Most of us have nicknames or have given a couple to some people for cool or funny reasons. Cars are no different, and most of the cars that are given nicknames are generally the coolest ones. There are hundreds of cars with nicknames in automotive history, and here are some of them for you to remember and enjoy.
Clown Shoe: BMW Z3 Coupe
One of those 90s quirky cars that looked ridiculous on paper but made all the sense on the road, the BMW Z3 Coupe was the reinforced sibling to the Z3 roadster with a fixed roof. The roof, shooting-brake-style body, pronounced fenders, and the long nose to accommodate the inline-six engines made the car look funny, hence the goofy nickname “Clownshoe.”
Brick: Volvo 200 Series
The 1980s Volvos were shaped like boxes and were among the most durable cars of the era, making them perfectly appropriate to be called “bricks.” Volvo kept making solid and durable cars well into the 1990s and even the early 2000s, so the name stuck and got modified as time passed. For that matter, some fast, turbocharged Volvos of the past are now called “flying bricks” or “turbo bricks.”
Hammer: Mercedes-Benz 300E 6.0 AMG (W124)
Mercedes-Benz cars are no strangers to nicknames, from Pagoda to Ponton, and Gullwing might be the most expensive nickname, but undoubtedly, the coolest one is the Hammer. Back in the day, AMG was a separate company that modified Mercedes-Benz vehicles upon being commissioned. They squashed a thunderous 6.0-liter V8 under the hood of an otherwise calm and luxurious 300E. Being a super-sedan in the late eighties, the hard-hitting AMG W124s rightfully started to be called “the Hammer.”
Widowmaker: Porsche 911 Turbo (930)
With its engine far behind the rear axle, the cult Porsche 911 has a unique driving characteristic, as they are very prone to lift-off oversteer. In 1975 Porsche released the first 911 Turbo with a 3.0-liter flat-six with close to 300 HP. With a huge turbo lag, the car was utterly unpredictable through curves. With all that sudden surge of boost combined with the already loose rear end of the car, the 930 Turbo was outright scary. It made many inexperienced drivers unable to tame the car, which quickly helped the car gain the nickname “the Widowmaker.”
Godzilla: Nissan Skyline GTR (R32)
Japanese legend Skyline GT-R dominated race tracks in the 1990s. It was a monstrous car that no one could ever come close to in terms of outright performance, and it is believed that an Australian magazine, Wheels, was the first to call it the “Godzilla.” The name was so rightfully picked that it has stuck since then, including the current R35 version.
Terminator: Ford Mustang SVT Cobra (SN95)
The manufacturer itself gave the nickname in this case. In 2003, Ford bolted on a supercharger to its top-of-the-line Mustang Cobra and marketed it as the “Terminator Cobra.” Making close to 400 HP, the SVT Cobra dominated everything around it, just like the Terminator character itself. ‘Stang enthusiasts still refer to the 2003-2004 Mustang Cobras as Terminators.
Rambo Lambo: Lamborghini LM002
Started out as a military-issued vehicle and then converted to be a civilian off-roader, the very rare Lamborghini LM002 SUV is produced between 1986 and 1993. Sylvester Stallone’s hit movie Rambo influenced everything back then, and many people believe this was the reason for the nickname. “Rambo” perfectly rhymes with “Lambo,” which might be another reason, too!
