Defining the Sports Sedan

By Chris Trout

Troutster52

Much in the same way that the term muscle car is debated and overused, the precise definition of a sports sedan has been blurred gray since the creation of the term. According to Wikipedia, a sports sedan is a “sedan automobile that is designed to look and feel ‘sporty,’ offering the motorist more connection with the driving experience, while providing the comfort and amenities expected of a luxury sedan.” Wikipedia goes on to say that many sports sedans overlap the executive car classification and are typically imported vehicle brands. The rest of the article seems to reveal the haziness of the category classifiers, incorporating domestic sedans and automatic transmissions.

Appropriately, the vehicles that first come to mind when I consider a sports sedan are the BMW 3-Series, Acura TSX and Saab 9-3. All three of these vehicles meet the initial qualifications, being imported, sports-minded luxury sedans. However, there is no commonality between those vehicles despite the sports sedan characteristic. The BMW powers the rear wheels while the other two employ front wheel drivetrains. All three have unique engine configurations with the BMW toting an inline six, the Acura toting a high compression four cylinder and the Saab utilizing a turbo. All three vehicles also come with manual or automatic transmission options.

Among the laundry list of sports sedans mentioned in the Wikipedia article, you have some significant outliers like the WRX STI, the Chevrolet Impala, the Oldsmobile Achieva, Porsche Panamera and Aston Martin Rapide. I find this list to be outright unacceptable. Nowhere to be found on Wikipedia’s list were two of my three named sports sedans, the BMW 3 series or the Acura TSX. The list did include the M3 and the TL however, so it seems as though the category is limited to the more high-performance proliferations. However, this is proven false when you include vehicles like the Impala (not even SS was specified) and Achieva. Since I used to own one, I can say Achievas don’t really achieve much of anything aside from reliable daily transportation. Neither engine option was all that exceptionally powerful nor the suspension anywhere above average. In the same right, Impalas might be comfortable and even powerful sedans but I wouldn’t say they classify as sports sedans. Impala SS might be able to edge its way into this category. WRX STI, Porsche Panamera and Aston Martin Rapide are also something entirely different. I consider an STI a sports car, and both the Porsche and Aston Martin to be somewhere between executive luxury and supercars. It seems that the only real descriptor of everything in the list is the presence of four doors. Why not throw a Megacab Dodge Ram on the list! It has four doors and lots of power, why the heck not? I hope that my sarcasm is dripping from your computer monitor.

The reason all this is stirring in my mind is that my wife and I recently got a new to us vehicle. We got a 2004 Dodge Stratus Sedan. Our Stratus bears the rev-happy 200 hp DOHC 2.7 V6 and one of the most responsive automatic transmissions I have ever driven. It is also one of the best handling front-drivers I have piloted, with better than average road feedback and average ride quality. Is it a sports car, a muscle car or a luxury car? Certainly not. Could it make the cut as a pleasant driving sports sedan? Maybe. What do you think?

What do you think qualifies a sports sedan? Could it be measured by something concrete like power/weight ratio, compression ratio, or skidpad results? Or like other elusive automotive definitions, is it destined to remain hazy in the details?