zzdcar
Home
/
Reviews
/
Culture
/
You're All Pluralizing Cars Incorrectly
You're All Pluralizing Cars Incorrectly-July 2024
2024-02-19 EST 22:12:50

Image for article titled You're All Pluralizing Cars Incorrectly

I know it’s petty and probably shitty to go after grammar, but enough is enough. I read countless comments, tweets, blogs and smoke signals from you people on the daily, and by far the most common fuckup I see comes down to pluralizing cars. I cannot believe I have to reteach this to you.

Alright, as a quick refresher—The Apostrophe. There are many uses for it, but it’s primarily used in a contraction of two words (“it’s” for “it is” or “you’re” for “you are”) and for denoting possession (“Jason’s Figaro”).

It is used for indicating plurals.

Here is a collection of frustrating and incorrect examples:

“My divorced dad had nine Corvette’s.”“I’ve always been a fan of the MR2's.”“You sold 19 Honda’s today.”“Anyone who drives lifted F-150's has no taste.”

Unless something belongs to the Corvette, MR2, Honda or F-150, you take that apostrophe and get the hell out.

And let us also remember the plural possessive, though not used nearly as much. If you have something belonging to multiple cars, it would look something like, “the Corvettes’ wheels.”

While we’re at it, years are never pluralized with apostrophes, either. “Ferrari’s of the 1980's” is so, so wrong. It should be “Ferraris of the 1980s.” If you are, however, indicating a decade and leaving the first two numerals out, then use an apostrophe thusly: “muscle cars in the ‘70s.” It’s all explained here on the .

I don’t know when botching pluralization became so commonplace. It’s not just with cars. I’ve seen signs at businesses that read: “No dog’s allowed,” “Reservation’s required,” “Bathroom’s not for public use” and “Apple’s and peach’s $4 a bushel.” Are we all just a pack of deranged animals now?

In fact, the issue has gotten so out of hand a society that dedicated itself to preserving the correct usage of the apostrophe is shutting down. No, I’m not making this up.

The is a very real thing that was founded in 2001 by John Richards “with the specific aim of preserving the correct use of this currently much-abused punctuation mark in all forms of text written in the English Language,” its website reads.

Unfortunately, after nearly 20 years, Richards is shutting it down, reports the UK’s . He gives two reasons on the site. First, he’s 96 and therefore “cutting back on [his] commitments.” Second, he realizes fewer and fewer people and organizations appear to care about the apostrophe’s correct usage.

“We, and our many supporters worldwide,” he writes, “have done our best but the ignorance and laziness present in modern times have won!”

I cannot see how adding an apostrophe to pluralize something is lazy since it’s the physical addition of extra punctuation. Perhaps Richards means laziness for not bothering to fix the error and repeating it.

Anyway, I’ll not name names here because I’m not an asshole, but I needed to speak up about it. And to the trolls who will race straight past all this writing just to leave an incorrectly pluralized car in the comments, I commend you! You’re really original and clever and I bet every woman who’s ever laughed at your jokes did so because she genuinely thought you were funny.

Comments
Welcome to zzdcar comments! Please keep conversations courteous and on-topic. To fosterproductive and respectful conversations, you may see comments from our Community Managers.
Sign up to post
Sort by
Show More Comments
Culture
I Can't Get Enough Of This YouTuber Who Builds Tiny, Fully Functional Scale-Model Cars
I Can't Get Enough Of This YouTuber Who Builds Tiny, Fully Functional Scale-Model Cars
I love tiny, of . I have a that is roughly half the size of a normal cat, and she’s perfect. I own a 2013 , which is like the miniature version of a normal-sized vehicle (at least here in Texas) — but beyond that, I also own a Hot...
Jul 29, 2025
I Entered My Lifted Miata In A Real Off-Road Race, Here's What Happened
I Entered My Lifted Miata In A Real Off-Road Race, Here's What Happened
I have two automotive loves: The first is the Miata, the second is off-road racing. For a while I raced air-cooled Volkswagens in the deserts of California and Nevada and I was lucky enough to co-drive in a class 11 stock bug in the Baja 1000 a few years...
Jul 29, 2025
Watch ABS Fail When MotorWeek Tests A 1997 Chevy S-10
Watch ABS Fail When MotorWeek Tests A 1997 Chevy S-10
MotorWeek’s is some of the on the internet. The long-running automotive news magazine has a treasure trove of tests after being on the air for over 40 years. Where else can you find detailed instrumented testing of long-forgotten cars like the or a ? MotorWeek’s recent Retro Review upload is...
Jul 29, 2025
2024 Kia EV9: What Do You Want To Know?
2024 Kia EV9: What Do You Want To Know?
At long last, we are about to get behind the wheel of for the first time. Sure, , and sure, , and sure , but hey — what can you do? Anyway, before we get behind the wheel of this three-row electric beast, we want to know what you...
Jul 29, 2025
Toyota Is Moving A Prewar 700-Ton Press Machine Halfway Around The World
Toyota Is Moving A Prewar 700-Ton Press Machine Halfway Around The World
closed its São Bernardo Plant in November 2023, marking the end of its first overseas production facility. The closure caps off a period of continuous car production in São Paolo, , lasting over 60 years. The plant was home to a Komatsu 700-ton press that predates itself. And now...
Jul 29, 2025
Subaru Had It Right All Along
Subaru Had It Right All Along
When first came to the United States, it sold small funky cars that were decidedly un-American. As the company grew its own identity and became more established in the U.S., it became the first automaker to offer an all-wheel-drive passenger car in 1975. Subaru was also an early-adopter of...
Jul 29, 2025
Copyright 2023-2025 - www.zzdcar.com All Rights Reserved