Will Volkswagen's Three-Row Crossover Be Called Teramont, or Something Else?

Forget head-scratching model names like Tiguan and Touareg. For its new midsize crossover, Volkswagen scrapped its naming-by-German-committee tradition and turned the process over to its American division.

When the new models goes on sale next year, expect a rugged, easy-to-pronounce name designed solely for the U.S. market, Automotive News reports. That name could be “Teramont.”

Volkswagen isn’t saying what the name is. Hinrich Woebcken, CEO of Volkswagen’s North American Region, claims it might not even begin with a “T.” Executives in Wolfsburg must be nervous, like a parent who just let their child bike to the park by themselves.

The model will carry a “bullish, much easier to pronounce, American-style name,” Woebcken told Automotive News.

A Chattanooga-built three-row crossover is a big part of the company’s plan to reverse falling sales. Diesels and semi-premium posturing is out, and money-making crossovers are in. Add a brawny name to U.S.-bound utility models, and the emissions scandal should fade like cheap upholstery.

The creation of the North American Region earlier this year means more autonomy for Volkswagen’s domestic operations. When the scandal broke, the company was criticized for being too top-heavy and bureaucratic.

“Two or three years ago, it would’ve been a no-go that the region decides an individual name,” Woebcken said. “This is already an early sign that Wolfsburg is willing to let go.”

A trademark filing from early December shows that Volkswagen added the Teramont name to its stable. The name was registered internationally on June 2. The trademark filing predates the creation of the North American Region, but the moniker could already have been on file as a suggestion. If Teramont isn’t the crossover’s U.S. name, it could still show up on overseas models.

If Teramont isn’t brawny enough for American consumers, TTAC came up with a list of names that might do the trick:

Volkswagen Boise Idaho

Volkswagen Mutual of Omaha’s Wild Kingdom

Volkswagen Typhoid

Volkswagen Tuscaloosa

Volkswagen America