> 
> a little bit of light shines upon the meaning (or use) of the term: Kombi.

Cars, in German, are 'Personenkraftwagen', 'kraft' meaning power. Trucks are
'Lastkraftwagen', 'Last' meaning load. So the German mind perceives
the two types of vehicles as PKW and LKW. A 'Kombinationswagen' thus means
a vehicle with both attributes. Somehow 'Combinationvehicle' doesn't ring
true in English.

By the way, a couple of years ago I rented a Eurovan Westfalia in Hamburg.
The first evening out I spent some time reading the manual, trying to decipher
instructions for the stove, beds, etc. Finally I started reading the German
instead of the English. It was much clearer (even though the English was
indeed proper and good English, German is a clearer language for things
technical). I might add that I've spent three years in German, so the language
is not new to me.

Neil Wigley
U of Windsor
<wigley@server.uwindsor.ca>