Landyacht

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A 1976 Cadillac Fleetwood Bourgham, one of the largest vehicles to ever be manufactured in the United States.

A 1996 Buick Roadmaster, utilizing GM's B-platform. Even though the term is usually applied to sedans, some wagons are also described as landyachts. It should be possible to replace this fair use image with a freely licensed one. If you can, please do so as soon as is practical.

Landyacht is colloquial term in the United States, Australia and parts of Canada, used to describe the large sedans that the American automobile manufacturers became known for. The term is commonly applied to full-size, rear-wheel drive sedans dating from the 1950s through the 1980s. Features commonly found in vehicles that are referred to as landyachts include not only very generous exterior proportions, but also somewhat vague steering and a "spongy" ride with a feeling that is often described as being "floaty." Today, the terms is applied to large, traditional American sedans, regardless of the actual characteristics featured in the vehicle.

1 Origins
2 Modern Use
3 See also
4 References

[edit] Origins

The term essentially describes large American cars as yachts that ride on land. Implying that the vehicles are not only rivaling boats in terms of size but also that the steering and handling is indeed similar to that of yachts, where there is a small time delay between movement of the steering wheel and actual movement of the vessel itself.

The term is most commonly applied to the extravagantly large American cars of the pre-oil crisis era. American automobile manufacturers placed much of their emphaisis in the engineering of their vehicles on size and amenities during this time, as consumers were not conerned with fuel efficiency due to low gas prices, a lack of environemntal awareness, and rising prosperity among the middle class. Cars of this era remain known for size, excessive fuel consumption, "spongy" rides, and comfort.

[edit] Modern Use

Despite the comeback of full-size rear wheel drive sedans in the US, such as the Chrysler 300, modern cars are usually only referred to as Landyachts in a derogatory sense and share few distinguishing characteristics with the sedans from the 1950s, 60s and 70s for which the term landyacht was originally coined. While the modern day Lincoln Town Car and Cadillac DTS, feature very soft rides with the main emphasis during engineering placed on comfort, they are according to the vast majority of experts, not actual landyachts.

The term is, however, applied to modern cars as well. Most commonly it is applied to vehicles using the General Motors B platform, which was cancelled in 1996, vehicles using the Ford Panther platform, as well as the Cadillac Deville and its successor the Cadillac DTS (despite its front wheel drive layout). Interestingly enough, the term is not applied to non-domestic vehicles, though many German sedans rival their American counterparts in terms of size and the Japanese Lexus LS was described by Forbes magazine has having roughly the same handling as the much larger Lincoln Town Car.