subject: Transporting A Piano In A Hatch [print this page] Transporting A Piano In A Hatch Transporting A Piano In A Hatch
Hatch is the car industry name for compact cars with a fifth door at the back. The word is a contraction of the popular phrase Hot Hatch and refers to hatchback cars. My previous car was a hatch imaginatively named, yes, you guessed it, Hatch. Unfortunately, my little hatchback car was recently written off in an accident and I didn't realize how much it meant to me until after it was gone. My family has always had a hatchback in the garage so I guess I didn't think twice about buying one myself but now I know for sure that any other car I ever buy will be a hatch. This is because I know from experience that it is possible to transport a piano in one of these zippy little cars, and that transporting one is no mean feat.
Hatchbacks have been on the market for decades but the hatch as such is a relatively recent addition to the family of cars with doors where the boot normally is. Hatches are the babies, or chicks, of this car family and can be distinguished from other cars as well as from their siblings with hatches in a number of ways. Technically, it has to do with the number of pillars that hatches have and a whole lot of other things but what really stands out about this type of car for me, is the large amount of boot space! Sure, 4x4s, jeeps and station wagons probably have a lot more boot space than a hatch but then they are much larger and I don't want to start comparing apples with pears. What I really want to emphasize is that you can fit a piano and a bicycle complete with rider into the back of a hatch. Well, okay, not both piano and bicycle at the same time, and the piano is small, but it's still no mean feat. Obviously, if you are one of Liberace's successors and play either an upright piano or a baby grand, then you will need a bigger car or a van even, to transport your instrument. What we are talking of here is an electronic piano, and a big one at that. Now, an electronic piano may be narrow but it is very long and quite wide. You may have to move the front passenger seat forward as far as it will go and tilt the seat back forward but you will be able to fit both electronic piano and piano player into the hatch with you - with the boot fully closed. I kid you not.
There are many other reasons why I like the hatch, not least of which is its maneuverability. Because this style of car has a short wheel base, it is great for reverse parking and making three point turns in tight road spaces. They are also cheap to buy and economical to run but, being on the lower end of the car market, have been subject to the somewhat belittling moniker of "compact". Hatches are commonly referred to as compacts in other countries but it is not a particularly sexy term for these hot little cars. Fortunately, car designers have picked up on this and hatches are becoming more and more sporty-looking with each new model that comes out.
