Why is a rocker panel called a rocker panel?

[Thump553]

A random thought that occured to me while doing a spring cleanup (and inspecting winter damage) to my car.

To the best of my knowledge (which isn't much) there isn't a car part called a rocker.

Any ideas?

 

[Meghan54]

Why is anything called what it is? Why is the sky called the sky? Why is a hood called a hood?

Probably had significance decades upon decades ago, but it's lost in the mists of time now and is just convention.

 

[5150MyU]

Driveway? Dooryard?

 

[punjabiplaya]

why is a car called a car?

this post is irrelevant to those in Albania

 

[Throckmorton]

why is a car called a car?

this post is irrelevant to those in Albania

car c.1300, "wheeled vehicle," from O.N.Fr. carre, from L. carrum, carrus (pl. carra), originally "two-wheeled Celtic war chariot," from Gaulish karros (cf. Welsh carr "cart, wagon," Breton karr "chariot"), from PIE *krsos, from base *kers- "to run." Extension to "automobile" is 1896. Car bomb first 1972, in reference to Northern Ireland.

There is a reason they're called rocker panels just like there's a reason for the name of everything and the OP wants to know what it is.

 

[AsianriceX]

This might help:
http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=114365

 

[IcePickFreak]

Just taking a guess, but when you high-center a car it's in that stretch where the rocker panels are. Back in the really early days of cars they had dirt "roads" and short wheel bases so it probably happened quite often where they had to rock the car off the high point.

 

[Throckmorton]

Now we need to figure out why rocks are called rocks.

 

[BassBomb]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9pa1OQF7zMI

 

[Thump553]

Thanks AsianRiceX. I had forgotten all about The Straight Dope-used to be one of my favorite bathroom books (in the days before internet). They had a truely classic thread on how to kill roaches.

 

[joeychev]

OK, so let's get rid of this mystery, and we'll be one more step toward solving the mystery of the universe."Rocker" is a naval term, meaning an object with a curved form, such as the keel of a ship. You guys who are military minded should also know what a "rocker" is, in reference to rank, a curved stripe for those who rank above sergeant.Thus, a curved panel under the door sill is called, what else, a "rocker panel."The term was supposedly first applied to automobile body parts in 1921.And last but not least, what do you call a chair with a curved piece under it? A rocker, of course, or rocking chair as the derivative....

I suggest you find more current post to reply to...
This is considered a "necro thread" which is almost 2 years old...

AT Moderator
Bartman39

 

[phucheneh]

First post necro and no spam? 'the fuck is my free iPad?

Seriously, though, I understand that explanation; but that panel isn't and AFAIK has historically not been curved. It might have a little shape to it to go with the rest of the body, particularly the front and rear fascias. But they started out at a straight, flat piece of steel.

I would go with a mix of the of the military explanation and the 'high center' explanation (i.e. it's the car's 'rocking point'). With a dash of 'who knows.'

I'm curious how far back the name extends- did wagons or carriages call that area the 'rocker'?

This is the explanation from the SD forums:

Your friend is correct. On early cars a sacrificial panel was placed behind the front tires and ran to the rear of the car. It was covered with a rubber matting to keep things quiet. It was originally called a rock deflector. As body building techniques evolved and running boards and stand alone front fenders went away, the name rocker panel stuck and now it is the part of the lower body work between the wheel wells.

But that's just a member chiming in with no confirmation. Makes sense, though, that it may have stemmed from the long running boards between external (or 'semi-external) fenders. Unshielded bias-plys on the front can probably chuck a rock really damned good.