Vlad

Somebody brought it up in off-topic thread, and I thought it'll be interesting for other people to see. And I want to hear what do you guys think.

I want a door on Z opens in opposite way, i.e. opening in front, instead of rear, like now. I don't mean mod. I mean straight from the factory. Price should be the same for both constructions, so why not?

Here is my reasons. It makes exit entrance easier. Especially in tight parking spots. Especially on coupes. I don't know why they did door so long on our Z. It didn't make entrance easier, don't let open it wide, and stands in your way all the time...

Actually, I don't see ANY good reason for it to open the way it is now. We don't have the rear passengers, and access to back seats the only reason I could see for door to open like now.

Right now I have to

1) come to the car and open the door
2) turn to the left
3) step forward the fron of the car, so I stay in door opening
3) turn my butt 90 toward seat
4) seat
5) raise my legs and turn on the seat so legs point forward
6) straighten legs

Ah, and did I mentioned dirt marks on the door, because I can't hit it with my shoes toes all the time...

When door opens forward I'll need

1) come to the door and open
2) turn my butt toward the seat
3) seat
4) turn the legs toward pedals (if the door opening is shifted to the front, so door opens almoust till pedals)

I tried to illustrate a little bit... But be an experimentator. Make a model (grab some chair, and imagine the door) and try it both ways. You'll see that it's very natural way for comfort seating.
When right now my entrance/exits in tight parking spots near my office include even more steps than I described. It such a pain when this LONG door opens exactly another direction than natural...

Actually they start to make cars this way, but then they probably wasn't able to provide enough security against self-opening, or something else... so fashion shifted to unnatural way after WWII, I guess. But it's getting back now. I saw quite a few cars with rear doors opening this way in Detroit.
here is one

I think it's only matter of time when they start doing it on coupes. Especially two seaters, where you don't have to provide access for rear passangers.

vova151

I had always heard of the doors that open backwards referred to as "Suicide Doors".

ares

iTrader: (2)

yeah they were, and were made illegal if memory serves cause when the car went foward, theyd take you out at the knees.

now you can only have the rear door open like that if the front doors must be opened first, this is how trucks, rx8 and saturn gets around it.

Vlad

That really makes sence!

Umm... guess those safety fighters forgot to ban something... Car itself. Because when the car moves forward and you happened to be in the way - you'll be hurt!

So hope you are not serious about they can't do it because it hits you in the knee?

BTW, I bet squarels would love to make tires & wheels illegal. They won't give a **** about the doors and rest of the car as far as it has at least 4" of clearance (flats above the ground)

ares

iTrader: (2)

hey I wasnt supporting the law, just offering info, Ill see if I can find any evidence if Im even right. but there musta been some reason for them to just stop making them...

ares

iTrader: (2)

ok, it Ive found a few possibilities. they got the name suicide doors for a few causes.

1. if the door was opened at high speeds, the door would be ripped off the car and could cause serious injury. where a front hinged door would just close.

2. if you parked on the side of the road, and a car came by and hit the door, it would close and likely kill you, in the front hinged, it would just be ripped off the car.

3. in the time which these were made(30's-60s) the safety wasnt so great, no seatbelts, and in an accident they could pop open easily and eject the occupants out of the car.

for the record, a "suicide door" is actually 2 doors that open 100% from each other, no beam in the middle. which makes closing and locking them securely very difficult, as well as withstanding a side impact.

so all of these items together led them to stick with the tried and true method I guess.

also if you fell into the car, you couldnt hold onto the door, or it would swing away from you, and wack the car next to you, where now, it just pulls the door closed as you fall back into the car.

koba8

I always heard that the term originated because it made the passenger an easy target for assassination attempts because the passenger would have no protection (i.e. a door in front of them) to shield them from a frontal shot.