These are the most curious car doors on the automotive market

Car design is an important part of what must be considered in order to offer an attractive car that interests buyers. The shape of the bodywork, its front and rear must be carefully looked after, but there are other elements that help reinforce the image the car is meant to project. And doors are one of those things that make a car shine considerably more.

There are different types of door that move away from the traditional door, and they are usually found on high-end cars or directly on supercars. So let’s review these different types of doors to see how manufacturers try to attract car buyers.

Gullwing doors

Gullwing doors are probably one of the best-known designs outside the most traditional ones. We have to go back to the 1950s to find the first car to use them. It was the Mercedes 300 SL Gullwing, although they later fell into disuse due to their technical complexity. But throughout automotive history there have been other models that featured them, such as the iconic DeLorean, or some isolated models from other brands have also fitted these doors. Yes, since the year 2000 Mercedes has revived the gullwing style and uses it on several of its cars.

Butterfly doors

Butterfly doors are similar to gullwing doors, but instead of opening completely vertically, they swing freely towards the front of the car. These doors have been developed by several brands, although it is McLaren that has worked with them and offers them across all its models, such as the McLaren P1 or the McLaren F1.

Swan doors

Swan doors are similar to normal ones, although they rise slightly and from the front they offer a different look, like the swan wings from which they take their name. Currently there are few models fitted with this type of door, such as the Aston Martin DB 9 and the Aston Martin DB 11.

Suicide doors

Suicide doors don’t have a very appealing name, so Rolls-Royce, one of the brands that uses them most, prefers to call them coach doors. They are like traditional doors, but their hinges are at the rear, so they open in the opposite direction to “normal” ones. You can see them on the Rolls-Royce Wraith and the Phantom Coupé, for example.

Dihedral synchro-helix doors

A complex name for complex doors. These are hinged doors that open by lifting up and forward on an axis. It is a complicated design, and only Koenigsegg supercars fit them. They are truly spectacular and we won’t see them on lower-end cars.

Other vehicle doors

There is another type of car door intended for concept cars that will never reach production. For example, capsule-type doors, like those fitted to fighter jets. Another type of door is intended for small vehicles, such as the Isetta or its evolution, the Artega Karo-Isetta. This model has the door at the front and it opens forwards. Sliding doors, on the other hand, can be found mostly on vans, although some cars also have them. In this case, they are quite rare and not suitable because of the distance they must travel.