Notchback

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An example of a notchback, the Volvo 700 series

The 3-box design illustrated on a full-size luxury sedan.

Notchback is a very common form of car body style characterized by a sharp vertical drop-off from roof to the boot, as opposed to hatchback or fastback. All notchbacks are what is known as 3-box designs - seen from the side, three separate volumes - the engine area, the passenger area, and the boot area.

The notchback is usually a synonym for saloon, although many coupé cars are notchbacks as well. Notchback can also refer to liftback or hatchback vehicles, if there is a discontinuous line from roof to rear bumper. The term has been used for the European Mark III Ford Escort and the Ford Sierra, although the shape of these hatchbacks is officially called the Aeroback.

This was sometimes called a "formal roof" on American cars, and was popular in the 1980s on premium car lines such as the Mercury Cougar and the General Motors C- and G-body cars.

Current generation Lexus LS resembles a two-box saloon

As fuel consumption has become a larger focus in automobile design, the notchback and fastback forms are rapidly merging in four door saloons - the traditional sharply raked notch shape is apparently not optimal for aerodynamic performance.