What Did They Call Cars in the 1930s?

People in the 1930s most often called them automobiles or simply cars, with common variants like auto and motorcar; in Britain, motor and saloon (for a sedan) were routine, while slang such as jalopy, flivver, heap, and Tin Lizzie colored everyday speech. This mix of formal terms, brand-driven labels, and lively slang reflected the era’s technology, advertising, and culture—from Depression-era thrift to Hollywood glamour and gangster headlines.

What everyday people said

Across newsrooms, sales floors, and front porches, a handful of straightforward terms dominated the era’s day-to-day conversation. These were the words you were most likely to hear in a dealership, see in a local newspaper, or use in a family discussion about buying or fixing a vehicle.

• Car: The most common catch-all, used widely in the U.S. and U.K.
• Automobile: A slightly more formal U.S. term, frequent in advertising and news.
• Auto: A clipped, casual form appearing in headlines and conversation.
• Motorcar: Formal or old-fashioned in the U.S., but still present; neutral to formal in the U.K.
• Motor (U.K.): Everyday British shorthand—“He’s got a new motor.”
• Machine: Newspaper and police-report jargon in the U.S., often in crime or accident stories.

Taken together, these terms covered most practical talk about vehicles, with regional flavor—especially the British motor—adding nuance to otherwise universal usage.

Slang you would have heard

Slang in the 1930s captured the age’s economic hardships, mechanical quirks, and pop-culture mythology, from dusty jalopies to slick getaway sedans. These terms appeared in comics, radio shows, pulp fiction, and city papers.

• Jalopy: A beat-up, inexpensive car—ubiquitous in Depression-era talk.
• Flivver: An older slang term for a cheap, small, or inferior car; still heard in the ’30s.
• Heap: A derisive nickname for a shabby or clunky car.
• Rattletrap: An aging, noisy car whose loose parts announce its approach.
• Bus: Colloquial for a big car (and of course, actual buses), often used jokingly.
• Tin Lizzie: Nickname for the Ford Model T—lingered into the 1930s as many Ts remained on the road.
• Duesy/Doozy: From Duesenberg—slang for something exceptional, often applied to a particularly fine car or event.
• Getaway car: Crime reportage staple, especially in Prohibition and gangster stories spilling into the early ’30s.
• Gow job: Early West Coast slang for a stripped-down, hopped-up car; the later term hot rod wouldn’t become mainstream until the 1940s.

These expressive labels helped people telegraph a car’s condition, cachet, or role—whether a beloved beater, a luxury status symbol, or a cinematic escape machine.

What ads and brochures called them

Manufacturers, coachbuilders, and dealers used precise body-style names and technical descriptors, many of which remain familiar. These terms show up in period brochures, dealer price sheets, and newspaper ads.

• Sedan (U.S.) / Saloon (U.K.): Closed car with a fixed roof and full-height doors; the family staple.
• Coupé (Coupe): Two-door closed car, generally sportier and tighter inside.
• Roadster: Two-seat open car, often with a minimal or removable top; a sporty favorite.
• Touring car: Open, multi-row seating; fading by the 1930s but still referenced.
• Phaeton: Open car with luxury overtones (e.g., dual-cowl on high-end makes).
• Cabriolet / Convertible coupé / Convertible sedan: Folding roof variants, bridging open-air motoring with closed-car comfort.
• Victoria: Stylish roofline/body variant seen on models like the Ford Model A Victoria.
• Brougham: A closed, often chauffeur-oriented body; also a prestige trim term.
• Limousine / Town car: Chauffeur-driven formats with partitions; luxury market staples.
• Station wagon (U.S.): Often with wood bodies (“woodies”), used for resorts, estates, and utility.
• Coach: Used by some U.S. makers for a two-door sedan in the early-to-mid ’30s.
• Sports saloon (U.K.) / Drophead coupé (U.K.): Sporting closed car; drophead denotes a convertible roof.
• Engine labels: Straight Eight, V-8, Twelve—prominent marketing hooks for power and prestige.
• Streamlined/Streamline styling: A design buzzword of the decade (think Chrysler Airflow and aerodynamic influences).

Ad copy leaned on sophistication and specificity—body styles signaling lifestyle, and engine badges conveying status—just as streamlining reframed cars as modern, efficient, and fashionable.

What they did not call them (or not yet)

Some terms were already archaic by the 1930s, while others wouldn’t arrive until decades later. Knowing what wasn’t said helps date material correctly.

• Horseless carriage, gas-buggy: 1900s-era talk—quaint or humorous by the ’30s.
• Hot rod: Largely a 1940s–1950s mainstream term; earlier tinkerers said gow job or speedster.
• Hooptie, whip, beater: Late-20th-century slang, not 1930s.
• SUV, crossover, minivan: Postwar concepts and labels (late 20th century).
• Muscle car, pony car, compact car (as a formal class): Mostly 1950s–1960s and later.

Spotting these anachronisms is useful for authentic dialogue, accurate captions, and historically faithful storytelling.

Regional notes

The 1930s vocabulary varied by country, shaped by local industry and motoring culture.

• United States: Car, automobile, auto; sedan, coupe, roadster; station wagon; jalopy and flivver common in slang.
• United Kingdom: Car and motor; saloon (sedan), drophead coupé, sports saloon; lorry for truck; “shooting brake” for wagon-like bodies (estate car would gain broader currency later).
• Australia: Ute (utility) emerged mid-1930s for coupe-utility pickups, a locally significant innovation.

These regional patterns help explain differences in period advertisements, manuals, and press coverage—even when the vehicles were mechanically similar.

Why the names mattered

In a decade defined by the Great Depression and rapid design change, language carried weight. Slang like jalopy spoke to thrift and improvisation, while body-style precision in ads promised modern comforts and status. Pop culture and crime reporting reinforced certain images—the sleek “getaway car,” the aspirational “Duesy”—while streamlining and new engine labels sold a vision of forward motion that would define prewar motoring.

Summary

In the 1930s people typically said automobile, car, auto, motorcar—and in Britain, motor and saloon—while colorful slang such as jalopy, flivver, heap, and Tin Lizzie thrived. Advertisers favored precise body-style and engine terms: sedan/saloon, coupé, roadster, convertible, limousine, station wagon, V‑8, and Straight Eight, among others. Archaic phrases like horseless carriage were mostly quaint by then, and later coinages like hot rod or SUV had not yet arrived. The era’s vocabulary mirrored its machines: practical, aspirational, and unmistakably of its time.

What did they call cars in the 1920s?

In the 1920s, cars were called automobiles, motor cars, and motor carriages, with common nicknames including “Tin Lizzie” for the affordable Ford Model T and more generic terms like “machine” or “horseless carriage”. The word “car” itself was also increasingly used as a shortened form of “motor car”. 
Common Terms for Cars in the 1920s:

• Automobile: Opens in new tabThis was a widely used and formal term for the motorized vehicle. 
• Motor Car: Opens in new tabAnother formal term that was becoming standard, though often shortened to just “car”. 
• Motor Carriage: Opens in new tabThis term reflects the origin of the automobile as a mechanized carriage, replacing horses. 
• “Car”: Opens in new tabThe word “car” was a shortened form of “motor car,” which eventually became the primary term. 

Popular Nicknames:

• “Tin Lizzie”: Opens in new tabAn affectionate and well-known nickname for the Ford Model T, a popular and inexpensive car of the era. “Lizzie” was a common name for a horse, and “tin” referred to the metal used in the car. 
• “Machine”: Opens in new tabIn American English, “machine” was a common term for a car during the 1920s. 
• “Horseless Carriage”: Opens in new tabA more descriptive and older term that was still used in the 1920s to highlight the vehicle’s lack of a horse. 

Other Terms:

• “Motor Buggy” or “Motor Wagon”: Less common terms, but still descriptive of the early motor vehicles. 
• “Flivver”: A term for a cheap, often unreliable car that was popular in the period. 

What is the old fashioned term for car?

An old-fashioned word for a car is an automobile, motorcar, or the more informal and disparaging term jalopy. Early forms of the word “car” were autocar and motorcar, and before that, the word was used for any type of wheeled vehicle, including carts and wagons. 
Here are some old-fashioned terms:

• Automobile: The original, more formal word for a self-propelled vehicle. 
• Motorcar: A term that emphasizes the use of a motor for propulsion. 
• Autocar: Another early alternative to “automobile”. 
• Wain: A word derived from Old English, referring to a cart or wagon, sometimes suggested as a replacement for “car”. 
• Jalopy: An informal and often derogatory term for a decrepit, old car. 
• Conveyance: A general term that could refer to a car in an older context. 

Did they have cars in the 1930s?

Yes, they had cars in the 1930s, which saw innovation, classic designs like the Ford Coupe and Cadillac, and the rise of the automobile as an American symbol, though the Great Depression led to a significant drop in production and sales. While cars evolved from basic models into more rounded forms with added amenities, they were still far from the full potential of modern vehicles.
 
Key Aspects of 1930s Cars

• Classic Models: The decade featured iconic vehicles such as the 1930 Cadillac, the 1932 Ford Coupe, and the 1936 Chevrolet and Ford Coupes, which became cultural touchstones. 
• Art Deco Style: Inspired by the era’s Art Deco movement, many cars featured beautiful, futuristic designs and innovative elements like hidden headlights and flush door handles. 
• Technological Advancements: Cars from the 1930s saw advancements such as the introduction of features like built-in heaters and radios, which had not been common in the previous decade. 
• Symbol of Prosperity: Despite economic hardship, cars remained a symbol of American prosperity and a cherished form of transportation for many. 

Impact of the Great Depression

• Sharp Production Decline: The Great Depression significantly impacted the auto industry, with production falling sharply in the early 1930s. 
• Industry Consolidation: Many manufacturers went out of business, leaving a few major companies—primarily Ford, General Motors, and Chrysler—to dominate the industry. 
• Shift in Buyer Behavior: While car sales fell dramatically, many households still owned vehicles, though they were less likely to purchase new ones. 

What did they originally call cars?

Horseless carriage
“Horseless carriage” is attested from 1895. “Automobile”, a classical compound derived from Ancient Greek autós (αὐτός) “self” and Latin mobilis “movable”, entered English from French and was first adopted by the Automobile Club of Great Britain in 1897.