Renault 4 were still grouped separately, this year under the heading Cheapies
.
By 1990 the demand for the cheapest cars, a number of them from low-cost economies in eastern Europe, was fading. For the first time the two or three remaining examples in the new car market, including the original Mini, were grouped under the heading superminis along with the couple of dozen true superminis that now dominated the cheaper end of the market. However, in its separate guide to car reliability in June 1990, the magazine grouped the smallest cars under the heading "Minis and Superminis", indicating that the smallest cars were still perceived as being distinct from the larger and better equipped "Superminis". These smaller cars are now called
city carA city car is a small, moderately powered automobile intended for use in urban areas.It is comparable in size and features to a neighborhood electric vehicle , has four seats, and is typically long. These cars have been sold in Europe since the 1960s, and now are an official car classification....
s.
See also
- Car classification
Car classification is hard to do since many vehicles fall into multiple categories or do not fit well into any. The following are the most commonly used classifications. Where applicable, the equivalent Euro NCAP classifications are shown. Car rental companies often use the ACRISS Car...
- City car
A city car is a small, moderately powered automobile intended for use in urban areas.It is comparable in size and features to a neighborhood electric vehicle , has four seats, and is typically long. These cars have been sold in Europe since the 1960s, and now are an official car classification....
- Kei car
Kei car, K-car, or , is a Japanese category of small automobiles, including passenger cars, vans, and pickup trucks. They are designed to exploit local tax and insurance relaxations, and in more rural areas are exempted from the requirement to certify that adequate parking is available for the...
- Mini MPV
Mini MPV is a car classification used to describe superminis or subcompact which have taller build, fitting below the compact MPV and large MPV classifications....
- Mini SUV
Mini SUV is a class of small sport utility vehicles with a length under . This class should not be confused with compact SUV, which refers to slightly larger vehicles, from ....
- MIT Car
The MIT Car is a concept car project conceived at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology for the purpose of exploring the idea of mobility in the urban context. This intensive study on advanced human traveling has been in progress since 2003...
- Economy car
An economy car is an automobile that is designed for low cost operation. It is designed for a driver who uses their car primarily for personal transportation....
- Small family car
- Subcompact car
A subcompact car is an automobile in a North American vehicle size class, encompassing vehicles smaller than compact cars...
- Vehicle size class
Vehicle size classes are a way of classifying cars. The common North American parlance is word-based, while English-speaking European writers also use words to describe car sizes...