Chelsea tractor

noun

1. informal.
   a four-by-four

Word History and Origins

Origin of Chelsea tractor¹

C21: from the idea of vehicles designed for rough terrain being popular among urban dwellers

Example Sentences

They, and similar production versions, will be a desirable status symbol which removes the gas-guzzling tag of the much-maligned Chelsea tractor at the school gates.

From BBC

Europe, with its more embedded culture of walking, cycling and public transport, is now staging something of a backlash against the SUV, with protests held in Germany over the vehicles’ climate impact and calls in the UK, home of the “Chelsea tractor” insult, for a tobacco-style ban on advertising SUVs because they spew out huge volumes of air pollutants that lodge harmful particles in the lungs and can even lead to brain damage.

From The Guardian

You could see one on a woman in a Chelsea tractor, a new dad or a fashion student.

From The Guardian

Aston Martin and Ferrari are also crowding into the Chelsea tractor segment.

From Wall Street Journal

Although some owners might pursue remote and exotic adventures, he suspects that for others it will become the yachting equivalent of the Chelsea tractor.

From The Guardian