Names mean everything when it comes to cars

Shopping around for a car a few years back, I derided a mate's suggestion I investigate a new Chinese brand called Build Your Dreams.

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What a stupid name, I scoffed, settling instead on an MG, a brand I knew from childhood, now transformed under Chinese ownership.

What had once stood for Might Go as much as Morris Garages, the new MG was reliable, packed with technology and relatively inexpensive - even if its looks were uninspiring. A plug-in hybrid, it was also economical to run.

But my early disdain for the suggested Build Your Dreams was misplaced. BYD is now Australia's second-most popular vehicle brand, snapping at Toyota's heels. Turned into its much more sensible acronym, the brand has morphed into something entirely credible.

The names concocted for car brands and their models can make or break their sales trajectory.

At a launch event of the cheerful little Ford Festiva about 30 years ago, the room erupted when a journalist asked why the company had chosen a model name that sounded for all the world like a brand of condom. I'm certain no one in that room ever looked at a Festiva quite the same way after that.

With its dreadful reputation for reliability, the Holden Captiva was destined for brand failure. The intention might have been a play on the word "captivating" but it didn't take long for the model to be unofficially branded the "Craptiva".

Holden had other spectacular flops. Remember the Piazza? It was a wedge-shaped coupe designed by Giorgetto Giugiaro, built by Isuzu and rebadged as Holden, and named to reflect its Italian drawing board origins. But its performance failed to live up to the promise. The engine was powerful enough but the handling abysmal if not downright dangerous. The Piazza soon became known as the Pizza - best eaten standing still.

Back then, our automotive options were limited, often a binary choice between Holden and Ford. These days, we're awash with car brands, especially those newcomers from China, whose names often don't inspire confidence in an English-speaking context.

It would take a lot of convincing for me to shell out for something called a Chery, for instance, no matter how reliable and inexpensive it might be. Likewise, a Zeekr, Aion, Forthing or Xpeng. Unfamiliarity breeds suspicion.

Back in 1955, a little known Japanese brand with a weird English name entered the market. Its first product was an electric rice cooker but then it moved into radios, using the new transistor technology. Named after the American slang term "sonny boys" the brand was Sony, now a global behemoth.

In the mid-1980s South Korean newcomer Hyundai was brought to Australia by Alan Bond and John Hughes and met with scepticism and dismissal by its rivals. But relentless TV advertising - "Say hi to Hyundai" - and budget pricing soon expanded the brand's footprint and it went from obscure to mainstream.

BYD might have become mainstream since I was last in the market for a new car. But with so many oddly named new brands flooding the market no one knows which ones will still be around in five or 10 years' time. And that's why the next time I'm shopping around, it will be the brand I know rather than the flash newcomer I'll gravitate towards.

It's important to pick a brand name that is well-known, not just the the flash newcomers. Picture by Shutterstock

HAVE YOUR SAY: When choosing a new car, how important is the brand name for you? Are you hesitant when it comes to buying a Chinese car? Or have your attitudes changed? Do you remember when Hyundai was a newcomer to the Australian market? Email us: echidna@theechidna.com.au

IN CASE YOU MISSED IT:

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- WA Premier Roger Cook has broken ranks with his federal Labor colleagues in criticising looming changes to working holiday visas.

THEY SAID IT: "The question is, are all of these brands going to survive? And I think the general consensus from every manufacturer is no." - Don Romano, Hyundai Australia CEO

YOU SAID IT: A gremlin put John's name over Steve Evans' piece on the needless bin wars taking place in neighbourhoods across Australia.

"Oh, I do like buttered parsnips," writes Ron. "As much as hanging around bins, beer in hand, talking to the neighbours. It reminds me of the water cooler conversations at work, only not as 'saucy'. People need to stop being so precious about their bins. A waste of time."

Ian writes: "A couple of times when checking my bin to see if it's been emptied by the council truck, I've noticed extra stuff that's not mine. I did find it mildly irritating, but knew it was irrational if the truck hadn't been yet (as long as they'd put the right stuff in the correct bin), and instantly forgotten. At the same time, if I'm walking my dog on bin day, and have a full poo bag, I might drop it into someone else's still full bin, but try and do it surreptitiously, mindful of people's sensitivities. But I would never put it into someone else's emptied bin, meaning they would have to take it in with the poo in it, where it would have to be kept for another week, which has happened to me. Also instantly forgotten after a moment of annoyance."

"If objections over neighbours putting waste in your council bins doesn't stir you up, try renting and placing a skip for cleaning up around the house and yard on your driveway or front lawn," writes Rob. "The one we rented was filled by 'ghosts' in the night to the point we had to order another. The skip guy said, 'Yeah, better order a lockable one, mate!'"

Ash writes: "We agreed to put our neighbours' bins out while they were away. We had a clean-up during that time and wanted to dispose of a small camping mattress. I told my wife to place it into the neighbours' empty bin while I mowed our front lawn. Reluctantly, she ventured forth. While shoving with all her might, the neighbours arrived home, unbeknownst to my wife who didn't hear the car over the mower. At that point, I decided to disappear and watch the awkwardness play out. Just gold. (While the neighbours were good about it, I eventually had to retrieve the mattress myself in order to make the dog house a little more comfortable for my exile there."

"A situation arouse where my neighbour, a builder, would systematically fill his bins to a point where the lid wouldn't close, then he would wheel my bin across and fill it to the brim as well," writes Attila. "I confronted him and as expected an argument ensued. I then reported the matter to Council which investigated and found my neighbour at fault. The reasoning behind the decision was that technically council owns the bins, but the material placed inside and the cost of bin replacement was the owner's responsibility. Further, the bins are allocated to a single household and not for general use."

Arthur writes: "If i see rubbish on the footpath while walking the dog i do not hesitate to pick it up and put it in the next wheelie bin I see. It is beyond my comprehension that any one would object. But that is in Wollongong not my own country home. Is it just common sense or something else that big cities destroy?"

"Our neighbour felt unsafe because someone was using her bin to deposit their rubbish, as a consequence she asked permission to place her bins beside ours on collection day," writes Alan. "She now feels much more secure with our bins guarding hers anything to help a neighbour."

Sue writes: "I'm so lucky to live in a street where our bins are a source of neighbourliness! When I had extra green waste from cutting down a bush, a neighbour brought his bin over for me to fill. We put out the bins and put them away again for elderly neighbours and have a chat along the way. If we're away, our neighbours put out our bins for us and bring them in again. We do the same when they're away. It looks like someone is home and you come home to nice empty bins! And if we use someone else's bin, we give it a hose out to say thank you. Small things but they make for a kinder community."

"I don't have a problem with others putting their overflow recyclables in my bin," writes Mechelle. "However, living in a mass tourism area, general and food waste in the recycle bin is a common summer occurrence. It means a whole truckload of recyclables is contaminated and it all ends up in landfill. A big no to doggy poo in my empty bin, as I am left with the stench for a week before the bin is emptied again. There was a great campaign years back that had the slogan - 'Do the right thing.' Simple really."

Robin writes: "Like much to do with neighbours, I've found that seeking their agreement avoids disputes and builds relationships that help down the track. In an era of mass manufactured agro, it helps more than it hinders and tells people we value them. Little steps make progress. Articles on bin whinging sow discord."

"I have cultivated a positive relationship with my neighbour re bins and the use and sharing thereof," writes Murray. "Ray is a good bloke, lives alone and works long hours. I am retired, and as a favour I put his bins away for him. We have an agreement that if one of us has space in a bin and the other has extra rubbish we can put in. The bin wars are a symptom of our modern society. People would rather see their neighbour try to stuff another bag of the leftovers out of the fridge in their bin than, with a generous spirit, throw open the lid and say, 'Look, we have plentiful space! Use ours.' What a sad indictment."

Paul writes: "The other reason why people may not be keen on other people putting things in 'their' bins is that those things may not be permitted. This can result in non-collection of bins and in some states (including NSW but not the ACT) can result in penalties. Unless you have a camera on your bin, how do you prove it was not you who put the offending material in there?"

Broelman's view ...

Names mean everything when it comes to cars