Oddities

Hot dog! The Wienermobile is back after short-lived name change

FILE - The Oscar Mayer Wienermobile sits outside the the Oscar Meyer headquarters, Oct. 27, 2014, in Madison, Wis. On Wednesday, Sept. 20, 2023, four months after announcing that the hot dog-shaped Wienermobile was changing its name to the Frankmobile, Oscar Meyer said that the one-of-a-kind wiener on wheels is reverting to the original. (M.P. King/Wisconsin State Journal via AP, File)

FILE - The Oscar Mayer Wienermobile sits outside the the Oscar Meyer headquarters, Oct. 27, 2014, in Madison, Wis. On Wednesday, Sept. 20, 2023, four months after announcing that the hot dog-shaped Wienermobile was changing its name to the Frankmobile, Oscar Meyer said that the one-of-a-kind wiener on wheels is reverting to the original. (M.P. King/Wisconsin State Journal via AP, File)

 
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MADISON, Wis. (AP) — Some names are just the wurst.

Just four months after announcing that the hot dog-shaped Wienermobile was changing its name to the Frankmobile, the distinctive wiener on wheels is reverting to the original.

Oscar Mayer, which has several of the vehicles, announced Wednesday on Instagram that the Frankmobile is toast. The Wienermobile rides again.

The name change announced by The Kraft Heinz Company in May was meant to pay homage to the brand’s 100% beef franks and their new recipe.

For fans of the original name, the change was, frankly, ridiculous.

“It’s been a franktastic summer!” the Instagram post said. “But like you, we missed this BUNderful icon. Help us welcome back the Wienermobile!”

Oscar Mayer was headquartered in the Wisconsin capital, Madison, for nearly 100 years before it moved to Chicago in 2015. The first Weinermobile was created in 1936, and it has gone through several iterations since then.

Those who drive Wienermobiles around to promotional events are known as Hotdoggers. Perhaps the most famous Hotdogger is former U.S. House Speaker Paul Ryan, who drove a Wienermobile one summer while in college.