Austin artist explores the American dream through old car model names
- An Austin-based artist has told the American dream using car names
- Keith Wilson has shown how car names can mean different lifestyles
- The names have been placed into a variety of different segments
Published on May 31, 2025 at 12:17 PM (UTC+4)
by Henry Kelsall
Last updated on May 27, 2025 at 11:53 AM (UTC+4)
Edited by
Tom Wood
An artist from Austin has explored the American dream via car names.
Artist Keith Wilson decided to do this after seeing all sorts of car names while looking for his own Honda parked in Austin, Texas.
Cue the artist realizing that these names, some of which are a little silly, almost promise us different types of lifestyles depending on the cars we drive.
Wilson has shared images of car names on various outlets, with his research taking place during 2022.
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Wilson has said to the CART Department that he found that car names were all about selling lifestyles to customers.
Wilson said: “Car manufacturers were using aspirational nomenclature to sell lifestyles.”
By that, he meant that the name of a car can often translate into a different type of lifestyle.
If you strip away the imagery of the cars, the names reveal a hidden commercial language that relates to customers in different ways.
Wilson presented his artistry in a simple layout, inspired by the work ‘Gangs’ by Richard Prince.
For example, Wilson grouped some names under the heading ‘The West.’
This included names such as Ranger, Tacoma, Durango, Sierra, and Frontier.
Wilson has also grouped a load of car names under the term ‘Europe.’
These are, as you would expect, names you might normally associate with Europe and not the United States.
Names like Yaris, Cabrio, Toronado, and Capri are some very well-known car names over in Europe.
It is a fascinating insight into how manufacturers might work, and there is some logic to Wilson’s methodology.
Some car names suggest a different lifestyle, be it one of luxury or of speed and performance.
Under the Skyward category, for example, we have names like Apollo, Titan, and Eclipse.
All names that suggest looking to the sky, or perhaps even reaching for the stars, are in line with the American dream.
Summing it up even better is the ‘Voyages’ segment, with names like Odyssey, Safari and Venture.
Piecing them all together, Wilson’s claim does make a lot of sense.
It is an amazing study, and it provided a very interesting take on what it is car manufacturers do to sell their products.
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Henry is a content writer with nearly ten years experience, having written for various publications since 2017. Qualifying with a Sports Journalism degree from Staffordshire University, Henry loves all things automotive but has a particular soft spot for classic Japanese cars and anything Lancia. He also has a curious passion for steam locomotives.
