“Everyone Jump In Bertha,” Utah Names For Cars

We give names to hurricanes, ships and planets, so I guess it shouldn’t be that surprising that some people give their cars names. My mom names all her cars. Bertha was a van and Bruno was a pacer. My brother had a Nissan truck in college that he called Nat. Jeff, the engineer at the station had a Nissan he named Penum. 

We like to name our cars so much, there are several name generators on the internet. I like this one that asks you a few questions about your vehicle before giving you a name. It suggested I name my SUV Crow. That's actually pretty cool.

You may think, "I wouldn't ever name my car, that’s weird." Except, you do have a name for your car, the manufacturer picked one out for you. I drive a Hyundai Santa Fe. I often refer to it by its name. “Let’s take the Santa Fe." 

This site lists the best names manufacturers have chosen for cars. Toyota’s Mega Cruiser, Astin Martin has the Valkyrie and of course the Volkswagen Beetle has to be the most iconic of all time. Obviously, we humans like to name these big hunks of metal that move us around. 

Why do we like names for our vehicles? “Cars have personalities, they’re part of your family,” said my mom. I think there is a lot of truth to that. We depend on our cars. They take us where we need to go and over time, we tie memories to our vehicles. This site sums it up well. 

We share the milestones of our lives with our cars,” says David Bennett, AAA manager of repair systems. “Maybe you drive it to your wedding, or to the birth of your child. There are so many things that connect us to the cars we drive. 

I had a Jeep Wagoneer that I really loved. It would take me anywhere bouncing over the roughest terrain. I remember how sad I felt when it drove away with a new owner. My mom and my youngest sister even visited one of her cars named Percy at the car graveyard. They needed some closure.  

This leads me to my last question. Do we in Utah give our cars unique names like we do our children? Is there a Karmindy, Rhyatt or Laikee out there? Probably, that’s what we do.