The first crossovers are already youngtimers
11/11/2021
Recently, images of a new Opel Manta were circulating in the press; the successor to the famous family coupé is to be a "crossover". At the moment, almost everything that was once popular seems to be turning into a crossover. Yet very few people can really say exactly what a "crossover" is supposed to be.
Let's look back a little. The term first appeared in the local automotive press at the end of the 1990s. ADAC Motorwelt wrote at the time:
"Crossover is the name of the new vehicle category, a mixture of van, estate and off-road vehicle with all-wheel drive, plenty of space thanks to variable high-roof bodies and leisure-oriented sport-and-fun equipment. The Subaru Legacy Outback, Volvo Cross-Country and Renault Scenic RX4 are already aiming in this direction. Other models such as the Ford Focus MAV, Opel Zafira City Trekker and Audi A6 allroad will follow."
There are also people who would describe the Matra Rancho as a crossover. After all, it combined the advantages of a normal passenger car with the look of an off-road vehicle (but only had front-wheel drive). And that would take us back to 1977 (start of construction of the Matra-Simca Rancho).
But even if we look for the beginnings of crossovers in the nineties, the first representatives are already youngtimers today.
However, the definition of what exactly a crossover should be seems to be constantly evolving. Today, a coupé-like silhouette, a high roof, all-wheel drive, four to five seats and a decent trunk seem to be at least the prerequisites for a crossover, and that would take us quite a long way from an Audi A6 allroad, which was more of a normal family estate car with slightly improved off-road capability and a somewhat wilder look ...
