Thabiso Malimela
The furthest technology has allowed the car to develop stops not only at engine performance and efficiency. It is rather where quality, refinement and versatility is concerned that we can say that the car as a machine has gone the furthest. And to illustrate how versatile cars are today, remember that you can now purchase a car that performs a variety of functions, all equally well without a need to compromise in any way that matters. For example, the Range Rover Sport is a practical, refined and comfortable vehicle that tips the scales on the heavier side of 2-tons. However it comes onto its own when put in uncharted terrain (off-road, snow, mud, The Moon, etc.), all while possessing the abilities to embarrass most sporty cars on the racetrack. Did I mention that it weighs over 2-tons?
A large part of versatility comes down to the design of the chassis and body, as both these form the basic skeleton or frame that determine the shape of the car – and shape will surely follow function in this case and hence why sports cars tend to be low to the ground. It is for this same reason then that when looking at a sedan and hatchback body style, you have to appreciate certain traits that one may have that the other might not, and therefore each one’s advantages and disadvantages. Since we see both body styles on the road daily, it is easy to form a discussion that many will find palatable without sounding ‘nerdy’. Lol, let’s get right to it!
What is a Sedan?
Remember those funny looking cars we used to sketch as kids? Unless you were already an automotive design genius at age 6, most of us drew something that had a roof structure and elongated ends on either side of said roof, not forgetting the undersized or sometimes oversized wheels. This sort of body type would suffice as a sedan, where there is ‘more car’ after the rear windscreen, primarily used for luggage and popular with kidnappers. This luggage space is accessible through a horizontal or flat boot lid which, surprisingly, can also be used as a picnic table or a bench – you might want to be covered for dents and scratches before you try this. Fundamentally, a sedan body is divided into 3 separate compartments. These are the engine compartment, the passenger compartment where there is usually 2 rows of seating (the rear being sufficient to seat adults) and finally the cargo compartment. It is important to know that in a sedan, the cargo compartment is not as easily accessible or versatile as it is in a hatchback, due to the enclosed nature of the boot and layout of the boot lid.
Examples: Toyota Corolla Quest, Audi A3 Sedan, BMW 3-series
What is a Hatchback?
Unlike the sedan whose body is separated into 3 compartments, a hatchback would have the passenger and cargo compartments fused together. Instead of having a horizontal boot lid, the hatchback’s cargo area is accessible through an upward swinging rear door (hence the 3-door or 5-door designation on some hatchbacks) and also through the inside of the car due to the unity of passenger and cargo compartments. The hatchback might have the engine compartment and some of the passenger area identical to that of the sedan, however the roof line is usually higher, the wheelbase (distance between the front and rear wheels) shorter and because of the swinging tailgate and open luggage space, more spacious and thus more practical.
Examples: Volkswagen Golf, Hyundai i10, Renault Clio
So now that we know what each body style entails, let’s look at some of the key things one needs to consider when faced with the choice of which body style to purchase.
Luggage Space
I would imagine that this is the biggest talking point in the debate between hatchbacks and sedans and there is a good reason why that is the case. While hatchbacks will always offer more luggage space, the passenger compartment suffers a little, which is where sedans rise to the occasion. Due to the swinging rear door and combining the car’s interior with the luggage compartment, a hatchback is able to have a larger cargo area and more versatile ways to load and carry the cargo. You can fold down the rear bench seats to maximise space and due to an upward swinging door, taller items can be fitted too. It is easy to see that hatchbacks would make more sense if your lifestyle involved carrying larger items like surfboards, bicycles, male egos, the sorts. With sedans, because the cargo area is low and physically enclosed, accessing it might prove tougher than its hatchback counterpart even though modern sedans offer accessibility through the rear seats. This is also probably why you would find it difficult to enter a large suitcase into the boot of a Toyota Corolla Quest (even though it sits comfortably inside, getting it in is the issue) but easily pop the same suitcase inside of a Chevrolet Spark’s boot.
Interior Space
During my ignorant days, I used to think sedans offered superior interior space than hatchbacks. While the latter is very true, it wasn’t until I got out of a Kia Rio Sedan and straight into a Kia Picanto that I noticed something very eerie. While the Rio Sedan definitely had more legroom, the roof in the Picanto was significantly further away from where my head was, which relieved some of the anxiety that a large man would have sitting in any car smaller than a Toyota Quantum. Hatchbacks tend to have higher rooflines and are thus taller, which explains why, in most cases, you would have more headroom in a hatchback than you would in a sedan. However, the hatchback has to concede to the far more superior legroom a sedan has to offer due to it having a larger wheelbase. The longer wheelbase also allows rear seating to be lowered, meaning that you would have more elbow room in a sedan, and generally a more secure feeling sitting in the back. Actually, this would explain why sedans are a favourite for Uber. Therefore, if your commutes require you to carry passengers rather than cargo, sedan is the way to go.
Size
It doesn’t matter what anybody says, size does matter. If we look back to my experience with the Kia Picanto, you’ll see that the prejudice formed by looking at the exterior was well founded – it looks like a small car and therefore it is, even though the same can’t be said about the interior. So with a hatchback, you get the benefits of a small car, with the luxury of more space than it appears to have. But what are the benefits of a small car? Well since a hatchback would have a shorter wheelbase and length due to the flat rear end, it is easier to manoeuvre around tight spaces and very simple to park – this should be great news for those who dread the infamous parallel parking manoeuvre. Hatchbacks will also have greater visibility and less blind spots because of the taller structure and thus larger windows, especially the one found on the swinging door. With sedans however, the increased length and cargo compartment might require you to have increased spacial awareness to get it into parking spaces without needing a lawyer afterwards. Nowadays however, we have an assortment of parking sensors and parking assist programmes that will even go as far as automating the parking manoeuvre without any inputs from you. (See 2019 Mercedes-Benz A-Class.)
Fuel Economy
Despite their smaller appearance and dimensions, hatchbacks tend to be heavier than their sedan counterparts. This is largely due to their taller structure and also due to the extra amount of strengthening the chassis has to undergo to achieve the same level of safety and rigidity as a sedan. This extra weight also has a direct impact on fuel economy as a heavier car would use more fuel to achieve the same acceleration. Also due to the taller structure, hatchbacks will tend to be less aerodynamically efficient and thus all the extra drag produced by the taller body will further hurt fuel economy figures. Sedans however, have proven to be one of the most fuel efficient vehicles when directly compared to hatchbacks. The low and sleeker roofline altogether creates a more aerodynamic shape as air flows more naturally over the smoother and longer profile. Because sedans are also longer, less material is needed to make the body strong and thus they can be kept lighter than hatchbacks. However, this doesn’t mean we can now compare the fuel economy of a Kia Picanto to that of a Mercedes-AMG E-Class.
Safety and Security
Let’s get one thing out of the way first – sedans and hatchbacks offer a negligible difference in safety. The kind of safety we are concerning ourselves over is the safety of the cargo – please note that days when humans could also be cargo are over! (See slavery). As mentioned before, a sedan’s cargo area is physically enclosed and can be likened to a safe – strangers cannot see or access what is inside. Due to the cargo compartment being low in height, items in the boot will be less likely to jump around and injure passengers, a good thing if you’re transporting snakes or hand grenades (the less questions you ask, the better). In hatchbacks however, strange people wearing Uzzi clothing will naturally take an interest to what’s inside the boot – they can see it through the rear window after all and they will be able to access these items of interest by breaking through the rear window. You can invest in a privacy shelf (most hatchbacks come installed with one anyway) if this brings you some anxiety to keep the Uzzi people from peeking inside, but this still won’t be enough to keep them out.
Driving Performance
Hatchbacks are notorious for their fun and nimble handling, an attribute which arises from the short wheel base and small size. This means that in tight and twisty roads, hatchbacks are sure to provide the best kind of thrills. However also due to their small size, hatchbacks will tend to have small engine compartments and thus smaller engines, which in turn means the hatchback is limited when it comes to engine potency. Luckily for petrolheads, we live in a time where a 2.0 litre 4-cylinder engine can produce 280 kW (see Mercedes-AMG A45) and where BMW is stubbornly continuing to fit 6-cylinder motors in a hatchback (see BMW M140i). Unlike the hatchback which is limited to mounting the engine transversely (perpendicularly to direction of travel), sedans can ‘go to town with it’ when it comes to engine layout. The ability to have a larger engine compartment in a sedan allows it to have a larger and more powerful engine which improves performance. However, what a sedan gains in straight line performance is what it loses in the corners. The enlarged wheelbase provides with significantly more stable and secure handling, but agility suffers as sedans can be cumbersome in the corners. But then again, it all comes down to driver preference as it is hard to say which handling characteristic (agility or stability) is superior to the other.
Aesthetics
This point, too, is dependent on preference rather than an explicit and measurable number. It’s not unusual to see someone who’s in their early 20’s and finds hatchbacks better looking to grow up to find sedans more appealing once their age ticks over 35 years. Many youngsters prefer the flat rear end of hatchbacks over the low and sleek design of a sedan simply because to them, this is more stylist and more distinctive. It is true that sedans will offer more subtle and less divisive styling – mind you I never said boring. What you should be asking yourself is would the guy in the Transporter movies look cooler if he was in an Audi A3? However this may vary with the car in question. There have been numerous cases where a manufacturer has both hatchback and sedan versions of the same car, and the hatchback has looked better than the sedan and vice-versa.
Pricing and Re-Sale Value
Because of some mysterious force (also see SUV) in the world, sedan sales have seen a steep decline and model discontinuations (see Ford Fusion, Kia Optima, Hyundai Sonata). This noticeable drop in demand has negatively affected the general re-sale value of sedans in the market while hatchback and SUV sales are experiencing a growing trend. A hatchback will hold around 56% of its re-sale value over 3 years compared to larger cars, which can only retain 40% (as of September 2017). In terms of pricing, sedans generally will have a price premium over hatchbacks, however this will depend on which manufacturer you choose to purchase from.
Summary
I’m sure you’ve noticed that the purpose of this article is not to tell you which body style is superior to the other – it is all circumstantial. However we do hope that we’ve given you enough to consider before you go out and make that all too important decision.
