A small, inexpensive, or unreliable car; originally a term for early cheap automobiles like the Model T Ford.
Origin uncertain but likely emerged in early 1900s American slang, possibly from 'flip' or 'fliver' meaning something that flutters or wobbles. Became especially associated with the Ford Model T, an affordable but humble car.
Flivver is pure American innovation—it was born when the Model T made cars affordable for regular people around 1910! It's affectionately slangy, mixing admiration (cheap!) with gentle mockery (unreliable), capturing how Americans loved and complained about their first cars.
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