Does your car have a name? If so, you're not alone. Nationwide Insurance surveyed 1,082 U.S. car owners and found nearly 25% had a name for their car. They also found:
- More than 31 percent were inspired by the vehicle's color and appearance.
- Car owners ages 18-34 are significantly more likely to nickname their cars (36 percent).
- Women are more likely to have a nickname for their cars than men (27 percent versus 17 percent).
- More than one-fourth (26 percent) of those surveyed think of their car as a girl, with women more likely to have a "baby" girl.
- Men are more likely than women to name their car after a famous/historical person (9 percent men versus 4 percent women) or a character in a movie (10 percent men versus 4 percent women).
We asked our Facebook followers to tell us what they think is the best car name and we got some pretty interesting responses. Here are our favorites:
- “I named my car Dorothy...she is ruby red...every time I get in and start her up, I say, “there is no place like home.” -KB
- “My 2009 red Lexus IS250 is my ‘pretty girl!’” --KHJ
- “I just bought my Honda CRV from Poquet 2 months ago and its license plate is ###DRJ. So of course I named it Julius Erving.” --BH
- “My 79 Ford T-Bird Convertible is ‘Thelma’ and I’m Louise.” --BN
A lot of the answers seemed to support Nationwide’s finding that many people think of their cars as female. Other answers we got included:
- Tammy Fay
- Fox
- Kathleen
- Maggie
- Jezzebelle
- Scarlet
- Azera
- Matilda
So what do you think? Are people crazy or are you ready to jump on the bandwagon and find the perfect name for your car?
We had no idea there was so much information about car naming out there on the internet, but it turns out, there are several handy resources you can use to give your car its most fitting name:
- Confused.com’s Top 10 Most Popular Car Names (& the Top 10 Strangest Car Names)
- Buzzfeed Quiz: What Should You Name Your Car, Actually?
- Jalopnik’s Six Tips For Not Giving Your Car a Name You’ll Regret Forever
Image by Sharon & Nikki McCutcheon via flickr, licensed under CC by 2.0