What are these vehicles called in the United States?

Question

I understand the names for various types of cars in the US as well as elsewhere, such as hatchback, sedan, SUV, etc. However there are two classes of vehicles that don't seem to fall under any of those categories. Please see these pictures and advise what they're referred to as in American English. Dialectical and colloquial terms are welcome because I am more interested in practical usage in the streets rather than what the dictionary mandates.

In India, the vehicles shown in the two pictures above are just called "jeep" regardless of their brand or size. I could have called them SUVs but somehow I relate the term more with something like a Hummer or Toyota Fortuner.

Here's another class of vehicles:

Again, in India, these are simply known as vans regardless of their size. But I want to know if it's right to call them so. What would they be called in the US?

Answer 1

As a counterpoint to Kevin, I have heard non-Jeep branded vehicles that are of the same 'format', called "jeeps" (and in fact, would have used that word myself for the top two images). I would not use SUV for the second image as I generally think of SUVs as more of a full-size enclosed vehicle (e.g. a Tahoe or Navagator), although it obviously is a "sports utility vehicle".

The third picture I agree is a van, although a very foreign looking one.

For reference, I'm from and currently reside in the Southeastern US, but have lived in the Midwest and Northeast.

Answer 2

You could call it a 4x4 (four by four), which literally means it is a four wheel drive vehicle, but typically that usage also implies a rugged build and off-road capabilities. You'll very rarely hear of a 4x4 SUV just called simply a 4x4, but people use that generic term for Jeeps and Suzukis all the time.

Answer 3

The vehicle in the third photo has also been referred to as a "micro bus." I'm reminded of a popular 1970's song that mentioned a "VW micro bus" while describing American hippie culture.

Answer 4

For contrast, in Australia:

The first would be called a 4WD (four wheel drive), as is it full sized, long wheel-base, enclosed, 4 doors (although the last point is not strictly necessary). It may be called a Jeep only in reference to its actual brand.

The second would often be just called a jeep, as it is open-top, short wheel based (not necessarily a Jeep brand). But it would not be unusual to also call it a 4WD.

The last one would be called a van. If it only had passenger seats, it may also be called a people mover, although they tend to be comfortable designed-for-people vehicles (e.g. a Toyota Tarago), not vans re-purposed as passenger vehicles.

Answer 5

tl;dr:

1 & 2: "Jeep" or "off-brand Jeep"

3: "microvan" or "tiny van"

The places I've lived or worked in the US (Texas, New Mexico, North Carolina, Arizona, California, Florida, Georgia, Colorado, Hawaii) I think everyone would understand what you mean by "Jeep" for the first two, especially if you called them "off-brand Jeep" or whatever. The imagery is at least as important as the maker -- few people call the Cherokee a "Jeep" without calling it a "Jeep Cherokee", but plenty of folks refer to other maker vehicles that adhere to the classic Jeep style as "Jeeps".

The third picture I've always heard called a "micro-van" or just "a tiny van". You won't find that particular style of van in the US (Japanese "kei" vehicle styles are not sold there), so if you don't want to confuse it with a family "minivan" or much larger 12-pax "van" (like a company van, which is the image most folks would have pop into their heads) you would need to modify it with "micro" or describe it with "tiny" as an adjective. (Americans are generally not familiar with the term "kei van", either.)