[lit-ideas] Re: The Vital Spark
- From: David Ritchie <profdritchie@xxxxxxxxx>
- To: lit-ideas@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
- Date: Tue, 5 Jun 2012 12:15:58 -0700
We have had threads about how cars come by their names. My latest observation
is that Skoda, a Czech company owned by VW, are slightly odd. In the late
twentieth century they called models things like, "1202" or "1000MB." Then
they became aspirational and tried, "Favorit" and "Rapid." It was a short
journey from this sort of thing to the 2006 concept car "Joyster." Following
that "...er" route, they now have the "Roomster."
But how to explain the Skoda "Yeti"?
The answer is that it's an SUV and SUV names have to seem rugged and outdoorsy.
http://www.igorinternational.com/process/suv-name-taxonomy.php
I think car companies have missed an obvious one, so here's my present to
General Motors: the Chevrolet Ghengis. Very rugged indeed.
Having just driven 1300 miles in a 1.0 liter Chevrolet Spark, I can aver that
Chevrolet certainly know their Scottish authors. Neil Munro would have been
proud.
The Spark has also been sold as the Daewoo Matiz II, the Chevrolet Matiz, the
FSO Matiz, the Pontiac Matiz, the Pontiac G2, the Chevrolet Exclusive, the
Chevrolet Joy, the Formosa Matiz and the Chevrolet Taxi 7:24 Chronos. It was
the center of an intellectual rights fight with the Chinese, who called their
car the QQ. The design was originally rejected by FIAT.
On the backroads of Britain, it was a perfectly adequate car, one whose natural
disposition is to tootle (which means going along at about forty mph). Made me
think of the opening sequence of "All Creatures Great and Small," or Richard
driving around with Mrs. Bucket in "Keeping Up Appearances." "I'm minding the
pedestrian, dear."
Do carry on.
David Ritchie,
Portland,
Oregon------------------------------------------------------------------
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