Why are luxury car makers abandoning names for letters/numbers?

[psteng19]

First it was Acura, now it's Caddilac.
Are they getting less and less creative?

Frankly, I like the name 'Legend' much more than 'RL'.

 

[MikeMike]

they aint letters, they are abbreviations

although most ppl cant tell you what they stand for.

MIKE

 

[Cristatus]

well, it's easier to come up with letters/numbers instead of names. but some names just make sense: VW Golf, Seat Ibiza, Lotus Elise etc.

 

Everyone copies each other in hopes of getting their stake in the fad.

 

[Vic]

They want people to say the make of the model rather than just the model name.

 

[vi edit]

Numbers make it possible to create a brand recognition across the model lines while still retaining the ability to distinguish different engine sizes among similar cars.

Plus there's something more....professional....about using a clinical branding like "TL" or "540i" over calling something a "Camry" or a "Cobalt".

 

[Passions]

Acura starting killing the names because Legend and Vigor were becoming more popular than "Acura."

People were saying that they owned a Legend, instead of Acura. In order to associate with more respected brands like BMW and Mercedez, they went to letter/numbers.