Naming your boat is practically a requirement before you hit the open seas but what about your vehicles? Do you give them a name before you take them onto the open road?

 

National Name Your Car Day on October 2nd encourages a special commitment to your wheels. 

 

#NameYourCarDay

 

Remember Herbie the Love Bug, Lightning McQueen from Cars, Kit from Knight Rider, General Lee from The Dukes of Hazzard or Bandit from Smokey and the Bandit? These famous cars forged their own identity in the pop culture universe. 

 

I got my 2006 Pontiac Montana during the height of Hannah Montana’s popularity so naturally she became Hannah as I drove her off the lot. 

 

My first Buick Enclave received her name after a couple of months: Abby. Much like naming a child after birth to find a moniker that suits, Abby just fit. 

 

I didn’t name my first car, a 1982 Chevy Camaro, but if I had it’d have been something like Dodge, as in let’s get the heck out of dodge. No moss grew under those tires!

 

According to a 2019 poll conducted by autowise.com, 40% of people name their cars.

 

In the same study, researchers found that 53% of those people identify their car as female vs male.

 

So pick out a name for your car if you haven’t already. Take your Chuck, Baby, Betsy, or Sam out for a spin then share the name and story behind it with photos using  #NameYourCarDay to post on social media. 

 

Jeanni Ritchie is a contributing journalist from Central Louisiana. She can be reached at