You've probably never given your car
name's origin any thought. This is mainly because popular automakers like Chrysler
, Ford, Chevrolet, and Honda were named after their founders. However, other car companies have a fascinating story about how they came upon their names. From Nissan to Tesla, Jerry
has all the info about how car companies got their names. Nissan
Nissan started in 1914 under the name DAT Motorcar. The name DAT came from the first initials of the family names of the company's three founders.
The car company underwent several name changes, including Kaishinsha Motorcar Co. Ltd in 1918 and later DAT Jidosha & Co., Ltd in 1925. In 1931, the automaker introduced a new small car, the Datson, which later became the Datsun
. The company felt the name Datson didn't represent their brand well since the name son in Japanese means loss. They, therefore, decided to drop the 'son' and change it to Datsun.
Elsewhere businessman Yoshisuke Aikawa started a holding company named Nippon Sangyo which loosely means Japan Industries. The company bought out DAT in 1931 and later abbreviated its name to be what we now know as Nissan
. Subaru
Subaru is a car manufacturing division of the Japanese Subaru Corporation. The company began in 1915, operating under the name Fuji Heavy Industries. At the time, the company was called Aircraft Research Laboratory.
In 1932, Fuji Heavy Industries reorganized itself and became a major aircraft manufacturer aiding Japan in its involvement in World War II. At the end of the war, the company reorganized again, renaming it Fuji Sangyo Co., Ltd.
In 1946, Fuji Sangyo Co., Ltd came up with a motor scooter named the Fuji Rabbit using spare parts from aircraft from the war. In 1950 Fuji Sangyo was divided into 12 corporations, but five of these divisions decided to merge to form Fuji Heavy Industries.
The CEO of the five corporations at the time wanted the new company to focus on vehicle manufacturing and soon came up with plans to build a car with the code-name P-1.
He went through several suggestions for naming the vehicle in development but wasn't satisfied with any. Ultimately, he chose to go with the Japanese name that he had wanted for a long time, Subaru. Subaru in Japanese refers to the Pleiades star cluster.
The first vehicle was named the Subaru 1500. The company ended up manufacturing only 20 Subarus due to supply difficulties. Eventually, the company found its footing and began manufacturing several models under the name Subaru.
Tesla
Tesla was founded in 2003 by two engineers, Marc Tarpenning and Martin Eberhard, and was named Tesla Motors after inventor Nikola Tesla. The pair received funding from various sources, with PayPal's co-founder Elon Musk contributing more than $30 million.
In 2008, the company released its first electric vehicle, the Roadster
. The Roadster was a success in tests achieving an unprecedented range of 245 miles. The car could accelerate from 0 to 60 miles in under four seconds and reach a top speed of 125 miles per hour. Tesla found that the Roadster attained efficiency ratings similar to a gasoline mileage of 135 miles per gallon. The vehicle retailed at $109,000, and even though buyers received a $7,500 tax credit, the Roadster's high cost made it a luxury car.
Insurance you can trust
While it's unnecessary to learn about how all car makers got their names, it's crucial to stay up to date with insurance policies. Insurance policies are sometimes not easy to navigate, which is why it's usually a huge help when you have someone in your corner.
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