The Name Game

This comes from an article of the same name in New Mexico Magazine, July 2006, page 94. It's all about "some car monikers can drive you crazy." Some excerpts:

"Today some folks drive a Tribeca, you know. Instead of having them try to figure out 1. what it means, and 2. how to pronounce it, solve both problems and have them drive the new Trifecta, the car for people who bet they can make it through the intersection before the light changes.

"If you are driving a small car right now called a Passat, wouldn't it be more fun and make more sense to drive a micromini called a Pissant? Of course.

"Folks who are driving the new Touareg don't understand that it's the name of a tribe of African desert dwellers, and even the company that makes them can't pronounce it properly. If we're going to name cars after groups of people, let's consider building a really rock-solid off-road wonder that's stout as stone and call it Neanderthal. It's rugged enough to park in a cave, we can all pronounce it and guys can give manly grunts while driving it."

Ah, a man after my own heart.