Car names?

System · September 2003

OK maybe it is just my goofy family but we have always named our cars. Anyway, my SO and I just bought a black Ford Explorer and we LOVE it. It is the comfiest ride, it really doesn't guzzle as much gas as we were warned and every day we find some new litle feature that surprises and delights us.
I think this truck deserves a name but my SO has never done this and is digging his heels in with the naming.
Do any of you other forumaniacs name your cars?
Do I owe beagle or sunny the honors for an apt term for us?
Oh and my personal favorite for the truck is Rufus.

Janet · September 2003

My mom once had a Chevy Deluxe named Clyde. We also name trees. We have Rosie, Max, Rover, Barry, and Nita Noelle. We're otherwise fairly normal.

scottorr · September 2003

[font size="1" color="#FF0000"]LAST EDITED ON 09-05-03 AT 08:44AM (CST)[/font][p]I'm wondering if this is a MA thing? My best friend lives in Boston and has always named their cars. Because of this, when I was in college, I named my silver charger (the one with no pick up what so ever) the silver bullet. If I had a car that I loved, I might consider naming it!

rad · September 2003

I don't drive but I name my plants.

HS · September 2003

I had a friend who named cars. Funny thing, she lived in Boston and still lives in MA now. Must be a MA thing! Me, I haven't but in the past I've referred to my cars as she or he, depending on the personality of the car; but that was when I bought used cars. Have not done it with any new cars I've bought recently.

Don't get me started on Ford's, because I might offend you with my ranting!

x:P

Brad Forrister · September 2003

I always thought it was a Southern thang. My wife's first car - a 1973 Olds 98 that had 200,000 miles on it - was called The Green Bean. When I was a teen, my family had 8 cars for 6 drivers, and they all had colorful names. My favorite was Bodacious - another ancient Oldsmobile.

Brad Forrister
Director of Publishing
M. Lee Smith Publishers

psrcello · September 2003

It's not all MA or southern - I've lived in Minnesota, Iowa and Nebraska, and I name my cars. I currently drive a dark green Jeep Cherokee Classic, which we call "the Shoebox". My spouse drives a silver/blue Intrepid with a built-in security system - we call it "HAL" because of the little red security system light that blinks 24/7 on the dashboard and looks like the computer in the movie "2001".

At one time, when we had all four of our collective kids living with us at the same time, we had a big, turquoise Chevy Astrovan, which we called "Godzilla", because it could gobble up four teenagers and still have room for two adults.

Parabeagle · September 2003

Years ago when I was young and foolish I had an AMC Pacer that was named LEM - Lunacy Excursion Module. But I've never named my cars since.

mmscott · September 2003

I've always named my cars too. Here's a list

Silver Montero ~ The millineum Falcon
Blue Honda(RIP)~ the X wing fighter
Toyota (Rip)~ Jabba the Hut
Chevy ~ LUKE

Those were my Star wars years( Ex Husbands ideas)

I now have a Black Honda Accord named Black beauty or when I'm over 80 mph
(quite often) She turns into the night rider..

Zanne · September 2003

I haven't named a lot of cars - but occasionally names do stick.

We call my boyfiend's car (a 93 Nissan) "Hector" after some small boxer who never gave up. (Perhaps the forumaniacs who like boxing will know the whole name) Hector (the car) tangled with a semitruck on ice last winter and came out as the victor. (thankfully!)

I have a 2000 Subaru Forester - which is referred to as the "UraBus" (backwards) or if my boyfiend wants to get my goat, the "Martina-Mobile." Perhaps you saw the Martina Navatalovic (sp?)ad for Foresters?

As an aside, and NOB - apparently in California they keep a LOT of demographics. The Forester is the #1 selling car to lesbians. I get a lot of kidding about that - and last Saturday at Barney's Quick Lube, a woman dressed as a man, struck up a conversation with me about preferring all wheel drive and Subarus over other vehicles. Nice enough person, however, I noted she was driving a large Dodge pickup with an extended cab.

Zanne

ray a · September 2003

Hey HS, go ahead and rant about Fords - I knew there was some reason I liked you.

Never named my cars, but I do become emotionally attached to them - ask my wife - or better yet, don't ask her. We had a similar discussion on a trombone forum I belong to about naming our trombones. That was an interesting discussion, especially when it came to the gender of names. Think about how you play a brass wind instrument. I named my bass "The General".

I drive a Cadillac - any suggestions for a name for me?

mmscott · September 2003

Hey Ray,

What color is it? That might help with a name.

ray a · September 2003

Not pink! Baby blue.

Leslie · September 2003

My boyfriend names all his vehicles - usually trucks. We've had Snow White, the Red Sled, and presently driving in the Silver Bullet (Coors Lite drinker by the way). I call my car the Monte Carlo. ;;)

ray a · September 2003

Snow White sounds like such a nice name for a truck. I can almost form a mental picture of him with the guys at the bar at closing standing up, hitching up his jeans, clicking his cowboy boots and putting on his cowboy hat saying "well guys, time to saddle up Snow White and git on home to the little woman."

Am I in trouble again?

HS · September 2003

Gee Ray, you like me? You really, really like me? x:-8

Anyway, call it 'ole blue eyes'.

NOB ~
I could go on an age and a day about Fords...I've had one literally catch fire and another that had the strangest, unexplainable electrical problems. I would not buy another Ford again if you paid me too! I am relying now on Dodge and Chrysler and so far so good! xpray

mmscott · September 2003

How about Lil drummer boy Blue

AprilShowers · September 2003

All the cars my family has named has been our old clunker cars

we had a 1988 white Buick named Betty. (my sister put huge speakers in the trunk, man was that a cool ride!) (he he)

My car in high school was a 1986 Dodge Lanser, some pukey orange color, named Lance.(He was my favorite)

My husbands car in college 1989 blue Plymouth Sundance, named Aunt Jemimah (not sure why)

We named his 2000 Dodge Neon,cinnamon crunch because it's color was cinnamon and then we got in a car accident with her and decided not to name the next one... especially nothing with the name that sounds like a crash!!

I love cars with names, but the name definately has to fit the car!

Leslie · September 2003

Not at all Ray - you have just about all of it right but the cowboy hat - it's usually a baseball cap or panama hat. Unless he's riding his Harley of course. x;-)

ray a · September 2003

[font size="1" color="#FF0000"]LAST EDITED ON 09-05-03 AT 07:14PM (CST)[/font][p]Leslie, does he have a name for his Harley? If not, may I suggest "Buttercup"? xB-)

HS, I also have a Chrysler which will probably be my last one. Not as bad as your Fords, but from now on I'll stick with GM. And sure I like you - you make me laugh with all those hilarious threads you start.

Margaret Morford · September 2003

I only named my first car - a white Ford Maverick named Maxwell. I went to school with a girl who had a black Mustang named Ralph Howard.

Margaret Morford
theHRedge
615-371-8200
[email]mmorford@mleesmith.com[/email]
[url]http://www.thehredge.net[/url]

System · September 2003

I got my first car at 25. I'd been on an army base in Europe where you still don't have to have a car to function - unreal! I got a little used Chevy Spectrum that had all kinds of problems. I named it Otis because of the way it guzzled gas (everyone here looooves Andy Griffith), but the name that stuck was the one my ex gave it, Fred The S**thead Jones. The next two cars were Freds - our son loved the nickname. I have a 2001 Sentra now that hasn't developed personality or quirks. I wanted to call it Dingy because my coworkers love to slam their doors into its sides, but usually I just call it You. C'mon, You, let's get around this guy, or You better quit making that noise!

LeslieC · September 2003

Yes, I started naming my cars in college. My roommate's boy friend had a '58 Buick named "Bev" -- that was the start of the tradition. He was southern, none of my northern friends named their cars. My first car was a Datsun 510 named "Baby" (loved that car)... Now I realize I havent named my mini-van.. I'll have to ask my kids to do it!

annie1992 · September 2003

Leslie, my brother has a bright yellow 1971 Nova named Baby, and we are NOT from the south.

My favorite car was a 1978 MG Midget named Veronica. My current vehicle is a full sized Dodge conversion van fondly referred to as "The Blimp". The van before it was "Mom's Bus".

Add me to the list of Ford haters. I had one with the infamous transmission problem which popped out of park whenever it decided to and rolled away. It committed suicide by hitting a tree. A couple of months later Ford did a recall for that problem. I stuck with GM for a long time, then bought an Escort which spontaneously combusted in my garage and nearly burned the house down. A couple of months later there was a recall for faulty ignition switches that caused fires. My third Ford had the transmission FALL OUT with only 700 miles on it, apparently because the bolts "sheared off". It took me forever to get Ford to repair it under warranty because I "must have done something to it".

My daughter's Mustang convertible was named "The Money Pit" because it was a blue hole in the driveway into which we threw money.

Annie

LeslieC · September 2003

Annie:wow! My brother's first car was about a '65 Nova -- baby blue with a striped grill. Very "greaser". Cant remember if he named it or not.

we called my last minivan the "mommy-van"... I told the kids my next car will be mustang convertible!
~LeslieC

HS · September 2003

Oh, that reminds me; we bought a used car from Ford that was supposed to be certified. Within 3-4 months, we had to replace the engine and the transmission and what a surprise, the transmission happened just AFTER the warranty was up. The engine, well it didn't fall under warranty, or the recall notice they issued because they insisted "we must have done something to it" (i.e. driven thru water). It's funny, NJ was in the middle of one of the worst droughts ever...tell me, how could I have flooded the engine? Oh, that's right, I guess I shouldn't have driven into the nearly dried up lakes with my car, silly me thinking I could use my car like a boat!

That was the last Ford vehicle I will ever own!

HCCADC · September 2003

My parents always called their cars "Bessie". I can still see my mom driving down the road, hitting the dash and saying 'c'mon Bessie, don't break down on me now!

HRGirl · September 2003

Yes, I have named my cars and I'm from the Northeast!

I had a bright orange Ford Fiesta named Garfield, A Ford Tempo that I called P-O-S, A silver Fiero called the silver bullet and my car now is a 2003 black PT Cruiser that my daughter named Black Beauty, my nephew and sister call it the PP (putt putt cruiser, I call them jealous). My sister and her son call their Honda Albert.

It's not a southern thing...I can remember my sister and her husband named their cars all the time when I was little.

mmscott · September 2003

Another Black beauty eh? Must be a PA thing!

sandra_d · September 2003

I'm a Ford hater too -- but my experiences have not come even close to those already shared, so I'll spare you the details!

We had an old Chevy 4-door cavalier that was about as ugly as anything you've seen, and made noises that I'd never heard before or since. My husband was so good to drive that car for so long until we could afford something new. When my daughter was 3 or 4 she had to ride in it (we rarely drove the vehicle with her in it ... just didn't seem safe). She gave the car a name that stuck until we put it out of its misery (and ours too) -- the rattle-trap.

SMace · September 2003

I'm a golfer and always name my putter. My old putter was named Linda and my new putter is Rayline. For those of you that do not golf, putting is almost a mystical feat. I try to get a personal connection to my putter so the ball will go where it is supposed to- in the hole.

Car names?

Comments