What the Heck Are Scissor Doors?
Jane Lu
· 4 min read
Who knew car doors could be so complex and diverse? Unless you drive a Jeep Wrangler and are thinking about the
safety of removing your doors
altogether, most drivers don't give doors a second thought. However, things get a little more interesting for higher-end
luxury cars
. Most top-shelf vehicles have completely different doors than standard cars. One of the most common types is the scissor door. Instead of swinging open, they go straight up. The way they’re hinged onto the car makes them similar to scissors blades. Scissor doors are certainly flashy and will attract the attention of even non-gearheads. But there’s also a more practical reason behind the usage of these unique doors.
The first car to have these unique doors
According to
CarThrottle
, the very first car to have scissor doors was the 1968 Alfa Romeo Carabo. This concept car was designed by eccentric Italian car designer Marcello Gandini. While Gandini loved adding flair to his cars, the birth of scissor doors was more so out of necessity. The Carabo had very poor rear visibility. For the driver to see where they were going in reverse, they literally had to open the door and lean out of the car. As this would be quite clumsy with traditional swinging car doors, Gandini invented scissor doors that stayed up in place, making it easier for drivers to lean out of the car.
The popularity of scissor doors
While the Carabo was only a concept car, the scissor doors caught the eye of Lamborghini, a brand that’s always trying to
distinguish itself from rival Ferrari
. While both of these Italian supercars are fun to drive, they do have some impracticalities. For one, they are so low to the ground that it can be difficult to open a car door without dinging it on a curb. In the late ‘60s, Lamborghinis were quite a bit wider than normal cars. This meant that drivers would have to squeeze into parking spots, leaving little clearance to open the door. Scissor doors solve both of these problems.
The first production car to have scissor doors was the 1974 Lamborghini Countach, also designed by Gandini. They were so popular that nearly every Lamborghini model today has scissor doors. Scissor doors are so frequently associated with Lamborghinis, that they are often incorrectly called "Lambo Doors."
What's the difference between butterfly doors and scissor doors?
After seeing scissor doors solve common issues with supercars, other carmakers made their own version of vertical rising doors. In McLaren's case, they decided to make butterfly doors. At first glance, it's hard to distinguish butterfly doors from scissor doors. But butterfly doors will actually twist outwards, whereas scissor doors go straight up.
This makes butterfly doors a little less practical. While they can easily clear a curb, they won't be able to clear a car in a tight parking situation.
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