No One Talks About The Other Powell Motors Cars From ‘The Simpsons’

I suppose it shouldn’t be that surprising given how long the show has been on, but I still find it kind of remarkable how much automotive content the long running animated sitcom The Simpsons has provided. We’ve run a number of Simpsons–related car stories here over the years, and I did more back when I was at The Old Site. It’s a surprisingly rich source of car material, but I think there’s one car-related topic that has rarely been talked about, even though it’s related to what is arguably the Simpsons most famous contribution to automotive culture.

That most famous contribution has to be The Homer, the car conceived by Homer Simpson himself and built by the Powell Motors corporation, the Detroit-based carmaker helmed by Homer’s long-lost half-brother, Herb Powell.

You remember the Homer, right? This glorious monstrosity:

This is, of course the best known of the Simpsons-imagined car. Well, maybe the famous “put it in H” car is a close second, but still. Oh, and the Canyonero, of course. This is the one everyone knows.

As an aside, I’m going to throw in this Insta reel I made of Simpsons characters that share names with cars:

 

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That was fun, right? Sure it was. Okay, back to the fictitious Powell Motors, which is not to be confused with the real-world Powell Motors, a deeply strange and remarkable company that built trucks from wrecked Plymouths.

But we’re talking about the fictional Powell Motors, specifically the cars shown and mentioned in the season two episode, Oh Brother Where Art Thou? There’s actually a good number of other Powell cars shown in the episode, even if the Homer is the only one to get any real attention.

In fact, we see what appears to be Powell’s entire 1991 lineup: 

There are 10 cars there, and going clockwise from upper left, here’s what I think we’re looking at: a compact sedan, a compact two-door wagon/shooting brake, what I suspect is a larger, mid-size four-door sedan, then two mid-size coupés featuring what look like composite headlamps and somewhat more aerodynamic front ends; then a minivan, a full-sized upmarket sedan, a full-sized upmarket coupé, what I suspect may be a pickup truck, and finally an SUV.

It’s a pretty full lineup!

None of these are discussed in any real detail, but we do get a little more information about an upcoming Powell subcompact model, likely to compete with small, fuel-efficient Japanese imports:

That car is the Persephone, and with its boxy design and tiny wheels it kind of reminds me of another car, one that would be a very improbable inspiration: a Czech Velorex 453-0:

I doubt this was intentional, but it sure looks like that little leather-bodied Velorex.

Very little is noted about the car aside from that it’s small, efficient, and named for the mythological figure Persephone, who, in Greek mythology, was the goddess of spring and was abducted by Hades to become the Queen of the Underworld. This is all explained with a pedant’s delight by one of Powell Motor’s annoying and smug Harvard-educated executives:

Did the Persephone even make it to market? It doesn’t seem like it would, after that meeting. I do like how the number six was indicated with those fingers, though.

It’s also worth looking at the version of the Homer that Powell’s designers came up with before Homer demanded more styling input:

Honestly, it’s not bad! The front end reminds me of Saturns of the era, and I think the bubble top works pretty well with that central bar and the overall proportions of the car. Maybe Powell Motors would have survived if they incorporated Homer’s ideas into a car with styling that was more sleek and less unhinged?

It’s hard to say for sure, of course, but I do think they had a potential winner here.

Top graphic image: 20th Century Fox