# Why do different countries get different car brands?

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-different-countries-get-different-car-brands/728085>\
**Category:** Factual Questions\
**Created:** [August 17, 2015, 4:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-different-countries-get-different-car-brands/728085 "2015-08-17T16:32:40Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 5\
**Page:** 3

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**Author:** ![Hail\_Ants](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/dc4da7/32.png) [@Hail\_Ants](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hail_Ants)\
**Post date:** [August 22, 2015, 8:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-different-countries-get-different-car-brands/728085/41 "2015-08-22T20:53:36Z")

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You forgot-

Sunoco = Sun Oil Company

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**Author:** ![Amateur\_Barbarian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/59ef9b/32.png) [@Amateur\_Barbarian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Amateur_Barbarian)\
**Post date:** [August 22, 2015, 10:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-different-countries-get-different-car-brands/728085/42 "2015-08-22T22:31:28Z")

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And… Orinoco? Rococo?

🙂

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**Author:** ![SpyOne](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/82dd89/32.png) [@SpyOne](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SpyOne)\
**Post date:** [August 23, 2015, 5:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-different-countries-get-different-car-brands/728085/43 "2015-08-23T17:30:33Z")

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While doing some research on something else, I discovered that much of what I said about Datsun above is bunk. ☹

The name had been in use for decades, and at the time Nissan expanded into the US market all the cars they made were sold under the Datsun name (even in Japan), with the Nissan name only being used for trucks.

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**Author:** ![Amateur\_Barbarian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/59ef9b/32.png) [@Amateur\_Barbarian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Amateur_Barbarian)\
**Post date:** [August 23, 2015, 5:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-different-countries-get-different-car-brands/728085/44 "2015-08-23T17:40:37Z")

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> [@SpyOne](#):
>
> While doing some research on something else, I discovered that much of what I said about Datsun above is bunk. ☹

Henry? Mr. Ford, is that you? 🙂

> [@](#):
>
> The name had been in use for decades, and at the time Nissan expanded into the US market all the cars they made were sold under the Datsun name (even in Japan), with the Nissan name only being used for trucks.

It seems like most of the Asian automakers, at least those in the first decades of selling to the US, had multiple brand and company names that were later consolidated. Nissan was the parent company, Datsun the car brand… and they consolidated under the parent name. (More than just cars - IIRC, they rebranded some other industrial lines as well.)

The counter to that is Mazda, which was a brand of Toyo Kogyo, and the parent changed its name to the more successful and widely-known name. I think there are others.

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**Author:** ![Slow\_Moving\_Vehicle](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/slow_moving_vehicle/32/291_2.png) [@Slow\_Moving\_Vehicle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Slow_Moving_Vehicle)\
**Post date:** [August 23, 2015, 6:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-different-countries-get-different-car-brands/728085/45 "2015-08-23T18:12:19Z")

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> [@kunilou](#):
>
> That’s because -oco literally stands for “oil company.”
> 
> Amoco = American Oil Company  
> Conoco = Continental Oil Company  
> Arco = Atlantic Richfield Company  
> Texaco = Texas Fuel Company

> [@Hail\_Ants](#):
>
> You forgot-
> 
> Sunoco = Sun Oil Company

And Aramco = Arab American Oil Compay

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