Wheels: Identity crisis

Some vehicles suffer from identity confusion. Badge engineering certainly lends to this difficulty, but other factors come into play as well. Transitions from one brand to another or as a brand becomes absorbed under a different corporate umbrella play a role. Was an Ambassador a Rambler or an AMC or both? What is a Datsun by Nissan? What makes an Acura better than a Honda?

Some makes like Datsun, which was the original U.S. brand for Nissan, eventually adopted the namesake of its parent corporation as the world economy grew and economic borders softened, so while every Datsun is a Nissan the same is not true in reverse. When Toyota, Nissan and Honda wanted to go upmarket they introduced Lexus, Infinity and Acura, respectively, but it took convincing for the American car-buying public to pay a premium for a fancier version of a what was known as a “cheap” car.