Great article by Mark Lasswell Business 2.0 (August ’04 issue) about how product names bomb, when companies try to take them global.

Most of us have heard of the Chevy Nova (which translated into “won’t go” in Latin America) and Perdue Chicken’s line “It takes a strong man to make a tender chicken” that in translates into “it takes a sexually aroused man to make a chicken affectionate.”

But I hadn’t heard that the Pajero from Mitsubishi translates into a ‘wankermobile’ in Spanish speaking countries. Explains why, over here in the U.S., it’s called the Montero. The Paj has been the notorious SUV of politicians in Sri Lanka. Makes sense.

For more bloopers, check this link.