The Meaning Behind Popular Car Names

How often have you seen a car name and just wondered, “What does that mean?”. Car names often carry more than just a label, they can symbolize something important, evoke emotions, represent the brand’s core values, or they just name it by what it literally is. It’s a difficult process to give a car a good name, so let’s explore some of the most popular ones and what they mean.

1) Toyota Camry, Corolla, Crown 

Toyota has a long history of giving its vehicles names that reflect prestige or strength. In fact, all three of these vehicles, Camry, Corolla, and Crown, have the same meaning: "crown."

• Camry: Derived from the Japanese word "kanmuri," meaning "crown," it signifies the 
  car’s position at the top of Toyota's lineup.

• Corolla: While not directly meaning "crown," the name originates from the Latin word
  "corolla," meaning "small crown.", signifying that this is a smaller Camry.

• Crown: The name itself directly translates to "crown," symbolizing luxury and Toyota’s 
  premium offerings in the market.
  
  

Yes it’s quite confusing when your Camry is the same name as your Corolla, which is also the same name as the JDM Crown, but they certainly did earn the name because these models are the absolute kings of reliability.

2) Honda Civic

The Honda Civic’s name reflects the car’s purpose as a practical, reliable, and community-oriented vehicle. The word "civic" is derived from the Latin word "civicus," meaning "relating to a citizen or community.", which aligns to the Civic’s philosophy of being an affordable vehicle for the masses and its hope for drivers to be civil with one another. Well it certainly worked as it’s probably the most well known car name right beside the Camry.

3) Perodua Myvi 

Perodua, one of Malaysia's prominent car manufacturers, gives us the Myvi, or commonly known as the “King of the Road”. The name "Myvi" has three meanings, "My Vehicle," "My Vision" and "Malaysian Vision". With this, the Myvi’s philosophy was to be perfectly accessible to anyone and everyone, with a feeling of looking forward to Malaysia’s future and what it has in store. Therefore despite the notorious nickname it's obtained, the car actually has a really nice meaning behind it and really has set a bar to what a budget friendly car can be.

4) Proton Saga 

The Proton Saga is a really significant name alongside the Myvi. "Saga" is typically associated with long, epic stories or legends, suggesting that the car is built for longevity and a meaningful journey. It reflects Proton’s establishment as a lasting symbol in the Malaysian automotive industry, as well as the brand’s embarkation on a new ‘Saga’ of automobiles. The model name still goes strong today and is still one of the most sold Proton vehicles of all time. Guess the ‘Saga’ never really ends does it?

5) Nissan Silvia

The Nissan Silvia carries a name that feels elegant and graceful as it was originally marketed towards women. The name ‘Silvia’  has different origins, the first being "forest" or "woodland”. The other origin would be from Rhea Silvia, the mother of Romulus and Remus, who were the founders of Rome. These all would make sense since Nissan needed a more feminine name for marketing purposes. Today, this name is now more synonymous with the drift scene than being a sleek driver’s coupe though.

6) Subaru WRX

The Subaru WRX is a rally legend that was named from its motorsport pedigree. "WRX" stands for World Rally eXperimental, referencing Subaru’s involvement in the World Rally Championship .The name really emphasizes the car’s competitive nature and the engineering excellence derived from rally racing, and that Subaru were continuously experimenting with new kinds of rally technology. This name is more literal but boy does it sound really cool when it’s not abbreviated.

7) Mazda RX-7 

The Mazda RX-7 is also one of those name plates that are more literal. The "RX" stands for Rotary eXperimental, a nod to the spinning triangle that lies in the heart of this legendary machine. The RX-7’s name emphasizes Mazda’s commitment to pushing the boundaries of automotive technology, particularly by experimenting with the rotary engine, which most companies have already abandoned many decades ago. 

Although the list just has Japanese car names, there are much more cars out there that have meaningful names. Car names are more than a piece of plastic stuck to its backside, it tells a part of history and the story behind its design philosophy. These names breathe a bit of life into these otherwise blocks of metal on wheels, and understanding them deepens our appreciation of the cars we drive, making the drive just slightly more meaningful.


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