Pagani And Subaru

2021Nickname meme / fandom in-jokeactive

Published April 7, 2026

Also known as: I Call Patrick Subaru · I Call SpongeBob Pagani

Pagani and Subaru is a SpongeBob SquarePants meme trend where fans refer to the show's characters by car brand names: SpongeBob is "Pagani," Patrick Star is "Subaru," Squidward is "Nissan," and Mr. Krabs is "Toyota." The trend originated from a 2021 SpongeBob Fandom wiki comment by a user named Kylie (Kmh1481), who casually called Patrick "Subaru" because she thought the name sounded cute. The comment sat dormant for four years before exploding on TikTok in March 2025, spawning thousands of videos and expanding into a full cast of car-themed nicknames.

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Overview

The Pagani and Subaru meme is a SpongeBob SquarePants fan trend that renames the show's main characters after car manufacturers. Patrick Star goes by "Subaru," SpongeBob is "Pagani" (after the Italian supercar maker Pagani), Squidward is "Nissan," and Mr. Krabs is "Toyota"14. Fans create TikToks, image posts, and Reddit threads using these names in place of the real character names, treating the swap as completely natural. A typical post might caption a SpongeBob clip with something like "Pagani just trying to do his job and Subaru just be geeking"4.

The humor works on multiple levels. There's the absurdity of swapping cartoon character names with car brands, the deadpan commitment fans show by never breaking character, and the sheer randomness of the original reason behind it all: a fan thought "Subaru" just sounded cute2.

Origin & Background

Platform
SpongeBob Fandom wiki (original comment), TikTok / Reddit (viral spread)
Key People
Kmh1481 / Kylie, @gehegwoj1ga
Date
2021 (original comment), 2025 (viral spread)

The whole thing traces back to March 6, 2021, when a SpongeBob Fandom wiki user named Kmh1481 left a comment on the page for the episode "Gone." She wrote: "I hate that even Subaru took part in no SpongeBob day what kind of best friend is he"3. Another user, Idoodle247, replied asking "Who's Subaru?" Kmh1481 answered simply: "I call Patrick Subaru"2.

That exchange sat on the wiki for four years, virtually unnoticed. When it finally blew up in 2025, Kmh1481 (who revealed her real name is Kylie) returned to the Fandom page to explain her logic. She told another user, AlkalineOrSomething: "I call Patrick Subaru because the name Subaru sounds cute." She added that "any word ending in the letter u sounds cute and Patrick looks so cute a lot of the time"3.

The "Pagani" half of the meme appeared later, during the viral wave. On March 5, 2025, TikToker @gehegwoj1ga posted a video of Patrick hitting his hand with a hammer, captioned "Pagani just trying to do his j*b and Subaru just be geeking," picking up over 671,000 views in two days4. This is the earliest confirmed use of "Pagani" for SpongeBob. The name likely comes from the Pagani Zonda, an Italian sports car, mirroring how "Subaru" doubles as a car brand4.

That same day, a now-deleted Reddit post by u/moelzekiboi on r/subaru may have independently coined the "Pagani" nickname, though the timeline between the TikTok and Reddit posts is unclear4.

How It Spread

The meme tore through TikTok and Reddit in the first week of March 2025. On the TikTok side, @clipstiktok766 posted a compilation titled "Best Subaru moments" featuring classic Patrick clips. It pulled over 800,000 views and 170,000 likes1. Creators started building out the car-name universe for the rest of the SpongeBob cast. On March 5, TikToker @ozor_wolowy posted an image of SpongeBob wearing Mr. Krabs' shell with the caption "nah but why pagani wearing mr.toyotas skin," racking up more than 500,000 views in two days4.

Reddit picked it up fast. A screenshot of the r/subaru comment thread (where users mimicked the original Fandom exchange but for SpongeBob as "Pagani") landed on r/spunchbob on March 5 and pulled over 330 upvotes4. The next day, u/No-Fan4546 posted to r/Spunchbob with the title "Why did Subaru no pagini day," earning over 450 upvotes4.

Kylie, the originator, didn't sit on the sidelines. She took to TikTok in March 2025 to confirm she started the nickname and posted proof of her original Fandom comment2. She also revealed a wild detail: she once asked Patrick's voice actor, Bill Fagerbakke, during a virtual auction to work "Subaru" into an episode. While Fagerbakke didn't say the name outright, fans believe he slipped in a nod in Episode 305, "The Dirty Bubble Bass." During a scene where characters introduce their alter egos, Patrick says "And I'm affordable car," which SpongeBob corrects to "Don't you mean Barnacle Star?"2. Kylie sees this as a subtle acknowledgment of her nickname.

The trend did attract some pushback. Multiple TikTokers accused the "Pagani" extension of being a forced meme, since it piggybacked on the organic virality of the Subaru nickname rather than emerging naturally4.

How to Use This Meme

The format is straightforward: take any SpongeBob content (clips, screenshots, or original edits) and replace character names with their car brand equivalents. The standard mapping is:

- Patrick Star → Subaru - SpongeBob → Pagani - Squidward → Nissan - Mr. Krabs → Toyota

Posts typically use these names in captions as though they're the characters' real names, with no explanation. The humor comes from total commitment to the bit. Common formats include compilation videos ("Best Subaru moments"), captioned screenshots ("nah but why pagani wearing mr.toyotas skin"), and meme posts referencing in-show events using the car names14.

Cultural Impact

The meme's spread highlighted how a single forgotten comment on a fan wiki can sit dormant for years and then detonate across social media. Kylie's story of asking Patrick's voice actor to acknowledge the nickname, and the possible Easter egg in Episode 305, blurred the line between fan culture and official show content in a way that deepened the meme's appeal2.

The discovery that a real Patrick Subaru car dealership exists in Shrewsbury, Massachusetts added another layer of coincidence. Fans also noticed that the Subaru automotive logo features six stars, and Patrick's last name is Star2. Whether these connections inspired Kylie or are pure coincidence is unknown, but they gave the meme extra staying power.

Fun Facts

Kylie chose the name "Subaru" purely because words ending in "u" sound cute to her, not because of any car connection3.

A Patrick Subaru car dealership actually exists in Shrewsbury, Massachusetts, which fans discovered after the meme went viral2.

The Subaru car logo features six stars, matching Patrick's surname "Star"2.

Kylie personally asked voice actor Bill Fagerbakke to say "Subaru" in an episode during a virtual auction. Fans think his line "And I'm affordable car" in Episode 305 was a deliberate nod2.

Some TikTokers accused the "Pagani" extension of being a forced meme, since it emerged to ride the coattails of the organic "Subaru" trend4.

Derivatives & Variations

Nissan (Squidward)

— Fans extended the car-naming convention to Squidward, calling him "Nissan" in posts and videos[1][3].

Toyota (Mr. Krabs)

— Mr. Krabs picked up the nickname "Toyota" or "Mr. Toyota" as the trend expanded to the full SpongeBob cast[4].

"Best Subaru moments" compilations

— TikTok creators cut together Patrick Star highlight reels under the Subaru name, with @clipstiktok766's version reaching over 800,000 views[1].

Frequently Asked Questions