Let’s start with some terminology.
The noun sedan came into English in the 1630s with the meaning of “a covered chair on poles.” It probably came from a southern Italian dialect and came from the Latin sedes which comes from the Proto-Indo-European root *sed-. In 1912, sedan came to be used in American English with the meaning of “a closed automobile seating four or more.”
A coupe has only two doors and no rear seat. The noun coupe came into English in 1834 from French. The French verb couper means “to cut in half.” In the late nineteenth century, coupe referred to a “cut-off carriage” meaning a shorter version of the berlin, minus the back seat. With regard to automobile, coupe was first used to describe closed two-door automobiles in 1897.
A hardtop is missing the pillars, the so-called “B" pillars, between the front and rear side windows. (Thanks to Black Brant for this).
Shown below are some of the sedans which were on display in a car show in Vancouver, Washington.
More Cars
Car Show: Engines, Hood Ornaments (Photo Diary)
Car Show: Car Interiors (Photo Diary)
Car Show: Sedans (Photo Diary)
Car Show: Convertibles (Photo Diary)
Car Show: Pickups (Photo Diary)
Car Show: Vans and Station Wagons (Photo Diary)