When size matters, but not always. Understanding the European car classification

The J segment, according to the European classification, includes cars of the SUV class - sport utility vehicle, that is, for sports and utilitarian purposes. This term is used for station wagon cars, predominantly equipped with an all-wheel drive system and distinguished by increased ground clearance.

BMW X3

The segment includes two categories of cars that differ in design - SUVs and crossovers. The difference between these two categories is the all-wheel drive design and the capabilities it has. If a crossover is a station wagon with increased cross-country ability, then an SUV is a full-fledged “all-terrain vehicle” with a comfortable interior and a number of design attributes necessary for city and highway driving (ABS, EBD, and so on).

Signs of a Class J car

In recent years, the SUV segment has been developing at a rapid pace, so apart from a station wagon body and high ground clearance, a J segment car has no permanent features. If previously the body and components of an SUV were installed on a frame, which served as another distinguishing feature of this class, now even a car with very good cross-country ability, falling under the category of SUVs by all criteria, can have a monocoque body. This design helps reduce weight and save fuel.

Renault Duster

By the way, it was the appearance in the early eighties of the first SUVs with a monocoque body that contributed to the development of a new type of car, which is now commonly called a crossover.

An SUV differs from a minivan, first of all, in that the latter’s body structure, as a rule, has a clearly visible engine compartment that protrudes forward. At the same time, the interior layout can be exactly the same as that of a minivan—J-segment SUVs with a flat floor (without a transmission tunnel) and three rows of seats are often found.

Tips for choosing a class

When choosing a car class, focus primarily on your budget, as well as personal preferences. You can usually find out what class a car belongs to on the official website of the brand. You can select several classes, make a table and write down several models, dividing the table into items about dimensions, engine power, and interior capacity.

The car class is more of a reference for quick comparison of models and better orientation in market segments. The lowest price is for class A+ cars, and the most expensive are luxury class cars. Accordingly, as the class increases, the cost of the car increases, and its technical characteristics also become better.

• Auto The Japanese are cooler than the Americans: the most reliable cars of 2022 have been named Consumer Reports has published a traditional rating of automobile brands.

• Author: Alexander Ponomarev

History of the development of the J segment

The predecessors of SUVs were small utility buses with a supporting frame (for example, the 1935 Chevrolet Carryall-Suburban - the ancestor of the modern Chevrolet Tahoe and Cadillac Escalade) and military vehicles (such as the legendary Willys MB, a US Army vehicle during World War II). Early representatives of long-wheelbase SUVs in the modern sense were the Soviet all-wheel drive GAZ-61 of 1938, the Willys Jeep Wagon of 1948, and the Land Rover Series II 109 of 1958.

The last 25 years for the J segment have been marked by increasing comfort and moving closer to road cars in terms of speed, agility and safety.

The term SUV appeared in the 80s. The concept of Sport Utility arose because at the beginning of the boom, SUVs were often used to transport sports equipment - skis, bicycles, etc. The prototype of modern crossovers was the Jeep Cherokee (XJ), an SUV with a monocoque body. Interestingly, even at that time the Cherokee advertising campaign was based on the advantages of an SUV over a traditional station wagon. This trend continues to this day: sales of crossovers are based on the advantages of all-wheel drive and increased ground clearance while maintaining body capacity.

Jeep Cherokee (XJ)

The last 25 years of development of the J segment have been marked by increasing the comfort of all-wheel drive vehicles and gradually bringing them closer to road cars in terms of speed, agility and safety. In this regard, the SUV's ground clearance gradually decreased, and in the Opel Mokka, for example, it is as low as in the average station wagon.

Opel Mokka

European classification of vehicles by ABCDEF classes (Table)

At the moment, in countries around the world there are various car classification systems, all of them use the following parameters as the basis: body dimensions (dimensions) and engine power and volume, passenger compartment volume, market segment, average cost. The tables below show the various classifications of cars and how they compare and contrast with each other.

European car classification A, B, C, D, E, F, J, by target market segments

European car classification is based more on target market segments than on the technical parameters and characteristics of cars; there are no clear boundaries between segments; not only those are used. parameters but also market value, various sets of options. The classification includes 9 main classes: A, B, C, D, E, F, J, M, S.

Table of classification of cars by class, their features and sizes

Classification of cars in the USSR by size

Cars in the USSR were classified depending on engine displacement and dry weight, each class was divided into the first and second groups. In modern Russia, this system is partially used, for example, to calculate the tax base, and partially for internal use in factories.

Comparison table comparing different car classifications

The table contains a comparison of various car classification systems - USA, UK, Russia, European main (segments) and examples of cars of these systems.

Basic information on the classification of cars by class is taken from the site ru.wikipedia.org

J segment cars in the USSR and Russia

In 1957, the Moscow Automobile Plant produced the Moskvich-410/411/431 experimental car, an all-wheel drive modification of the Moskvich-402 production model. The car was built on a monocoque body, unlike GAZ models of an earlier period and SUVs produced around the world since the mid-twenties. Since Moskvich appeared long before the launch of the Cherokee XJ, perhaps it should be considered the world's first crossover.

SUVs in the USSR were also produced by the Ulyanovsk Automobile Plant (model 469 and others) and VAZ (Niva 2121 crossover). Nowadays, the production of updated versions of these SUVs continues.

Attempts to produce domestic SUVs were also made at other factories: for example, the Derways company produced the all-wheel drive Derways Cowboy (Derways 3131) of its own design in the city of Cherkessk. True, the car did not achieve much success in the market.