Door math?

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Vagabound

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Though not a rocket scientist, I can count my fingers and toes pretty quickly without help.  So, I should be able to crack the code on this, but not so far.  A few minutes of Internet searching didn't help.

On those occasions when I count the doors of any van for sale, and try to match it to the description (3-door, for example), the math never works.  There always seems to be more doors than it says.  Maybe the driver and passenger doors are supposed to be ignored when counting.

Although this might be the shortest thread in history, can someone please explain to me how to count van doors?

Thanks,

Vagabound
 
te rear doers or hatch don't count, only the passenger doors
I guess the rear of the van is the garage :D
It is odd, because on cars if it's a hatchback, they do count the rear hatch
 
ArtW said:
te rear doers or hatch don't count, only the passenger doors
I guess the rear of the van is the garage :D
It is odd, because on cars if it's a hatchback, they do count the rear hatch

Thank you!  I knew I wasn't insane (in this way). And that hatchback thing was part of my confusion.

So, then is it correct to say that a "3-door" van always has one large sliding door on the side, and a "4-door" van has two opposing (correct term missing) kitchen-cabinet-like doors on the side?

Vagabound
 
I don't know 'bout that.
From the ads I've seen, I would say a four door van has sliding doors on opposite sides (like a transit connect or minivan), while a three door van has either the barn doors (apparently counts as one door) or one sliding door on the passenger side only.
My Grand Caravan is considered a four-door van, plus a liftgate in back.
Maybe it's up to whomever is writing the description.
 
My take on this is every van has 2 front seat doors it's the other doors you count either back barn doors or single side barn doors or slider, now you got me questioning mice elf.???
 
no, each opening counts as a door, so a 4 dor van has a driver, passenger, and 2 sliding doors, or two sets of barn doors
the barn doors count as one because they each comprise one entry point
so a 3 door van has one rear side door, and a 4 door has a slider (or whatever) on each side
 
Who needs a door?
Just hop in through the window like you're in the Dukes of Hazard!

(Kidding ;)
 
KASibson said:
Who needs a door?
Just hop in through the window like you're in the Dukes of Hazard!

(Kidding ;)

I had that car
No, not the General Lee, just a junky old Dodge with a driver's door that wouldn't open :D
 
You can get as fancy as you want with your thinking, suppositions and translations, but I've talked to car dealers who can't seem to count at all.

And, since they never seem to show the slider/barn doors, they probably aren't counting them, either.
 
My 06 G2500 Ext. Savana Hi Top has R&L Front doors. 2 side doors, one is bigger than the other, and 2 bock doors. When I go to web sites for parts, the is a sub menu for body type/style and I always buy for the 3 door ext.
 
KASibson said:
Who needs a door?
Just hop in through the window like you're in the Dukes of Hazard!

(Kidding ;)

TRIGGER WARNING:  The following statement, although in the realm of humorous opinion, maybe give you unsettling flashbacks to a time when TVs only got 3 channels, we weren't pretending that we only have one gender, and trigger meant part of a gun or a famous horse.

----

If my head fills with images of Daisy Duke, and I can't type right, it's all gonna be your fault!  

Hmmm.  Standing like that surely must cause back pain.  Probably just gets lumped into that category of other questionable things like high heels and swishy walking.

Vagabound

(... and now we return to our regular programming ...)
 
Gadget728 said:
My 06 G2500 Ext. Savana Hi Top has R&L Front doors. 2 side doors, one is bigger than the other, and 2 bock doors. When I go to web sites for parts, the is a sub menu for body type/style and I always buy for the 3 door ext.

We seem to be approaching something closer to data, rather than conjecture, but we still don't know which doors are included in the count and which aren't.  Based on all I've read here, the only thing I think I've concluded beyond that is that individual swinging doors aren't counted separately if they are part of a pair (side of a van).  Like ArtW said, openings or holes are counted, not doors.  But not all openings.   :-/  Other than maybe automotive design engineers, I think TrainChaser came closest by basically saying that no one really knows.

Vagabound
 
Door count= number of openings for passengers in passenger van. So 2 in front, 1 or 2 on sides (barn or slider)= 3 or 4 door and back doors are cargo doors and not included. Gets used for cargo vans too. Anything else is just somebody else who doesn't know making up their own version for the ads. LOL
 
which is perzacly what I said, based on visiting Dealer Showrooms and having various vans described to me by the guys that push them for the maker, as 3 or 4 door, depending on number of holes in the van not used for cargo
I am not guessing
1996 van or minivan, 3 door
2003 minivan, 4 door
2013 transit connect 4 door
I've never seen a 4 door full size van, yet
The makers categorize them that way, too
 
ArtW, yep, you did. :) Perzacly. Yet still there was wonder whether data or conjecture so I figured I'd explain again in different way. :D

Must be a regional or state thing on the ads about showing the rear passenger doors. So far every ad around here that shows more than one pic shows the door side so you can tell whether barn or slider.
 
I think it is, in two out of five ads I found here recently, the only view was from the driver's side, the others showed both sides, except for the one that had no pics, which turned out to have barn doors, but unfortunately wasn't in good shape to get home with (rear brakes stuck)
I have noticed that barn doors seem to be more likely on the passenger models and conversions around here atm
 
Do you suppose this is how the term "Fuzzy Math" was coined?
 
I saw a horse that could add and subtract, maybe that was 'fuzzy math' :D
 

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