Claim: Photographs show a Porsche with the words "CHEATING BASTARD" keyed into its side.
Status: Partly true.
Example: [Collected on the Internet, 2007]
Origins: The lyrics to the song "Before He Cheats" (popularized by Carrie Underwood) reference a familiar female revenge fantasy for striking back at an unfaithful partner — wreaking havoc on his most prized possession, his automobile:
I dug my key into the side of his pretty little souped-up 4-wheel drive;
carved my name into his leather seats.
I took a Louisville Slugger to both headlights;
slashed a hole in all four tires.
Maybe next time he'll think before he cheats.
Accordingly, when one encounters a shiny new Porsche with the words "CHEATING BASTARD" apparently keyed in the side, the natural assumption is that the car's owner was caught philandering, and his jealous girlfriend (or wife) took out her anger by simultaneously ruining the automobile's appearance and broadcasting news of a scoundrel's infidelity to the world at large.
The images shown above are real pictures; however, they're not a genuine example of that form of revenge. Rather, the supposedly vandalized car is merely an attention-getting device that plays on expected assumptions to drum up business for a garage:
With the words 'cheating bastar' scratched into the paintwork in foot-high letters, it has earned knowing looks from women. It has been spotted in several parts of the city, prompting passers-by to capture the sight on their camera phones. But far from being etched by a furious lover scorned or wife deceived, the words are reportedly just a canny publicity stunt by a car repair firm. Owner Alex Pelling, director of Car Care Express in Salford, has been driving it round for a few days, said an employee.
This car is turning heads in Manchester — but not just because it's a top-of-the-range silver Porsche 911 worth £100,000.
Similar devices have been used to promote those in other lines of business, such as attorneys specializing in divorce cases:
Last updated: 9 May 2007
<!--
Sources:
-->