Volkswagen is a brand that in recent years achieved major independence for regional decision-making around the world. A good example of this is the naming of VW Atlas which was an effort to mass-appeal to American consumers.

Originally the model was supposed to be named “Teramont”, following the T-trend for the SUV models. But after the change the new name gives more understanding because even children can explain what “Atlas” means. It already is one of the iconic model names of the brand. That’s why we’re here to remind you of other iconic VW car model names.

VW Beetle

The first printed use of the name Beetle was in a 1958 publication of Autosport magazine. It took years for Volkswagen to start using this name. It was 1967 when the company officially started referring to the Type One model as “Beetle”, written with inverted commas. So it basically means that VW Beetle is named by the people, not by the company. That’s why it’s a good and important example for brand naming.

VW Scirocco

VW Scirocco is a sports model Volkswagen. “Sirocco” is the name of a hot and powerful wind from Sahara that goes northeast across the Mediterranean Sea. What better name would fit a sport coupe than that of a powerful and hot atmospheric move?

Tiguan

Back in 2009 before the official launch of the Tiguan model, Volskwagen polled the people about the name of their new SUV model. A local automotive magazine made the poll with its readers and there was a shortlist with names such as Namib, Rockton, Samun, Nanuk, and the lucky winner Tiguan. Apparently the meaning of Tiguan was a mix with the German words for tiger and iguana. That puts Tiguan in the category of animal-named car models.

And last but not least:

Atlas

Atlas is named after the Greek titan who held up the world on his shoulders. It’s a great metaphor since this model has seven passenger seats. For big families it really is the world. You can’t not love this name choice.

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