In my last article, I
elaborated the History of Automobile,
stating factors that militated against the swift development of the Automobile
Industry at its early stage. One of such was setting up a law known as “The Locomotive Law” also known as Red Flag Law, in 1865
in England. The law limited the speed of the early steam vehicles to 4 miles
per hour (6.4km/h) on rural roads, but 2 miles per hour (3.2km/h) in urban
areas. Furthermore, the law also required that a man with a red flag should
walk in front of a steam vehicle in the day time. In the night, the law
required the Signalman to carry a lantern and walk in front of the vehicle in
order to warn other road users of its approach.
Having
discussed such elaborately, various types of Automobile shall be discussed in
this article.
Basic Types of Motor Vehicles
Most
modern Vehicles design owes its root to the following:
Coupe
 |
| Coupe |
Coupe
is a two door car with a slopping back mostly for private use. It is designed
to carry between one to four persons.
Salon Car
 |
| Salon Car |
A
Salon Car is the type of Car in which the driver’s and passenger’s compartment
are separated from the boot. It is bigger than the Coupe and can accommodate up
to five persons. It can be used for private or public transportation. It is
mostly used in major Nigerian Cities as taxicabs.
Station Wagon
 |
| Station Wagon |
The
Station Wagon which is also known as Estate Car is a Car with hatchback having
four wheels and five doors (two doors on each side and the fifth one is a
slopping door at the back that usually opens upward). It has no boot but a
large luggage compartment behind the rear passenger seats. It can accommodate
up to ten persons, and carry more luggage than the Salon Car. It can be used
for both private and public transportation.
Van
 |
| Van |
Vans
are small commercial vehicles with no side windows. They are normally used for
transporting light goods, especially for door to door deliveries of goods by
traders. It usually has one or two large door(s) at the rear to facilitate
loading and offloading of goods.
Pick-up Van
 |
| Pickup Van |
A
Pickup Van is a small truck with an open body and without roof after the
driver’s compartment. Pickup Vans are mostly used by farmers, carpenters, and
traders for carrying protruding loads.
Lorry
 |
| Lorry |
Lorries
are large and strong vehicles normally used for transporting heavy goods or
large quantity of goods at a time. They are usually powered by a compression
ignition engine (CI engine). The body is often made of wood or metal.
Tipper Lorry
 |
| Tipper Lorry |
This
is a Lorry with a large metallic container at the back, which can be jacked at
one end to tip out or dispose the content when necessary. It is most commonly
used by civil engineering construction firms and mining industries for
transporting sand, gravel, stones and solid minerals. It is equally helpful for
waste disposal.
Convertible Car
 |
| Convertible Car |
This
is a Car with roof that can be folded when necessary. When the hood is pooled
on, it resembles a Salon Car, but when the hood is lowered, it allows fresh air
to get into the Car interior. It is mostly used for luxury.
Bus
 |
| Bus |
Buses
are specifically used for the transportation of large number of people at a
time. A Bus is larger than the Salon Car, Coupe, Convertible Car, Station Wagon
etc, but smaller than a Lorry. They are mostly used by Transporters, Schools,
Churches, and other large organizations.
Omnibus
popularly known as Luxurious Bus is very large and is usually used for intra-state
and inter-state transportation of passengers.
Apart
from the various types of Car discussed above, there exist other Car types
whose designs are not far fetch from these basics.
I did acquire a convertible soon, but I learnt it is prone to leakage. How true is this?
ReplyDeleteHello Emeka, thank you for visiting www.iborowilliamsblog.tk.
DeletePlease note that the hood of a convertible car can be made of canvas or cloth. It can also be made from a combination of the different materials. There is also a retractable steel or plastic frame at the rear of the convertible. The soft top is mounted over the frame. You should periodically inspect the soft top material for cracks, tears, fading, and discolouration, report any significant shift from manufacturer's standard to your Auto Technician.
Best regards.