Car manufacturers often put a lot of thought into coming up with a catchy name for their new models. Some company’s name their cars after well-known individuals. For example, Enzo Ferrari (Ferrari Enzo) and Ayrton Senna (McLaren Senna). Others use specific locations like the Ferrari 360 Modena or the Chevrolet Malibu. However, some of the coolest cars to ever hit our roads bear (no pun intended) names borrowed from the animal kingdom!
Animals, whether swift like a wild horse or tough like a ram, have not only lent their name to vehicles you and I drive but have also been a source of inspiration for their designs. Sadly, the trend of naming cars after animals has been dwindling ever since several manufacturers devised an alpha-numeric method (e.g., Audi A3, A4, A6, etc.) for naming their models. Hence, we’ve compiled a list of current and classic cars with some of the coolest names inspired by animals.
Current cars named after animals
1. Ford Mustang
Probably the most iconic car of the lot, the Ford Mustang nameplate has been around since the late-60s. The origin of the Mustang name has been hotly contested, with some claiming it got its name from the P-51 Mustang fighter plane from WWII, which John Najjar, the co-designer of the Mustang prototype, was fond of. Others claim that the 2-door sports coupe gets its name from the first horses brought from Spain to the US.
No matter where the name originated, the Ford Mustang is a car loved by millions of Americans. The Ford Mustang was, in fact, the best-selling sportscar worldwide for the second year in a row in 2020, with several hundred units sold in Australia, the UK, and India!
Read: 10 things driving a Ford Mustang says about you
2. Ford Bronco
Ford revived this iconic nameplate recently after a span of 25 years. The Ford Bronco was once America’s favorite SUV and competed against fairly utilitarian off-roaders like the Jeep CJ-5 and the International Harvester Scout.Â
On June 17, 1994, the Ford Bronco became infamous when cops chased Al Cowlings and his accused friend O.J. Simpson for 60 miles before the latter eventually surrendered. The Bronco chase was televised worldwide, and it is estimated that 95 million Americans watched it live on their TV screens!
Now back in an all-new avatar, the Bronco is sold in two versions – the full-fledged off-road beast called the Bronco, and a tamer, more family-friendly version called the Bronco Sport.
Read: 10 things driving a Jeep Wrangler says about you
3. Ram pickup trucks
Automobile manufacturers not only name their cars after animals, but they often name their own brands after them. Even though Ram was spun off from the Dodge Ram pickup truck portfolio, it chose to keep the “Ram” moniker as its official brand name. The Ram range of pickup trucks reflects mountain rams’ strong and rugged essence, so this selection makes sense.
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4. Chevrolet Corvette Stingray
Stingray is a nickname for the Chevrolet Corvette, first produced in 1963. The Stingray is sleek and highly fast, just like the sea creature, and the 1963 Corvette model was the one that gave this name to the car.
In its eighth generation, the new Stingray is the first-ever Corvette to use a mid-engine configuration. The new setup makes it a worthy competitor to other mighty mid-engined sports cars such as the Ferrari 488 GTB and the Audi R8.
Read: 10 things driving a Corvette says about you
5. Ford F-150 Raptor and Ranger Raptor
The Raptor, named after birds of prey, is the name Ford slaps onto their high-performance SUVs and pickup trucks. The Ford F-150 Raptor, which received a few upgrades this year, is probably the wildest of the lot. It competes against other wild yet equally capable trucks such as the Toyota Tundra TRD, Dodge Ram TRX, and the Jeep Gladiator Mojave.
Powered by a 3.5-liter turbocharged V6 engine making 450hp and 510lb-ft of torque, the Raptor is capable of powering through any obstacle you throw at it. It’s even got drive modes named Slippery, Tow haul, Sport, Normal, Deep Snow, Baja, and Rock Crawl to get you out of any sticky situations.
Read: 10 things driving a Tesla says about you
Discontinued cars named after animals
1. Dodge Viper
One of the fiercest names for a car ever, the Dodge Viper is renowned the world over for its supercar-killing levels of performance. Inspired by the next car on the list, the iconic Shelby Cobra, the Dodge Viper employed a massive V10 engine to produce between 400hp to 660hp in various guises.
The Viper was a dream sports car for many teenagers growing up in the 1990s and early 2000s. Its distinctive appearance and enormous engine made it one-of-a-kind. Best of all, its relatively affordable price tag still offers Millenials hope that one day they would be able to acquire this one-of-a-kind piece of American sports car history.
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2. Shelby Cobra
The Shelby Cobra, the small roadster that established Carroll Shelby’s career as a car builder, is well-known. It looks quick even while parked in a parking lot, and it has plenty of performance to back it up.Â
The Shelby Cobra rightfully deserves its reputation. Rather than relying on marketing gimmicks, Carroll Shelby focused on what he did best: constructing terrifyingly fast vehicles. The Cobra 427 was the most powerful American performance car for many years. It reached 0-60 mph in slightly over 4 seconds with the Competition package added, a scorching performance for the 1960s.
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3. VW Rabbit
Known elsewhere as the VW Golf, VW designed the Rabbit to be the successor to the ‘people’s car’ – the VW Bettle. The MK1 Golf used a water-cooled, front-engined, front-wheel-drive layout that was far removed from the lovable Bug’s air-cooled, rear-engined configuration. The new layout was so successful that carmakers still use it today, over 40 years later!
Some say VW derived the term ‘Golf’ from the German word ‘Golfstrom,’ which matches VW’s use of ‘Scirocco,’ the hot Mediterranean wind, and ‘Jetta,’ the German word for jet stream. Others argue that it could simply be a literal reference to the affluent’s favorite sport. The Mark 1 Golf was dubbed the Rabbit in the United States since “Golf” sounded too upscale for an economy car aimed at youthful customers.
Read: How to safely provide first-aid after a road accident
4. Chevrolet Impala
The Chevrolet Impala is one of the most popular American cars of all time, having been around since the 1950s. One of the most enduring icons of the automobile industry in the United States, the Impala was first introduced in 1958. Chevrolet produced over 17 million Impalas over the next six decades, making it Chevy’s best-selling car of all time. Surprisingly, it’s also the most stolen vehicle in some places of the country, such as Chicago.
The Impala was once known for its wild rear designs and unique grilles. However, as time passed, it evolved into more modern shapes in the interest of functionality and practicality before ultimately becoming a sedate family sedan.
Read: Car insurance for track days: All you need to know
5. VW Beetle
The VW Beetle is one of the most recognizable cars in the world. Thanks partly to its gloomy origins in Nazi Germany in the 1930s through the “Summer of Love” in 1967.
The popularity of the Beetle skyrocketed during the 1960s, notably in the United States, thanks to a smart advertising effort. The Beetle became America’s favorite compact car because it was inexpensive, cheerful, and dependable. Many Americans purchased a Beetle as their first car after graduating from college or as a second car for the family.
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The Beetle, created in the 1930s, was a pet project of none other than Adolf Hitler. The Nazi dictator desired a car that was affordable to the common populace. As a result, Hitler chose Ferdinand Porsche, an engineer and Nazi Party member, to build the car.
The cars listed here are unique in their own ways. Some of them have even become cars worth collecting, what with their value rising through the roof lately. If you own such a car and want to keep it protected, you need the best car insurance coverage you can get. Start your search for the best car insurance for your needs by tapping the banner below. Our car insurance tools can help you obtain quotes from several insurance companies in your vicinity in under 10 minutes! Best of all, the service is free and we do not require or store any of your personal information!
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