Difference between a wagon a hatchback
 

What's the difference between the two? I always thought that wagons are much longer and hatchbacks are usually a bit shorter.

The reason i ask is because i drive a protege5 and my friend tells me it's a wagon while i tell him it's a hatchback

so what is the difference?

thx in advance

edit: whoops posted this in the wrong forum. Please move it to tilted motors. Thanks

Done. :)

I think it has more to do with if it has the cargo space longer than a hatch would have. I consider the protege' 5 a wagon myself. It has a large area just for cargo where as a hatch has only about the same length or room as a sedan, just with a different door.

Hatchbacks would most often be two doors, and, on wagons, the rear window/door hatch is closer to vertical, while hatchbacks are often angled.

I'd call the MP5 a wagon.

it's just whatever the company wants to call it.

the WRX wagon is called a wagon, though it's wheelbase is no longer than the sedan...

there might be a valid point in the 2 doors vs. 4 doors... because the Focus ZX3 (i think that's the one) is a 2 door and it's a "hatchback" same with the Honda Civic si

In Australia, we call it a WRX hatch......

Wheelbase has nothing to do with it. The older Escorts had a sedan, hatch, and wagon. The chassis were identical. A hatchback is (my opinion of the definition) a vehicle in which the trunk decklid AND rear window go up in one. A wagon has a roof over the trunk area, and therefor has a rear liftgate, versus a decklid for a sedan. Notchbacks are a whole 'nother story.

Angle of rear opening. If it is more or less vertical, it's a wagon. You Protege5 is a wagon.

This is the way I think of it as well. It seems to be correct 99% of the time anyway.

Dude Im with you.....

I wonder if you could look up the EPA clasifications, that might make a difference. Ford Focus ZX5: Wagon or hatch? According to Ford it's a hatch. I think it does have to do with the amount of cargo area behind the rear seats.

My 1993 Escort 5 door was a wagon.
My g/f's 1995 Camaro is a hatchback. So basically, when you add the rear two doors on a hatch-backed car it becomes a wagon. Simple. :)

Well, hate to argue, but there are a number of 4-door hatchbacks out there. While my earlier statement regarding vertical openings isn't always true (especially in regards to 2-doors), it is still rather valid. Example being Chrysler LeBaron 4-doors from the 80's. It had a hatch and 4 doors, but was no wagon. I still say it is a combination of angle of opening, # of doors, and most importantly - intent of design.

yeah, the roof line doesn't seem to slop down on wagons, it just goes straight out until the hatch.

some of you are incorrect. a civic SI is a minivan. common mistake tho.

I've seen wagon rooflines slope down. Ever see the rear door on an early malibu wagon?

I think what really defines a wagon is the length between the rearmost door and the hatch or tailgate. You can't really give a fixed number, as it has to be proportional to the overall size of the vehicle.

My old highschool friend used to drive a 1970s VW Rabbit 4-door hatch. So that would require us to change the 2-door 4-door rule. I think that rule can be modified just for 4-doors that don't have a vertical or near-vertical action on the hatch. Those would be hatchbacks, the rest, wagons.

The vw golf/gti are hatchbacks and are available as a 4 door vehicle as well as a 2 door. A station wagon is more of a sedan that has a converted trunk. While a hatchback has a smaller body structure.

Wagons have 4 side doors, while hatchbacks have 2. That's the difference. It has nothing to do with the angle of the rear window.

I have a Honda Civic hatchback with 2 side doors. They used to make a version with 4 side doors and it was known as a Civic Wagon.

if all else fails... Dictionary.com

station wagon
n.
An automobile having an extended interior with a third seat or luggage platform and a tailgate.

hatch·back
n.
An automobile having a sloping back with a hinged rear door that opens upward.


All the station wagons I've been in have had a fold-up seat in the back.

i know that the DOT or the NHSTA have a classification system. I cannot for the life of me find it, maybe it's an insurance thing.

My two cents: hatchbacks have two doors. The rear seat usually folds flat for cargo space, and most of the roofline from about the back of the second row of seats consists of a liftable hatch.

So in a hatchback, the rear gate is part of the roof. In a station-wagon, the rear gate is mounted across the hind end of the car, not the roof.

These strange little Gen-X cars coming out of Japan are all small weird wagons. I don't see any hatchbacks among them, though they are no longer than a largish hatchback.

I guess it's station wagon time again, what with these cars, the Subarus, the Honda Element and the PT Cruisers, and now the Chrysler Pacifica (kind of a giant Vista Cruiser for Yuppies). Who decided station wagons would be hot again?

Oooooh yes, I looove my wagons :D