It’s been an odd year for names, banes and automobiles.
Simon Hacker tests your recall.
Q1. Starter for ten: what exactly is an Urus?
Q2. Bentley launched a watch just in time for Christmas. The Dark Sapphire GT cost just under £10,000. That’s a lot less than the maker’s Urus-rival, the Bentayga. Where did they get ugly name from?
Q3. 2017 saw JLR unleash yet another uber-SUV, the Velar. Why Velar?
Q4. Volkswagen replaced the CC with the Arteon, a sleek execmobile designed to niggle Audi salesmen. Arteon means:
Q5. 2017 didn’t upstage some of the maddest monikers out there already (Pagani’s Huayra, don’t forget, is named after a native American wind god), but it put in a great effort. Alfa Romeo released (yes, another) SUV, naming if after the scary Stelvio mountain pass, and deciding to hell with anyone confusing it with an artificial sweetener. Kia’s Stonic waded in, sounding like a medical procedure without anaesthetic, and Renault blew the dust back off the Koleos badge, despite the risk of offending Greek and Latin customers. In Greek, Koleos means ‘sheath’. In Latin, it means:
Q6 Finally, three new motoring laws came into force this year. Which of these was NOT new?
If your answer's were;
Mostly A's - Seriously?, Mostly Bs - Don’t worry, you’ll be sober for January 2nd, Mostly Cs - It’s been good to have your company, stick with us for 2018!
BY Simon Hacker