Sports sedans and wagons are my jam. There's nothing like having a car that can hang with Boxsters on twisting roads (no doubt the drivers were feathering the throttle in fear of an intermediate shaft failure), take my friends grocery shopping (this is what happens when having a car in college, though I never did get girls with it), and transporting the contents of my sister's dorm room (never have I seen so many boxes full of shoes).
That's why I like my Jetta 2.0T.
Before I lose all credibility because I wrote my Jetta 2.0T is a sports sedan, I'd like to point out that cars with four-doors far outsell two-door cars. The Mercedes S-Class outsells the CL-Class. The 3-Series sedan outsells the 3-Series coupe. I've never even seen a CTS coupe on the highway. Therefore, sedans sell more than coupes, so I came up with a list.
But sports sedans can do so much more for automakers, like increase sales so they can make more performance cars. Enable dads not to give up their Miata for a Camry. Provide a backseat for makeout sessions. And most importantly, carry a bunch of people home from the local watering holes (because I was responsibly always the designated driver).
Author's Note: Product planners of major car companies and Lotus, take notice. Please build these. They'll be amazing and best of all, they'll sell. If you need any help justifying these to the bean counters, this unemployed writer with way too much time on his hands is happily here to help.
Nissan GT-R
The GT-R is a supercar trying to be a grand tourer. There's no other reason to explain the back seats and usable trunk. And a company that had the resources to create the Murano CrossCabriolet presumably should have the wherewithal to create a four-door version of its supercar.
Before you say the Juke-R exists, keep in mind that its price is insane and I think it's ugly. (There's a reason they made about 20 of them.) A sedan would make the GT-R more comfortable and give the Panamera Turbo S a run for its money. Most importantly to Nissan, it would set the record for the fastest sedan around the Nürburgring. I think that's reason enough for them.
Scion FR-S
There are no compact rear-drive sedans available for under $30K, yet somehow we have a full-size one (the Dodge Charger with the Pentastar V-6). And Toyota needs to get more sales of cars off the FR-S platform. Naturally, they should make a four-door (I wouldn't be surprised if it was in the cards).
Scion would be so much cooler because they'd have a four-door that wasn't a front-drive hatchback. New dads selling their small sports cars would buy this in a heartbeat, because babies need to be comfortable too. After all, why should the WRX and Lancer Ralliart have that market? Rear-drive is so much better.
Lotus Evora
As if this list wasn't going to become more controversial, I've decided the Lotus Evora should have four doors despite a mid-engine layout. Having driven it, I found it incredibly cramped. (And I'm only 5' 10".) I would hate to sit in the back seat.
So I propose that Lotus stretch the Evora and make a four-door version, with RX-8 doors. Yes, I know Lotus probably doesn't have the money. It goes against the philosophy of Colin Chapman. And it's mid-engined. But how cool would a mid-engined sedan be? It would bring a lot more people into the Lotus experience and undoubtedly sell more cars.
Honda CR-Z
I actually like the Honda CR-Z. The chassis is tuned quite well, the manual transmission has good feel, and it has Honda quality. Those are all the good things I have to say about it. The bad: no rear seats (those shelves make me weep because of the lost potential), it's relatively slow, and I think the electric motor just weighs down the car.
But it has to be a four-door hot hatchback if Honda wants to really make the CR-Z something special. The CR-Z gas engine could be tuned for more performance, while the electric motor could provide a KERS-sort of boost. In fact, it would be good enough to play with the Fiesta ST and 500 Abarth. All while still getting decent fuel economy and actually being a performancehybrid car, like it was meant to be.
Ferrari FF
I don't care what Luca thinks; a four-door FF has to happen. When Rolls-Royce is setting sales records for cars that cost more than an FF and 458 combined, I'm sure the super-rich could pony up some cash to buy a four-door Ferrari, to demonstrate .
In fact, the FF has the option of a rear entertainment system and Ferrari ensured the back seat could seat normal people comfortably. Perhaps Ferrari didn't provide rear doors because FF owners need a captive audience to explain why the ownership is worth the depreciation hit.
Luca, I implore you, for the love of God,make a four-door FF. People will want it instead of it being relegated to lists like these. I'll even take full responsibility if it doesn't sell, but trust me, it won't be.
What cars do you think need a four-door version?
This list originally appeared on my Kinja blog BecauseCAR.
All images courtesy respective manufacturers and cover image courtesy Flickr.