If there’s one vehicle type we can point to that’s becoming less and less popular, it’s the coupe. These two door cars aren’t highly sought after by car buyers. Most people want four doors, at least enough seats for five people, and plenty of cargo room. Coupes don’t offer these things. Because of this, if you look at the automotive industry, you’ll realize, there aren’t as many
What Exactly Is a Coupe?
A coupe is a two-door car that can seat up to five people but usually four. The vehicle type is generally smaller than a sedan and lighter weight, which is why many
Sporty coupes make sense because the folks who care about sports cars enough to spend the extra money on them generally don’t place as big of a need
Why People Don’t Buy Them
The main reason coupes don’t sell is because people don’t want to compromise. They don’t think they should have to sacrifice two doors and rear seat legroom and cargo room for the sake of looking good and having a higher performing car. Automakers realize this and have been eliminating these cars from their lineups.
Most of the coupes left are purpose-built performance cars. These include cars like the Ford Mustang, Chevrolet Camaro, Toyota 86, BMW 2-series, Nissan 370Z, and Porsche 911 among others. These cars survive because they’re enthusiast cars. Still, they could be in danger, too.
Automakers are making practical vehicles that are equally impressive as their coupe counterparts. Take the Alfa Romeo Giulia Quadrifoglio for example, the car is a four-door sedan with a 505 twin-turbo V6 engine and some of the best driving dynamics we’ve seen.
Look to the upcoming Kia Stinger. The Kia Stinger was originally conceived as a coupe, but the design folks over at Kia knew it would sell better as a sedan, so they stretched it and added two more doors.
Heck, even SUVs and crossovers are getting in on the game. Land Rover’s Range Rover
The fact is that people can get a fun, high-performance vehicle without making the sacrifice now, so why would they? This makes us think that the coupe’s days are numbered. While there will always be designated coupes for the racetrack and the autocross course, outside of the enthusiast market, it’s likely that two door cars will basically disappear.