Vierräder

Vierräder is the German term for four wheels and is used to describe any vehicle that has four wheels. In everyday language it contrasts with zweiräder (two wheels) and dreiräder (three wheels). The term does not denote a single technical class, but a broad category that includes most passenger cars, light trucks, vans and other four-wheeled platforms.

Four-wheeled designs emerged in the 19th century, with early horse-drawn four-wheeled carriages and later steam and combustion-powered prototypes. As the automobile developed, four wheels became the standard configuration for road vehicles, offering stable handling, greater load capacity and safer braking compared with many earlier three-wheeled and two-wheeled concepts.

Drivetrain and layout: four-wheel vehicles may use front-wheel drive (Vorderradantrieb), rear-wheel drive (Hinterradantrieb) or all-wheel drive (Allrad, Vierradantrieb). The arrangement of wheels, axles and suspension varies by purpose, but the four-wheel design generally provides improved traction, stability and interior space relative to three- and two-wheel designs.

Beyond conventional cars, the term also covers quadricycles or quadracycles, four-wheeled bicycles, light trucks, and other four-wheeled platforms used in industrial, agricultural or recreational settings. In regulatory and insurance contexts, Vierräder serves as a generic descriptor rather than a reference to a particular model.