William Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet famously posed the question “What’s in a name?” way back in 1595, with many of the world’s automakers still pondering that question today. Following Ford ’s shift back to the Taurus nameplate, Volkswagen has announced that it will be bringing back the Golf moniker for the North American market.
Volkswagen branded the Golf as the Rabbit when it was first sold in the North American market during the 1970s and 80s, but, amid some reliability and quality concerns, decided to name the next-generation of the car the Golf to bolster the hatch’s image.
The Golf name soldiered on until 2006 when VW decided to revert back to the Rabbit nameplate. Needless to say, the Rabbit name didn’t exactly spur on sales, leading VW to once again rename its new model the Golf in North America. “The car will be called the Golf again in North America,” Jochen Sengpiehl, executive director of Volkswagen marketing, told Car and Driver.
The decision to ditch the Rabbit name seems like a smart one as the Golf still has plenty of name recognition. The move also gives VW one global name, which seems to make things easier for everyone.
