Tonneau

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Tonneau (pronounced ta’-no) is an archaic term (originally from the French, roughly meaning cask, container, or cover) for an open rear passenger compartment on an automobile and, by extension, a body style incorporating such a compartment. Most tonneaus were fixed in place as an optional element at purchase, but some could be removed as on the Crestmobile. Early tonneaus had a rear-facing hinged door as a rule, but single- or dual side doors were soon introduced. The first side-door tonneau was made by Peerless, but others quickly followed suit. This led to the development of the modern sedan/saloon, with Cadillac manufacturing the first production closed-body four-door car in 1910.

In the post-WW2 era the term has come to refer to the area behind the front seats of an open car (a convertible or roadster). The term tonneau cover is sometimes used for a hard or soft cover that encloses the well for the convertible top and/or the rear seating/storage area. It is more often used to describe a cover for a pickup truck bed. Quite often the word is spelled incorrectly as "tonno".