What Cars Have the Best Model Names?
“4Runner” a rare numeronym that actually reads cleanly and sounds cool. It might be my favorite car name.
I was stuck in traffic behind a Toyota 4Runner the other night. Reading that car's emblem over and over again made me think about what a great car name "4Runner" is. Sounds cool, is a rare numeronym that reads cleanly, and fits the vehicle's anachronistic nature ... it might actually be my favorite car name. What other models have the best names?
There's still some creativity in the world of car naming, even as many automakers just use a letter or number combination for the sake of simplicity. All my faves are car-industry mainstains, though (what a surprise). "Corvette" is great — sounds cool, fitting definition. "Bronco" and "Ranger" both pack a lot of personality into short, purposeful words, too.
"Miata" also rolls off the tongue nicely and feels like it matches its vehicle well. "Escalade" is an all-timer; somehow the look and sound of that word pair perfectly with an enormous chrome-trimmed SUV.
Naming cars is tough. That's probably why so many companies play it safe and do some kind of letter-and-number deal. If one of those is your fave, I'm gonna need to hear your reasoning. Regardless, I'm eager to hear what car names you like best.
