By Erin Marquis
Naming cars after animals is a long and storied tradition, around since the dawn of the automobile. Everything from rare forgotten classics, like the art deco proto-minivan Stout Scarab, to the perennial sales favorite, the Ford Mustang, have bore titles reminiscent of the nature their very existence demoralizes. Usually, but not always, a powerful animals stands in where understanding of things like horsepower and engine size fail.
Last week I asked you about your favorite cars named after critters and, as usual, you did not disappoint. The best part of this question were all the unexpected things I learned along the way — the Volkswagen Amarok references a giant wolf from Inuit legend, the Opel Manta is named after manta rays, and, somehow, I never connected "Dodge Charger" and "old timey term for warhorse" together. Guess I have to turn in my history nerd card. Scroll through and see many more vehicles from the animal kingdom.
Bat!
Martyn Lucy/Getty Images
Easy, the Murcielago
Named after a bull in 1879 that survived 24 sword strikes where the Matador was so impressed it allowed to live, but also because Murcielago means "bat" in Spanish and when the Murci becomes hot it opens extra small vents on the engine bay to allow more air in (can also be opened manually) that look like little bat wings. Finally, it was technically a batmobile, so almost a 3 in one for the name.
From Crashed Lambo
It's my blog and I say OK
Kenmo/Getty Images
Are gremlins real? Does that count? Always liked the movie.
From Rick C.
Just as cute as the animal it is named after
Sjoerd Van Der Wal/Getty Images
Easy, Fiat Panda, or now, Pandina.
From Pete
Unleash your inner Cougar
Ford Heritage Vault
67 Cougar, with the 4-speed top loader.
From Mark H
Why I never made this connection...
Justin Sullivan/Getty Images
Dodge Charger.
I love when car names are plays on their rivals. For those unaware, "Charger" is an old term for a powerful warhorse used in shock attacks to charge the enemy directly.
When you're going up against the wildly successful Mustang, it's a name that sounds great and is really pretty clever, too.
From potbellyjoe
Good kitty
Kevin Carter/Getty Images
Jaguar, of course, and the VW Amarok (giant wolf in Inuit mythology)
From Jean Theron
Not a lot of herd animals in car names!
Chevrolet
Impala.
Especially the SS subspecies.
From Anonymous Person
We love an aquatic mammal, don't we folks?
Mine is an obscure one: the Delfino Feroce. I loved driving it in the Project Gotham Racing games as a kid and wished I could have one when I got older. But when I got older, I found out that while a functional prototype was built, the car never actually made it into production. The kicker today is that the car's Wikipedia article says that it was set to go into production in 2000, which means that it would be legal to import into the U.S. today if launched as planned. "Delfino" means dolphin in Italian and the company had a dolphin in its logo.
From Giantsgiants
An entry of the two-wheeled variety
Hayabusa, the Japanese Peregrine falcon.
From Patrick
Leave some animal cars for the rest of us...
There are so many! Fiat Topolino ("Little Mouse"). Meyers Manx. Hillman Minx. Stutz Bearcat. VW Bug, Beetle, Fox and Rabbit. Ford Thunderbird and Pontiac Firebird (do mythical creatures count?). Studebaker Hawk and Lark. Citroen Deux Chevaux. Shelby Super Snake and King Cobra. Puma (old Brazilian sports car or later Fords). Corvette Stingray or Mako Shark. Sunbeam Tiger (Does the German Tiger tank count?). DeTomaso Pantera and Mangusto. Alfa Romeo BAT concept cars. Opel Manta. Dodge Colt. Reliant Robin. And so, so many more...
From Norm DePlume
