Matrix 1:43 1995 Mini Cooper Limousine, Red
$160.17
A limousine or limo for short, is a large luxury vehicle driven by a chauffeur with a partition between the driver's compartment and the passenger's compartment.
A very long wheelbase luxury sedan (with more than four doors) driven by a professional driver is called a stretch limousine.
In some countries, such as the United States, Germany or Canada, a "limousine service" is a pre-booked hire car with driver, regardless of the type of vehicle. It also describes a large vehicle for transporting passengers to and from an airport.
In German-speaking countries, a Limousine is simply a full-size sedan, while a lengthened-wheelbase car is called Stretch-Limousine.
The word limousine is derived from the name of the French region Limousin. However, how the name of the region transferred to the car is uncertain.
One possibility involves a particular type of carriage hood or roof physically resembled the raised hood of the cloak worn by the shepherds there.
An alternate etymology speculates that early some chauffeurs wore a Limousin-style cloak in the open driver's compartment, for protection from the weather. The name was then extended to this particular type of car with a permanent top projecting over the chauffeur. This former type of automobile had an enclosed passenger compartment seating three to five persons, with only a roof projecting forward over the open driver's area in the front.
Stretch limousines are longer than regular limousines, usually in order to accommodate more passengers. Stretch limousines may have seating along the sides of the cabin.
A "stretch limousine" was created in Fort Smith, Arkansas, around 1928 by a coach company named Armbruster. Armbruster's cars were primarily used to transport famous "big band" leaders, such as Glenn Miller and Benny Goodman, and their bands and equipment. These early stretch limousines were often called "big band buses". Armbruster called their lengthened cars "extended-wheelbase multi-door auto-coaches". Their 12-passenger people movers were used by hotels, taxis, airlines, corporations and tour companies.