[titanfan]

First and foremost, I have been buying performance-oriented cars for decades, so I am not asking this question from the perspective of someone who does not understand or appreciate "car" culture.

Why do people feel the need to give their inanimate objects names? You can go on any car-oriented website and see it regardless of the make/model. For those that have done it, why? I've owned many cars, but never felt the need to humanize them by giving them a name.

[pickwithaustin]

With no offense to anyone, I have always found it to be... odd... also. When I was a teen, my sister named her car (a Gremlin) "Gary." "I'm going to wash Gary!" "Gary needs some gas." Etc. She sounded odd, like she could not get a real boyfriend or something. To counter it, I told her that I named one of my shoes Lefty and the other one Righty, and that my chair was named Seaty.

I have a lot of cars, I would have to come up with lots of names... AND, I have a passion for many other things I collect (hundreds of guitars and guns, for instance). Would I name them all?

It's enough that I have had to name our 20+ pets.

Of course, as we all know from the TV commercials, this girl named hers "Brad."

[PoorMansCamaro]

Some people feel that their car is like an extension of themselves...part of their lives. Special bond they have with their car. Something you take care of and sort of look after. Just like naming a boat.

[pickwithaustin]

An interesting read:
http://www.usatoday.com/story/money/...r-car/3189269/


"The fact that Grandma names her cars is cute, but also a bit weird. Turns out, however, she's not alone. According to a Nationwide Insurance survey, plenty of drivers name their cars.

The insurance agency polled 1,082 U.S. car owners and found:

•Nearly 25% of U.S. car owners have a special name for their car.

•More than 31% were inspired by the vehicle's color and appearance.

•At 36%, car owners between the ages of 18 and 34 are more likely to nickname their cars.

•Women are more likely to have a nickname for their cars than men -- 27% vs. 17%"

[sbubbaklein]

After watching the "sopranos" on HBO we came up with mafi nicknames for each other. Mine was "Big Boned Stevo Cha Cha La La"

[PoorMansCamaro]

Originally Posted by pickwithaustin

The insurance agency polled 1,082 U.S. car owners and found:

•Nearly 25% of U.S. car owners have a special name for their car.

•More than 31% were inspired by the vehicle's color and appearance.

•At 36%, car owners between the ages of 18 and 34 are more likely to nickname their cars.

•Women are more likely to have a nickname for their cars than men -- 27% vs. 17%"

That's kind of a worthless poll. 1,082 U.S. car owners...out of millions of people who own cars. You can poll another 1,082 people and get the exact opposite of that poll.

So to say nearly 25% of U.S. car owners have a special name for their car, they are really saying nearly 25% of 1,082 people. So about 43 people that they polled.

[2SScamaro2010]

I'm with you I've never understood the naming thing I just call mine a camaro

[GMTool]

Why do people do things that I don't do? Why don't people do things that I do? Why isn't everybody like me? Thank God we are all different.

[pickwithaustin]

Originally Posted by PoorMansCamaro

That's kind of a worthless poll. 1,082 U.S. car owners...out of millions of people who own cars. You can poll another 1,082 people and get the exact opposite of that poll.

So to say nearly 25% of U.S. car owners have a special name for their car, they are really saying nearly 25% of 1,082 people. So about 43 people that they polled.

Having had to use statistics in previous occupations, I'd say that it would really all depend upon how the sample was taken. If it is a good cross section representation of random people, then there is validity to it. Do you think that a lot of people do NOT name their cars? Having read this forum for a while, though only guessing, from what I have gathered from posts the percents reported in the cited USA Today poll seem consistent with posts on here. I dunno... Maybe we should poll it from Camaro owners, but then THAT would not be a fair representation either... as it is possible that more Camaro owner's name their car than do owners of Kia's, etc.

By the way, 25% of 1,082 is not 43...

I am going to name my post reply here: "Gretchen"

[PoorMansCamaro]

Originally Posted by pickwithaustin

Having had to use statistics in previous occupations, I'd say that it would really all depend upon how the sample was taken. If it is a good cross section representation of random people, then there is validity to it. Do you think that a lot of people do NOT name their cars? Having read this forum for a while, though only guessing, from what I have gathered from posts the percents reported in the cited USA Today poll seem consistent with posts on here. I dunno... Maybe we should poll it from Camaro owners, but then THAT would not be a fair representation either... as it is possible that more Camaro owner's name their car than do owners of Kia's, etc.

By the way, 25% of 1,082 is not 43...

I am going to name my post reply here: "Gretchen"

lol, Asian math. forgot to carry the 2 and divide by zero. The number really doesn't matter, and there is no validity of that statistic. as 1,082 people out of literally millions of people is such a small sample size, that it makes no sense. Could it be accurate? sure, but it would be accurate based on just plain luck.

[snarky]

I didn't name the current line up. But in the past I have referred to various vehicles as "Bessie" as in "Whoa, Bessie." sometimes POS was also used.

[titanfan]

Originally Posted by GMTool

Why do people do things that I don't do? Why don't people do things that I do? Why isn't everybody like me? Thank God we are all different.

Agreed, but sometimes it's interesting to understand WHY certain things are done. I'm certainly not throwing stones at anyone who does. Besides, isn't that the point of online message boards, to stimulate conversation?

[Angrybird 12]

Why do some men have a name for their private parts?
Maybe they should give their car the same name.......

Going back all the way to when the first cars were made people have named their cars. Their horses had names and since the car replaced their horse some just named their cars too.
Anyone remember Nellybell from the old Roy Rogers show?
People also name their boats and airplanes...

[Ragnar]

On Street Outlaws, someone named there car, i think it was, 'your momma'! Nobody wanted to loose to that car, LOL