Opera Coupe?

[Chrycoman]

Little late on this, but one manufacturer did use the term "opera coupe" for its models - General Motors of Canada.

In 1938 GM of Canada introduced a 4-passenger coupe on the B body with two fold-up seats behind the front seats to replace the coupe with rumble seat and called it an 'opera coupe'.? ?It was offered as a Pontiac DeLuxe Six, Oldsmobile Six, McLauglin-Buick 44 Special and 46 Century.? ?The imported Oldsmobile Eight had the same model but was called a Club Coupe.

For 1939 GM offered it on the redesigned A body as a Chevrolet (Master DeLuxe, Master DeLuxe Special) and Oldsmobile (Select Six series 60), as well as the B body Pontiac (Chieftain Six, Chieftain Six Special), and McLaughlin-Buick (44 Special, 46 Century).? GM of Canad also used the term for that body style on the imported Pontiac DeLuxe Eight and Oldsmobile series 70 and 80.? For 1940 it was replaced by a coupe called the Sport Coupe with a fixed rear seat.

The term "opera seat" was used to describe a foldup seat in the rear of a coupe by Hudson in its 1938 Victoria coupe, Graham in its stillborn 1938 4-passenger coupe, and for the 1936 LaSalle 3-passenger coupe.

Cannot find any reference for a Ford, Mercury or Lincoln opera coupe.

Bill
Vancouver, BC

[Andy Wylie]

If you go back in time to the days of horse drawn carriages, you will find carriages that were intended for two persons with the driver outside, either sitting/standing up front or standing to the rear, exposed to the weather. In many instances these carriages are referred to as "Hansom Cabs', and yes they were probably referred to as Opera Coupes when used for that purpose

Bill that's akin to calling a Surrey Dung Cart a wheelbarrow. Hansoms were a particular type of two wheeled vehicle,  coupes had four. Back in the horseless carriage days I'm sure most people would have known the difference and used the terms they knew to describe what they saw and it's only natural such definitions get muddied with the passage of time and misuse.

"An almost bewildering variety of horse-drawn carriages existed. Arthur Ingram's Horse Drawn Vehicles since 1760 in Colour lists 325 types with a short description of each. By the early 19th century one's choice of carriage was only in part based on practicality and performance; it was also a status statement and subject to changing fashions" - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carriage

[Wm Steed]

If you go back in time to the days of horse drawn carriages, you will find carriages that were intended for two persons with the driver outside, either sitting/standing up front or standing to the rear, exposed to the weather. In many instances these carriages are referred to as "Hansom Cabs', and yes they were probably referred to as Opera Coupes when used for that purpose, ie; "Since there are only two of us going I will call for an Opera Coupe". A carriage of this type could be gracefully exited when used for social functions requiring proper dress.

There probably are many examples of custom built motor cars, Packard, Pierce-Arrow, etc. that incorporated this type of design in one form or another into their vehicles.
Pierce-Arrow liked to call their cars, Landau, Town Sedan or Brougham to describe their vehicles with the driver sitting up front exposed to the elements. There is no doubt that in some cases a dealer or advertising person might have used the term 'Opera Coupe' to add an air of quality to certain  vehicles, yet as I have already stated, when reviewing printed information, books, brochures, etc. their is no mention of 'opera coupe'.

I have wondered for many years just why many people refer to the '40 Ford coupe, with the jump seats in lieu of a platform as an opera coupe, Ford did not refer to it as such, why not call it what it is,  a club coupe. I guess the '40 Ford was not referred to as a club coupe because it was not a club coupe in the normal sense of the word. Normally a club coupe has a passenger area longer than a conventional coupe and the rear seat is a full bench seat, not jump seats.

I find the names/descriptions that are hung onto vehicles to be very interesting;
I have a 1940 Buick Super Series 4dr sdn. The Buick Supers were a brand new design for 1940, gone were the running boards and quarter windows in the rear portion of the body that was reminiscent of the 1920/30's designs. The rear doors open to the rear and the quarter windows are in the doors. The Roadmaster series also got this new design, the Century and Special did not.  In short order the Oldsmobile and Pontiac also got the new body in selected models. The Buick people simply refer to the Super series as being just that, however, the body style is referred to as the 'German Helment' by many people.

Why a German Helment? ..... because of the rear slope and 'skirt' effect of the rear portion of the body. This feature is reminiscent of the Germany Army/Darth Vadar helments.

And lastly..... Fastbacks:
Chevrolet referred to theirs as a Fleetline, Olds, 2dr club sedan, Buick/Cad, sedanet, yet everyone calls them  FASTBACKS  ???....Bill 

[plym_46]

Back in the 70's I attended the fall meet at Hershey.  I was enamored at the time with Packards.  I ran across a 20'a something Packard "Opera Coupe".  The had custome coachwork consisting of an open chauffer's area with right hand drive.  The closed body was coupe style
comprised of a passenger area with a single bench seat across the rear.  The door on the right side of the body area was taller than the already tall roof, being kicked up with glass about 3 inches taller than the window glass.  There were two folding jump seats, one on the bulkhead between the drivers area and the closed body about in the center of the car and one on the street side infront of the rear seat.  The passenger compartment featured curtains on all windows, a brass speaking tube to communicate with the driver, some chrystal bud vases. and other luxury appointments, including a fold out bar on the curb side.

Apparently, the door kick up was designed to allow the gentlemen to enter without knocking off their Top Hats, which were apparently part of the required Opera fashions of the time.

[Andy Wylie]

I believe coupe and opera coupe both predate automobiles like so many other terms for coachwork styles and I suspect windows in the C pillars were a distinguishing feature.

[Wm Steed]

I stand on my earlier definition of the term 'Opera Coupe'  I think the term was coined by an advertising person who felt the seating in the early smaller 4 person coupes, ie; coupes with jump seats was some what similar to a box at the opera... prime seating at the front of the box and smaller cramped seating behind. The term opera coupe would impart an air of class in lieu of saying 'only your dwarf friends/kids' can get into or out of the rear seating ....Bill

[David Pollock]

I thought some etiology research might reveal the answer to Opera Coupe. It did not. However, among the English words of Italian origin ,' Belvedere' also appears, also 'sedan'. If you go to wikipedia "English words of Italian Origin" you will find many everyday words. " A 'bimbo' in 'jeans' was seen trying to get out of a 'belvedere'." does not mean what it seems to.  If I keep this up I will feel (like a) 'gonzo'.

'Opera' means   a work produced. Unlike 'gran tourismo', I cannot see how this relates to an auto body style.   Glad it livened up the discussion 'forum'.   dp

[David Pollock]

Very interesting,
I have used the term  for years to describe a coupe with jump seats behind the main seat but not with a full back seat such as a club coupe. Nobody around here ever seemed puzzled but maybe my fellow Canadians are too polite. More accurately they were probably not listening. Perhaps the term did come from Ford advertising.  I do not believe it ever had anything to do with a musical performance. My own elephantine attempts to get in and out of such a vehicle would certainly suggest that it cannot be done with dignity by anyone larger than a child.

[Wm Steed]

Not being one to split hairs about most beliefs/sayings etc., I do however find it interesting as to how some sayings get started.

I like Tod researched through the Standard Catalog of American Cars looking for the term 'opera coupe' I could find no reference to the term, I found: 
rs cpe, 2p cpe, 3 p cpe, 5p cpe, bus cpe vic cpe, spt cpe and clb cpe. In my  Packard/Studebaker books and books covering some of the other more pricey automobiles, they refer to some 2dr's as being 'close coupled' sedans, ie; larger than a coupe but shorter than a regular 2 dr. sdn. Studebaker and a few other manufactures liked the term  'Brougham' to describe short 'close coupled' 2dr sdns. Many of the other manufactures preferred the term 'Victoria' to describe their 'close coupled' 2 dr's.

It is very common knowledge in the Early V8 Ford group, that following the purchased of Lincoln by Ford, Ford turned Lincoln into a very profitable company. Ford incorporated many of the Lincoln design features into the new Model A body for 1930.  In 1931 Ford introduced the Victoria body into the the Model A line of cars, the Victoria line first appeared  in the Lincoln line in 1928.

OK.... now back to the 'opera coupe'....
When I goggled 'opera coupe' several topics came up, the most of which referred to variations of '40 Ford coupes. There were a few others, one of which described a '28 Buick ' Opera Coupe' . Buick did not have an opera coupe in '28/29 they had a model 58 2 dr cpe- 5p. When one reviews the photo's of this vehicle in the Std Cat Am Cars, you will see a 'close coupled' 2dr sdn which is the same as the vehicle shown in the picture I found via goggle.

So where and why did the term originate? As I have already said, most likely in the jargon of some salesman or advertising  writer.  Like I said in my earlier posting, I can not imagine any lady that was dressed appropriately to attend the opera or theater would want to exit the rear seat of a vehicle while climbing over or around the front seat.
One must remember that in the 1920/30's it was considered bad form for a lady to expose any portion of her leg above the ankle. :o....Bill   

[notdavidspade]

I got the following definition from http://www.coachbuilt.com/ter/terminology.htm , a coach building terminology site.


OPERA COUPE - a two door closed car with a small folding seat beside the driver. This allowed easy passage to a rear seat for two, usually offset to the right in left-hand drive cars.

[TodFitch]

The first I heard of the term "opera coupe" was in regard to a senior series mid-1920s Buick which had a single driver seat with a folding jump seat beside it. With the jump seat folded there was access to a very nice rear seat.

Looking through the Standard Catalog of American Cars I don't see any mid-1920s Buick models listed as "opera coupe" but I do see a few of the larger series cars listed as four or five passenger coupes. Looking at the body nomenclature section in my Dyke's Automobile and Gasoline Engine Encyclopedia I don't see the term "opera coupe" either. Dyke's does say this about coupes:

Coupe.--An enclosed single-compartment body. Passenger capacity varies with arrangement of seats or the length of wheelbase. Two doors are provided; back panels and top are permanent and the rear deck accommodates a luggage compartment. Small coupes have a single cross seat accommodating two or three passengers, while the larger coupes frequently provide a staggered seating arrangement which, with an auxiliary seat beside the driver, may accommodate as many as five passengers. The larger types ara also generally provided with quarter windows.

My guess is that "opera coupe" would be the salesman's term in the 1920s for the larger coupe described above. I don't think that the term "opera coupe" was much used by the 1930s and I doubt that any of the Plymouths, Fords or Chevrolets of the 1930s would have been called that at the time.

[Wm Steed]

I wonder.... just where the term 'opera coupe' originate?

I recently reviewed several automobile publications I have looking for the term 'opera coupe', in not one of the books could I find a manufactures listing for an 'opera coupe'. Coupes were/are referred to as club coupes, or 2 / 5 person coupes, but no mention of 'opera's'. The '40 Ford club coupe, ie; with jump seats behind the front seat is commonly referred to as an opera coupe by the Ford people, however, it is not listed as such in the reference books I have.

I would venture the guess that the term 'opera coupe' originated in the jargon of some salesman trying to impart a little class into a vehicle he was trying to sell. The term is most likely a spin off of box seating in a fine theater.... the prime seating being to the front of the box, where-as the rear seating is jambed into a small space at the rear of the box.

It is very unlikely that anyone attending an opera would want to show up at the theater, dressed in all their finery,  jambed into the back seat of Plymouth/Ford coupe... 8) Billl