What is a Limousine?
Discussion
Wikipedia says it has a division.
French origin of the word says separate cabin, driver either outside or behind a division.
Other early French automobile definition says three full size windows each side.
Dictionary says large chauffeur driven car with division.
The US says airport taxi.
Joe public (and Germany) says any large luxury car.
Bobberoo's missus says a shonky twenty year old Volvo.
Anything missing?
French origin of the word says separate cabin, driver either outside or behind a division.
Other early French automobile definition says three full size windows each side.
Dictionary says large chauffeur driven car with division.
The US says airport taxi.
Joe public (and Germany) says any large luxury car.
Bobberoo's missus says a shonky twenty year old Volvo.
Anything missing?
swisstoni said:
Limousin is a place in France and I always assumed it was somehow connected.
Wikipedia said:
The word limousine is derived from the name of the French region Limousin. However, how the name of the region transferred to the car is uncertain.
One possibility involves a particular type of carriage hood or roof physically resembled the raised hood of the cloak worn by the shepherds there.
An alternate etymology speculates that some early chauffeurs wore a Limousin-style cloak in the open driver's compartment, for protection from the weather. The name was then extended to this particular type of car with a permanent top projecting over the chauffeur. This former type of automobile had an enclosed passenger compartment seating three to five persons, with only a roof projecting forward over the open driver's area in the front.
One possibility involves a particular type of carriage hood or roof physically resembled the raised hood of the cloak worn by the shepherds there.
An alternate etymology speculates that some early chauffeurs wore a Limousin-style cloak in the open driver's compartment, for protection from the weather. The name was then extended to this particular type of car with a permanent top projecting over the chauffeur. This former type of automobile had an enclosed passenger compartment seating three to five persons, with only a roof projecting forward over the open driver's area in the front.
I’m sure Alpina in the 90s referred to all saloon versions of their cars as limousines. Even the E36 B3. I’m not sure if they still do.
Chinese market only saloons like the BMW 1 Series saloon and A3 LWB saloon (you’d think that was an A4) are called limousines there, I think.
It’s fluid, like use of the word ‘coupe’.
To me a limousine is a stretched version of a car although people do put the word ‘stretched’ before limousine… at a push I’d call an S Class a limo, if I were with people who didn’t know much about cars.
Chinese market only saloons like the BMW 1 Series saloon and A3 LWB saloon (you’d think that was an A4) are called limousines there, I think.
It’s fluid, like use of the word ‘coupe’.
To me a limousine is a stretched version of a car although people do put the word ‘stretched’ before limousine… at a push I’d call an S Class a limo, if I were with people who didn’t know much about cars.
Thing is though, so many people now reckon it's just any big flashy car, and I guess that's actually the case as language evolves. It's just a shame that it also cheapens and diminishes the original meaning, though certain limos do have a cheap and trashy image anyway. For me a limo will always be a specialist vehicle and not an A6 doing an airport run or Jack the lad with his new black E Class "Limo, innit?"
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