10 car models that gave birth to the segment

The demand for cars has changed continuously since the introduction of cars more than a hundred years ago, so segments were also born. Here are the models that, when they were born, created a new option without competition.

Land Rover Series I

Many people think that the Jeep CJ or Chevrolet Carryall Suburban is the world’s first off-road vehicle. But in fact Land Rover Series I 1948 was the first off-road vehicle for civil use. While Jeep or Chevrolet are mainly popular in North America, Land Rover Series I is popular globally. Like the Jeep CJ in its infancy, the first-generation Land Rover was designed with agriculture in mind. However, with its durability and ability to overcome difficult terrain, the car is trusted to be used to explore and begin to emerge as a hobby for those who like off-road.

Renault 4

Renault 4 was invented to compete with the Citroën 2CV. Citroën introduced the split rear door design in 1938 when it aimed at business sedans, but after World War II the design switched to a hinged roof and the hatchback segment was born. . It was not until the Renault 4 hit the market in 1961 that the hatchback became a popular trend and the idea was spread all over the world. The Renault 4 had a vertically mounted engine, rather than horizontally like modern hatchbacks, and sold more than 8 million units in 31 years.

Pontiac GTO

Before the Pontiac GTO, automakers put V8s in smaller cars. In 1955, the Chrysler C-300 was the first vehicle produced and marketed as a high-performance variant with a 300-horsepower V8 engine. However, the car still does not make up the muscle car segment (Muscle Car). Muscle cars are often referred to with powerful engines, sinewy exterior designs, street races and drag racing.

In the 1950s and early 1960s, John DeLorean, Bill Collins, and Russel Gee realized that a big engine on a small car will make a street racing machine. In 1964, GTO supplied the Pontiac Tempest with a 325-horsepower V8, plus four-barrel carburetors, twin exhausts, a three-speed manual transmission with Hurst shifters, stiffer and additional springs. Add anti-roll bar. From there, the muscle car segment was invented and appeared mainly in the US.

Lamborghini Miura

The term “supercar” makes it difficult to define which one makes. Before the Miura, the 1938 Bugatti 57SC or the 1954 Mercedes Gullwing were also considered “supercars”. But by creating a mid-engined, beautifully designed and expensive road-going sports car in 1966, Lamborghini defined a new segment that is still controversial. Ferrari even competed and entered the “supercar” segment to create the first mid-engine road car, the Dino 206 GT that appeared a year after the Miura was produced.

Volkswagen Golf GTI

The hothatch segment was created by the Simca 1100 Ti, but the 1976 Volkswagen Golf GTI and the 1976 Renault 5 Alpine created a large market for a compact, yet high-performance hatchback that could rival those of the likes. big car. The Renault 5 Alpine hit the market just a few months after the Golf GTI was born, but the Golf GTI still stood out from all of them and is still popular today. Although the hothatch market was never mainstream in the US, it was the dominant segment in Europe during the 1980s and 1990s.

Jeep Cherokee XJ

Many people think that the prototype for the modern SUV segment was the Willys Overland Station Wagon in 1946, but the car that started the modern SUV was the 1984 Jeep Cherokee. The term hasn’t been invented yet and Jeep calls the unibody design. Small size 4×4 is Sportwagon.

The origin of the Cherokee XJ was designed in 1978 by engineers of American Motors (AMC) and Renault, the car is considered light, uses a 2.5-liter 4-cylinder engine, a solid chassis. and easier to drive than previous models. The Cherokee changed the game with the auto industry, car culture, and pop culture, making the SUV segment even more popular.

Plymouth Votager/Renault Espace

Both models hit the market in 1964 and it’s hard to say which was the forerunner of the minivan segment. The reason is because Voyager is developed in the US, while Espace is popular in Europe. Among the vehicles developed with distinct functions, minivans are considered as family cars when they have the convenience of a passenger van but are as easy to drive as a large vehicle.

The minivan line largely died out in the US when crossovers took over, but the Espace was still produced, though not as dominant as before, but sold throughout Europe. Currently, some companies are mixing two minivan segments with SUVs, such as Kia Carnival to be able to prolong the existence of the minivan segment.

Toyota RAV4

The crossover (CUV) segment that is growing in popularity today dates back to the 1996 RAV4 – a vehicle built from the ground up with all-wheel drive. In other words, it’s like an SUV, but smaller and built on a monocoque chassis. It can go off-road, carry loads of stuff, drive easily, and create the fastest-growing segment in modern automotive history.

Toyota Prius

The Prius was not the first hybrid model, but the success of the Prius confused many people, and created a new segment. However, the range of the hybrid segment has gone further than expected. Now, hybrid vehicles are not considered a segment but a mainstream product, as almost all the firm Every vehicle on the market offers hybrid versions of the most popular vehicles. Furthermore, battery technology and affordable prices make the Prius one of the best-selling hybrid vehicles on the market.

Tesla Model WILL

Electric cars have been around since the birth of cars, but Martin Eberhard and Marc Tarpenning realized that electric cars could replace internal combustion engine cars in the 21st century. The two founded Tesla Motors in 2003, and Elon Musk joined in 2004 with an investment of 6.5 million USD.

In 2005, Elon Musk played a key role in the company for the Roadster – its first electric vehicle. Since the introduction of the Roadster, the company has evolved and replaced it with the Model S – the first mass-market electric sedan – in 2012. Since then, the Model S has become the first electric vehicle to achieve huge sales in the country. markets such as Norway, and gradually creating a new segment for the automotive industry.

Minh Quan (according to Carbuzz)