Many car enthusiasts tend to view their car more as a family member than an appliance . Cars take us to some of the most important events in our lives, to some of the most memorable places in our lives, and hell, for a lot of us, they're the second place we ever see right after we're thrust into human existence and we leave the hospitals where we were born. To me, family members have names , not alphanumeric codes , so I've always preferred when automakers give their cars proper names.
๐ The Core Development
Thankfully there have been scores of cool, memorable car names over the years, but we want to know which automaker you, dear Jalopnik reader, think has the coolest model names . There's no cutoff date for this one, mostly because I think a lot of the coolest model names have been discontinued or replaced with alphanumeric nonsense, so feel free to unearth some obscure carmaker that hasn't made a car in a century or something, as long as they had cool model names. Sound off in the comments section below!
๐ Background & Sector Context
In a rare change of pace, Lincoln went from using lame alphanumeric model names like MKZ and MKX to what I believe are the coolest model names in the industry. To clarify, the company started off with proper names for most of its models throughout the 20th century, but for some reason Lincoln decided to ditch those in the 2000s, which I lamented, even then as a child.
๐ Industry & Real-World Impact
With current names like Corsair, Nautilus, Aviator, and Navigator, the modern lineup is stacked with heavy hitters, but Lincoln's classic names are really good, too. Of course there's also the classic Continental, and my beloved Zephyr. I don't know that I could honestly choose a favorite name from the brand โ it would be a tie between Corsair, Nautilus, and Zephyr, which all evoke distinct pictures in my imagination.
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๐ฎ Strategic Outlook & What Lies Ahead
Corsair makes me think of the Vought F4U Corsair warbird. Nautilus makes me think of the prehistoric undersea chambered mollusk that has barely evolved over the past couple million years, and Zephyr evokes images of Art Deco-era pie-in-the-sky inventions like early flying machines and trains. All of this imagery comes from the exciting and fascinating names given to Lincoln's cars, which is something that alphanumeric names just don't quite achieve in my brain. Okay, that's enough of my yapping, we're here for you! What automaker do you think has the coolest model names?
