Almost like a city bus design, or like a giant tadpole. It would make it so much easier to see around corners. Engine in the back, driver’s seat behind a somewhat flat or maybe bubble-like windshield for aerodynamics.
For years I drove a van with a short stubby front end. It is so incredibly easier to control and have spatial awareness of the edges of your vehicle compared to the other extreme like a Mustang or Charger where you’re sitting in a bucket and can only see a foot above your 7 feet of hood.
I know some high end sports cars have the engines in the back, so I don’t think that’s a problem. But why not eliminate the hood altogether?
In: Engineering
Putting the engine in the back is an issue for several reasons, not the least of which being that during a crash it can actually fly forwards and crush the cabin (where the people sit). Another issue is traction. Front wheel drive cars are safer/easier to control, and if all of that weight is shifted to the back then the drive traction will be awful.
A lot of it is safety. Having the engine and up there acts like a big shock absorber during crashes. There are a lot of small vans that have a design like you describe and they’re very unsafe when it comes to crashes.
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The main reasons are driver/passenger safety, and maintenance/repair costs.
Having a crumple zone in front of passengers to absorb impacts greatly improves safety. It’s still an issue in vans or trucks, but less so when they’re bigger and higher than passenger vehicles.
Additional, working on covered engines is way more difficult and costly than engines with easier access. May be a trade-off for certain types of vehicles in terms of allowing more usable space in return for higher maintenance costs, or in the case of sports cars the deep pockets of a Ferrari owner.
But for the average passenger vehicle, the safety and cost trade-offs aren’t worth a little better field of vision… especially when things like crossover ride heights, technology, etc. can also improve vision without reducing safety or repair costs.
Car design is a compromise between safety, cost and efficiency. The main reason for putting the driver in the middle is to put the driver in the safest possible spot from a collision from any angle. Can’t plan on all collisions being from only one given direction, so you do what you can.
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