What should cars be called?

What would you rename cars as?

  • Cars

    Votes: 61 64.9%
  • Oilcarts

    Votes: 10 10.6%
  • Driveriders

    Votes: 3 3.2%
  • Roadrovers

    Votes: 11 11.7%
  • Four-wheelers

    Votes: 9 9.6%

  • Total voters
    94
  • Poll closed .
automobiles. 'car' is really out of left field. Almost as strange as 'bil'.

No, "car" is an exceedingly reasonable word. It's a 4 wheeled personal conveyance in Latin, French and all Celtic tongues (with minor variations). Carriage and chariot are variants.

"Auto" or "wagon" (as the Germans do) would make a lot of sense, too, but "car" really is in the running with them for most likely word.

You simply aren't going to get people to use phrases or long words in every day speech. "Horseless carriage" is too long. That's as likely to get shortened to "car" (possibly pronounced "care") as it is to anything else.

So, I vote "car"
 
automobiles. 'car' is really out of left field. Almost as strange as 'bil'.

Bil from automobil. No e at the end in some languages, you see. Auto doesn't roll of the to tongue like bil does to us up here.

Auto and car are the only ones that make sense in English imo. But sometimes you get weird words with tenuous links to older ones unlike car and auto who both have clear links.
 
Perhaps they could be named after the major producer of them early on in their respective countries? For instance, in the US they'd be called Fords, in Germany they'd be called Benzen, in the UK they'd be called Daimlers?
 
Motor is a great alternative. Actually is used OTL in some cases. Engine works too, probably initially being called "road engines" to distinguish from "tank engines".

Motorcoach/motorwagon as an alternative to 'automobile' would be interesting.

Like others have said, wagon is already used in other languages for cars.

Another idea: the Ford :D

*Edit* saw Lemonflavored had the same idea!
 
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