There was a post on it some time ago on the British-cars list. From
recollection, the "shooting brake" was a term given to a certain kind of
wagon drawn by horses - before the advent of cars. The "brake" represented
that it was a wagon with, in fact, a brake. You can picture the type, the
lever pulled against the wheels. The "shooting" part represented the use,
ie going hunting. I do recall someone posting a comment that there were
vehicles used in Africa where the riders faced outwards and could shoot at
game while they travelled. I believe that was probably a later use of the
term.
I believe these wagons tended to be longer than other wagons. This might
have lead to its use for a sports car station wagon. Of course, by the
time it got to be a label for cars, it was completely irrelevant. Funny
how that goes. Note how many GT's are now convertibles (including our
beloved cars). I don't know about the pre-automobile use of that term, but
the earlier Grand Tourisimo cars were not convertibles (or roadsters or
dropheads or cabriolets).
Jay
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