Achtung! Alle Herhren! Der Winner Ist:
Als der Sauerkrautfresser der TTAC Mannschaft (der ausgerechnet in Peking wohnt) wurde ich gebeten, den Gewinner des Wasistdasverteufeltstedeutscheautowort-Wettbewerbs zu wählen. Ach, Entschuldigung, die Macht der Gewohnheit. Nun denn . . .
As the resident Kraut at TTAC (who resides in Beijing) I was asked to pick the winner of the German phrase contest, in which the most deserving contestant would walk away with his very own copy of the Taschenwörterbuch der Kraftfahrzeugtechnik.
In the risqué dept., Chuck Goolsbee definitely scored with “Einspritz” —although proponents of safe sex could possibly object. “Auspuff,” nominated by Matt, came close. Especially for the connoisseurs of the Teutonic language who, for one reason or another, know that a “Puff” stands for a bordello.
In the essential-components-of-a-car category, bjcpdx leads with “Kraftstoffverdunstungsanlage”, and he also gets points for political correctness. The more common word “Vergaser” comes with some, shall we say, historical baggage in Germany.
“Eingebaute Vorfahrt” was already disqualified, and my own favorite “Wartungsintervallverlängerung” did play, but not compete.
Old standbys such as “Vorsprung durch Technik” and “Fahrvergnügen” won the Evergreen Award but no book.
Choosing the final winner was a hard decision. Aber verdammt nochmal, einer muss gewinnen! Nach erheblicher innerer Konfliktbewältigung, BS decided that the winner is:
“Kurbelgehäuseinnenbeleuchtung”Kurbelgehäuseinnenbeleuchtung embodies the sheer essence of the language of Goethe, Schiller, and Gottfried Daimler. Extra points for “Axel“ being a German name, but misspelled, it could also be a central shaft for a rotating wheel or gear.
The Axle: Contact RF or Ed Niedermeyer (another good German name) with your particulars, and the Taschenwörterbuch der Kraftfahrzeugtechnik will be on its way to you.
Wir gratulieren!
Bertel Schmitt comes back to journalism after taking a 35 year break in advertising and marketing. He ran and owned advertising agencies in Duesseldorf, Germany, and New York City. Volkswagen A.G. was Bertel's most important corporate account. Schmitt's advertising and marketing career touched many corners of the industry with a special focus on automotive products and services. Since 2004, he lives in Japan and China with his wife <a href="http://www.tomokoandbertel.com"> Tomoko </a>. Bertel Schmitt is a founding board member of the <a href="http://www.offshoresuperseries.com"> Offshore Super Series </a>, an American offshore powerboat racing organization. He is co-owner of the racing team Typhoon.
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I'm not a man of big words, but... Thanks, Bertel Schmitt, for the nomination! Thanks, TTAC, for the contest and prize! Thanks, Chuck, BlueBrat, everyone, for the congrats! All the best from...well, Detroit. Axel (My actual name. Believe it or not, I once worked for a lead engineer whose name was Mr. Carr.) PS: By the way, Chuck, do you have a few examples for Einspritz double entendres? May I suggest "Einspritzventilduesenrechteckbohrer"? :)
BS: Do I win if I knew that a "Puff" was a bordello, but forgot to mention it? Besides, the only guy I ever hear Puff from is Austrian, and that's not really German that he speaks. :-)