When I watched a compilation of 1998 Mitsubishi Mirage Dingo ads I thought it was quite strange. It wasn’t just the fact that the styling got bland after the facelift, but also the choice for the Dingo name. If you are unfamiliar with the dingo, a dingo is an Australian dog. So what’s so strange about naming a family car a Dingo then? Let me explain!
Why you shouldn’t use Dingo as a name
Goofy
First of all, there is a very famous dingo we all know and love. His name is Goofy and he’s Mickey’s best friend. The issue with Goofy is…well, he’s goofy! He’s not the brightest, he’s clumsy and he often messes up things. So naming your car a dingo might be a bit clumsy.
A dingo is a male cougar
Dingo also might have a very different meaning in certain circles. A dingo is slang for a male cougar. For those unfamiliar with the term cougar: that’s an older woman who desires much younger men and sees them as their prey. Imagine this with a male and it becomes a very undesirable name to use on a family car.
Is Meg Ryan Dingo’s prey?
Speaking of family cars, in some of the ads we see Meg Ryan featured. By 1998 she must have been well into her late 30s, making her the perfect soccerhockey mom. She’s getting married in her Dingo, brings the kids to hockey and takes the kids to a meteor shower. One of the kids even exclaims “Where’s daddy?”. Yes, you don’t need Daddy if you have a dingo!
You can watch the ads here:
What I found odd is that the styling of the Dingo changed so drastically after the facelift. Also, at first, I thought someone reversed the facelifted version with the pre-facelift. How can a company change a car that’s appealing to the eye to something so bland that it blends into the beige dullness of the Japanese traffic? Oh wait, maybe that was actually the issue with the car? It wasn’t blending it enough?
WTF?! Bonus
I’ve also come across a Mirage Dingo promotional video with some shocking footage!
The promotional video shows all the ins- and outs of the Mitsubishi Mirage Dingo. For this, a set of spectators consisting of mainly “Western” actors is used and they all admire a Dingo that is being driven off by a set of “Asian” actors. Then the “western” actors will play roles to show certain aspects of the Dingo. This video is definitely outdated and full of stereotypes. But what do you expect? The Dingo is already over 25 years old!
At 7:07 the safety features are highlighted by the kids. And with kids I mean children below the age of 6. Two of these kids watch a Mitsubishi Dingo being crash-tested on a TV screen. The Dingo gets all crumpled up and the crash test dummies are slung into the airbag. To be honest, I think when my kids were below 6, they definitely would find it shocking to see this footage!
You can watch the entire promotional video below:
Conclusion
Is there a conclusion then? Well, I think the Mitsubishi Mirage Dingo is from another era. An era when stereotypes were still allowed. When stereotypes were regularly used. When Meg Ryan was still prey for the Dingo.
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