# "Meaningless" Car Names **URL:** \ **Category:** Cecil's Columns/Staff Reports\ **Created:** [March 11, 2004, 8:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/meaningless-car-names/233673 "2004-03-11T08:47:46Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Sleel](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/73ab20/32.png) [@Sleel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sleel)\ **Post date:** [March 11, 2004, 8:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/meaningless-car-names/233673/1 "2004-03-11T08:47:46Z")
“Why do car makers come up with so many meaningless car names?” [http://www.straightdope.com/classics/a1\_189.html](http://www.straightdope.com/classics/a1_189.html) Cecil, it ain’t just the Americans who come up with weird or meaningless names for their cars. I currently live in Japan and something that I’ve noticed is that many of the current names have a Latin-language feel to them. Unfortunately, a great many Japanese do not actually speak Latin languages, particularly, it seems, the executives in charge of naming their vehicles. Case in point: one of the most popular SUVs in Japan right now is the Mitsubishi Pajero. One of my many roommates in my college days was from Uruguay. I learned some extremely rude South-American Spanish slang from him that included this word (pronounced pah-he-row). It means basically the same thing as “wanker” but it’s a lot more derogatory toward the person’s manhood. To top it off, Mitsubishi also makes a Mini-Pajero. This has provided me as well as my Brazilian and Peruvian friends with much mirth. Explaining it to our Japanese friends is even more fun. ---
**Author:** ![Jon\_H](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/b5a626/32.png) [@Jon\_H](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jon_H)\ **Post date:** [March 11, 2004, 2:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/meaningless-car-names/233673/2 "2004-03-11T14:47:11Z")
I think a sex link to a cars name can work well. Ford basically lost it’s way when it stopped naming cars after adult magazines, such as the Escort & Fiesta. I mean the Mondeo - what sort of name is that. Sanity has since returned to the Ford boardroom, though, with current models such as the Probe selling well. ---
**Author:** ![Dog80](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/6bbea6/32.png) [@Dog80](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dog80)\ **Post date:** [March 11, 2004, 3:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/meaningless-car-names/233673/3 "2004-03-11T15:37:36Z")
Pajero is sold in UK under the name “Shogun”. A really strange name was that of Mitsubishi Starion, a small sports car. Some say that they really wanted to name the car Stallion, but since the japanese language doesn’t make a distinction between r and l, they ended up with Starion! They might also wanted to combine the words Star and Stallion. I don’t think Mitsubishi has given a definite answer on the subject. ---
**Author:** ![Faldage](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/f4b2a3/32.png) [@Faldage](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Faldage)\ **Post date:** [March 11, 2004, 3:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/meaningless-car-names/233673/4 "2004-03-11T15:53:49Z")
Snopes isn’t even sure about the origin of the [Starion](http://www.snopes.com/business/misxlate/starion.asp) name. ---
**Author:** ![John\_W.Kennedy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_w.kennedy/32/1031_2.png) [@John\_W.Kennedy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_W.Kennedy)\ **Post date:** [March 11, 2004, 11:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/meaningless-car-names/233673/5 "2004-03-11T23:15:57Z")
People familiar with either Chaucer or Shakespeare tend to raise an eyebrow at the Toyota Cressida. ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [March 11, 2004, 11:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/meaningless-car-names/233673/6 "2004-03-11T23:44:43Z")
> [@](#): > > Mitsubishi Pajero… It means basically the same thing as “wanker” but it’s a lot more derogatory toward the person’s manhood. I remember hearing about that around the time the Pajero/Montero came out. Personally, I think “Mitsubishi Masturbator” has a nice ring to it. ---
**Author:** ![Beauty\_Personified](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/e480ec/32.png) [@Beauty\_Personified](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Beauty_Personified)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2004, 5:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/meaningless-car-names/233673/7 "2004-03-12T05:28:00Z")
> [@Johnny L.A.](#): > > I remember hearing about that around the time the Pajero/Montero came out. Personally, I think “Mitsubishi Masturbator” has a nice ring to it. Well, GM’s Buick _LaCrosse_ proved troublesome in the province of Quebec. Apparently, while Canada’s official national sport might come to mind to many, the term refers to masturbation for many French Canadians. I haven’t heard if or what GM has renamed the car for the Quebec market… Anyhoo… ---
**Author:** ![Briny\_Deep](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/briny_deep/32/17188_2.png) [@Briny\_Deep](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Briny_Deep)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2004, 6:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/meaningless-car-names/233673/8 "2004-03-12T06:06:34Z")
> [@John W. Kennedy](#): > > People familiar with either Chaucer or Shakespeare tend to raise an eyebrow at the Toyota Cressida. O Cressid! O false Cressid! false, false, false!/Let all untruths stand by thy stained name,/And they’ll seem glorious. Same goes for the Virago motorcycle, for those who know what it means. ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2004, 6:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/meaningless-car-names/233673/9 "2004-03-12T06:12:21Z")
> [@](#): > > Same goes for the Virago motorcycle A butch woman? Yamaha used to have a bike called the TDM. “Tedium”? Not a good name for a bike. (And Toyota has TRD on some of their vehicles. “Hey, mister! You have turd on your car!”) ---
**Author:** ![epepke](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/9de0a6/32.png) [@epepke](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/epepke)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2004, 11:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/meaningless-car-names/233673/10 "2004-03-12T11:41:59Z")
So, basically what you’re saying is that a Japanese can wake up in the morning, brush his and/or her teeth with Darkie toothpaste, break his fast on My Pee cereal products, and jump into his Pajero. ---
**Author:** ![jjimm](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ba8739/32.png) [@jjimm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jjimm)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2004, 11:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/meaningless-car-names/233673/11 "2004-03-12T11:48:53Z")
In Hong Kong, “Darkie” toothpaste was renamed “Darlie” a long time ago. Anyway, on the subject of dumb car names, nothing, but nothing, beats the Mazda **Bongo Friendy**. ---
**Author:** ![epepke](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/9de0a6/32.png) [@epepke](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/epepke)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2004, 12:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/meaningless-car-names/233673/12 "2004-03-12T12:14:17Z")
> [@jjimm](#): > > In Hong Kong, “Darkie” toothpaste was renamed “Darlie” a long time ago. > > Anyway, on the subject of dumb car names, nothing, but nothing, beats the Mazda **Bongo Friendy**. How about Ford Prefect? ---
**Author:** ![Lobelia\_Overhill](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/54ee81/32.png) [@Lobelia\_Overhill](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lobelia_Overhill)\ **Post date:** [March 13, 2004, 2:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/meaningless-car-names/233673/13 "2004-03-13T02:28:22Z")
> [@epepke](#): > > How about Ford Prefect? a hoopy frood who really knew where his towel was. I’ll get me coat … ---
**Author:** ![epepke](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/9de0a6/32.png) [@epepke](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/epepke)\ **Post date:** [March 13, 2004, 11:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/meaningless-car-names/233673/14 "2004-03-13T23:53:44Z")
> [@Lobelia Overhill](#): > > a hoopy frood who really knew where his towel was. > > I’ll get me coat … For those who don’t know the joke, Douglas Adams once owned a Ford Prefect, and he said it was the worst character that he ever owned. So he named a character after it. He was also at a resort one time and kept losing his towel. He figured a really together guy would be someone who always knew where his towel was. ---
**Author:** ![epepke](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/9de0a6/32.png) [@epepke](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/epepke)\ **Post date:** [March 13, 2004, 11:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/meaningless-car-names/233673/15 "2004-03-13T23:55:12Z")
> [@Lobelia Overhill](#): > > a hoopy frood who really knew where his towel was. > > I’ll get me coat … For those who don’t know the joke, Douglas Adams once owned a Ford Prefect, and he said it was the worst car that he ever owned. So he named a character after it. He was also at a resort one time and kept losing his towel. He figured a really together guy would be someone who always knew where his towel was. (Resubmitted s/character/car) ---
**Author:** ![John\_W.Kennedy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_w.kennedy/32/1031_2.png) [@John\_W.Kennedy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_W.Kennedy)\ **Post date:** [March 14, 2004, 1:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/meaningless-car-names/233673/16 "2004-03-14T01:54:29Z")
And to clarify a little bit more the Ford Prefect was a popular model from the _British_ Ford company (better known, though incorrectly as “English Ford”), made from 1938 to 1959. ---
**Author:** ![The\_PHB](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/df788c/32.png) [@The\_PHB](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_PHB)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2004, 2:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/meaningless-car-names/233673/17 "2004-03-16T14:08:20Z")
Toyota make a neat roadster caled the MR2. In England we pronounce that “em-ar-too”, which is OK if a little meaningless. However in France it doesn’t sell too well, I understand, because they pronounce it something like “em-air-der” which sounds uncomfortably like “merde” if you say it quickly… And whilst we’re on the subject, in Ben Elton’s satirical novel “Gridlock”, the executives of Global Motors are a little displeased by the name of their company’s new car. An international focus panel has come up with the name “Crapi”. It’s supposed to sound vaguely Italian, with the emphasis on the second syllable (“cra-pee”), but of course the obvious pronounciation is “crappy”. Does anyone know whether Elton was inspired by ther MR2? ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2004, 2:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/meaningless-car-names/233673/18 "2004-03-16T14:41:55Z")
> [@](#): > > Toyota make a neat roadster caled the MR2. In England we pronounce that “em-ar-too”, which is OK if a little meaningless. I call them **Mister Two**. I remember when the MR2 was introduced. The dealer told me that “MR” meant “ **M** id-engine, **R** ear-wheel drive”. ---
**Author:** ![The\_PHB](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/df788c/32.png) [@The\_PHB](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_PHB)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2004, 2:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/meaningless-car-names/233673/19 "2004-03-18T14:28:17Z")
> [@](#): > > _The dealer told me that “MR” meant “ **M** id-engine, **R** ear-wheel drive”._ Hmm. So presumably “MR2” means “ **M** id-engine, **R** ear-wheel drive, **2** seats”. How infuriatingly logical. This [International MR2 Owners Club site](http://www.mr2.com/MR2Desc.html) suggests: > [@](#): > > _There are several opinions on the origin of the name “MR2”. I haven’t listed all the variations, but here are some of the most popular interpretations of the name: > “Mid engined, Runabout, 2 seater” > “Midship Runabout 2-seater” > “Mid engined, Rear drive, 2 seater” > “Midship-engine, Rear-wheel drive, 2 seater” > “Midship Racer 2 seater”_ And this [MR2 fan site](http://www.megaboost.co.uk/mr2/frames/) has a similar explanation: > [@](#): > > _Toyota originally explained the name MR2 as meaning “Mid engined, Runabout, 2 seater” however, they now claim (and most owners prefer) the explanation of “Mid engine, Rear drive, 2 seater.” The car is also informally known as the “Mister Two.” The MR2 is actually known by a different name in France. Rather than the MR2, it is known as the “Coupe MR,” because “MR2” in French sounds a lot like “merdeux,” which means “shitty!”_ But all still quite logical, anyway. ---
**Author:** ![Steve\_Salhany](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/aca169/32.png) [@Steve\_Salhany](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Steve_Salhany)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2004, 2:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/meaningless-car-names/233673/20 "2004-03-18T14:42:12Z")
> [@TOTBP](#): > > Well, GM’s Buick _LaCrosse_ proved troublesome in the province of Quebec. Apparently, while Canada’s official national sport might come to mind to many, the term refers to masturbation for many French Canadians. I haven’t heard if or what GM has renamed the car for the Quebec market… > > Anyhoo… They are renaming it the Buick Allure. They’re keeping the La Crosse name for the US. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/meaningless-car-names/233673.md?page=2)