City car

A city car (also known as urban car or mini) is a small car intended for use primarily in an urban area.

City cars are sold worldwide and most automotive industry manufacturers have one or two in their line-up. In North America, city cars are often referred to simply as "subcompacts" alongside the superminis. These kinds of car are also usually known as the A-segment across Europe. In Japan, the kei car (軽自動車, keijidōsha^?, lit. "light automobile") is a specific type of city car. To receive legal classification as a kei car (along with the added registration discounts and benefits), the vehicle must meet specific size criteria in both physical dimensions and engine capacity. For 'city cars' in Japan, the definition is informal and imprecise.

One of the earliest city cars was the American-made Crosley, a four-passenger vehicle from the late 1940s. After the Second World War, a number of makers introduced microcars, the precursors to the modern city car. These included the Bond Minicar and AC Petite in Britain; the Iso Isetta in Italy in 1953; the Fulda, Messerschmitt Kabinenroller, and Brütsh in Germany in 1954 (all two-seaters with a Fulda and Sachs two-stroke engine; the Goggomobil Isard (a 2+2, rather than a true four-seater); and the Gutbrod Superior. There was also the Dornier-designed Zündapp Janus, which placed passengers back to back, and the Riley Reliant.

A city is a relatively large and permanent settlement. Although there is no agreement on how a city is distinguished from a town within general English language meanings, many cities have a particular administrative, legal, or historical status based on local law.

For example, in the U.S. state of Massachusetts an article of incorporation approved by the local state legislature distinguishes a city government from a town. In the United Kingdom and parts of the Commonwealth of Nations, a city is traditionally a settlement with a royal charter. Historically, in Europe, a city was understood to be an urban settlement with a cathedral.

Cities generally have complex systems for sanitation, utilities, land usage, housing, and transportation. The concentration of development greatly facilitates interaction between people and businesses, benefiting both parties in the process. A big city or metropolis usually has associated suburbs and exurbs. Such cities are usually associated with metropolitan areas and urban areas, creating numerous business commuters traveling to urban centers for employment. Once a city expands far enough to reach another city, this region can be deemed a conurbation or megalopolis.

An automobile, autocar, motor car or car is a wheeled motor vehicle used for transporting passengers, which also carries its own engine or motor. Most definitions of the term specify that automobiles are designed to run primarily on roads, to have seating for one to eight people, to typically have four wheels, and to be constructed principally for the transport of people rather than goods.

The term motorcar has also been used in the context of electrified rail systems to denote a car which functions as a small locomotive but also provides space for passengers and baggage. These locomotive cars were often used on suburban routes by both interurban and intercity railroad systems.

There are approximately 600 million passenger cars worldwide (roughly one car per eleven people). Around the world, there were about 806 million cars and light trucks on the road in 2007; the engines of these burn over a billion cubic meters (260 billion US gallons) of petrol/gasoline and diesel fuel yearly. The numbers are increasing rapidly, especially in China and India.