Meaning Of Performance Car Badges You Should Know, From AMG And GT-R To NISMO And GTS

Here are the meaning of high-performance car badges you should know, from NISMO and AMG to GT-R and GTS.

Last month, Nissan promised to revive the GT-R nameplate after the final production Nissan R35 GT-R rolled off the assembly line at the Japanese brand’s Tochigi plant in Tokyo.

Fitted on its most powerful vehicle, Nissan noted that GT-R badge is not something that can be applied to just any vehicle… saying “it is reserved for something truly special and the R35 set the bar high.”

“To the many fans of the GT-R worldwide, I want to tell you this isn’t a goodbye to the GT-R forever, it’s our goal for the GT-R nameplate to one day make a return,” said Ivan Espinosa, President and CEO of Nissan.

Like Nissan, other car brand’s continue to use acronyms for some of their performance models, which typically includes two or three letter combinations, sometimes borrowed from big 3 in motorsport, including F1.

Below are some of the most popular performance acronyms and what they actually mean.

1) Mercedes-AMG

The 3-letter acronym, AMG, found at the rear of high-performance Mercedes-AMG models contains the name of 2 of its founders: Hans Werner Aufrecht, and Erhard Melcher, and Aufrecht’s birthplace of Großaspach in Germany.

AMG : Aufrecht Melcher Großaspach

2) Nissan

The GT-R nameplate stands for Gran Turismo–Racing. Like the GT-R sports car, Nissan’s Nismo performance arm is actually an acronym in itself.

NISMO : Nissan Motorsport International Limited

GT-R : Gran Turismo–Racing

3) Honda

Two of Honda’s acronyms, the Si and Type R monikers, are associated with high horsepower and plenty of torque steer. All powered with the aid of VTEC.

Si : Sport Injected

Type R : Racing

4) Lexus

Lexus uses two performance badge : “F Sport” badge, which denotes sporting-oriented trims, and the more exclusive “F” badge.

Fitted on high-performance vehicles like the iconic LFA, RC F, and GS F, the flagship “F” badge is a nod to the automaker’s home track, Fuji Speedway in Japan.

F : Flagship / Fuji Speedway

5) Lamborghini

The Lamborghini SV acronym has been worn by the Diablo, Murcielago and Aventador, and it signifies the highest in performance throughout the range. There are the SVJ and the Performante, which are more track-focused.

SV : SuperVeloce

SVJ : SuperVeloce Jota

Performante : From Performance

6) BMW M

The M-badged models fitted with the ‘most powerful letter in the world’ are high-performance luxury cars with racing technology from

The “M” stands for “Motorsport,” reflecting its origins in BMW’s successful racing program in the 1960s and 1970s.

M : Motorsport

7) Dodge

The R/T badge was introduced in 1967 but the SRT badge signifies even more power

R/T : Road/Track

SRT : Street & Racing Technology

8) Jaguar/ Range Rover

Jaguar use SVR acronym to its F-Type sports car following the Range Rover with the same name.

SVR : Special Vehicle Racing

SVO : Special Vehicle Operations

9) Ford

Ford’s iconic acronyms are for high-performance machines like the Mustang and the GT supercar. Focus and Taurus benefit with monikers like RS, SVT, and others.

SHO : Super High Output

SVT : Special Vehicle Team

ST : Sport Technologies

RS : Rally Sport

10) Cadillac

Cadillac has two main high-performance badges : the “V” and “Blackwing” badges, while a torque-based T numerical system (e.g. 500T) indicates specific engine power output.

V-Series : This badge represents Cadillac’s performance division. It is fitted on high-performance models.

Blackwing : This is the highest level of performance within the V-Series lineup.

11) Ferrari

Ferrari uses several F1-inspired performance-related acronyms on its cars, including GTO (Gran Turismo Omologata – for homologated road-going sports cars) and GTE (Grand Touring Endurance) for racing cars.

12) Chevrolet

Three of Chevrolet most notable trims, LS, RS, and SS, each have a range of performance credentials and options that separate one from the other.

LS : Luxury Sport

RS : Rally Sport

SS : Super Sport

13) Acura

Acura’s three most popular acronyms, including the new TMU + IPU used on the NSX.

NSX : Originally stood for “New,” “Sportscar,” and “eXperimental,” but now interpreted to mean “New Sports eXperience”.

NSX : New Sports eXperience

14) Subaru

The WRX and STI monikers have been around, in some form or another, since the early ‘90s.

WRX : World Rally Experimental / World Rally Cross

STI : Subaru Tecnica International

15) Porsche

The GTS acronym sits on the back of everything from the 718 Boxster to the Panamera to the new 911.

GTS : Grand Turismo Sport

16) Volkswagen

GTI moniker stands for Grand Touring Injection to signify the turbocharged 2.0-liter engine while Golf R borrows its moniker from the racing team

GTI : Grand Touring Injection -turbocharged 2.0-liter engine

R : Racing

• See Also : After 18 Year Run, Nissan Bids Farewell To R35 GT-R As Final Vehicle Rolls Off The Production Line