Female Car Enthusiasts

[Zenith]

It's very easy to place the blame on gender roles and media influence, but car people really need to look inward to help branch out to females and new enthusiasts.

Look at the discussions on GTP. There are so many people who will foam at the mouth and turn red with anger at the thought of somebody buying a Prius or driving a beige bloated CamCord. There's nothing like hostility for alienating people who would've otherwise been a best friend.

There's a lot of cliques in car culture. Purists, muscle car crowd, imports, eurosnobs, and on and on. Every one of them seems to be wagging their finger at somebody and looking for something to get angry over. Nobody wants to join a hobby that revolves around being angry at things.

If car people want more friends, more enthusiasts, more creative builds, and more power in the eyes of car manufacturers, we need to celebrate car driving, car engineering, and car history instead of finding things to scorn.

 

[SlipZtrEm]

The only difference is that we men don't actually mean it. You girls are brutal to each other.

Without wanting to turn this into too much of a mirror for the homosexuality thread: the massive amount of gay-bashing and general harassment we hear about in the media leads me to believe a lot of men do mean it.

@Zenith just nailed the point I couldn't articulate to tie that to the topic at hand; auto enthusiasm needs to be inclusionary, not exclusionary.

 

[Northstar]

I think the lack of female car enthusiasts is a relatively new problem as there seemed to be plenty of older females with cars at the car show I went to a few weeks back (just over 1,300 cars), granted that could just be a local thing. Of course the more alarming thing was the fact most of the cars there were owned by people old enough to be grandparents.

I'm not really sure how to grow interest among females as it seems like it's currently hard to even get males interested in cars, I suspect what @Zenith said has a lot to do with it.

The worst part for me, is that my two biggest joys in life, cars and music, have been ruined by vile people who spend their free-time(which they seem to have in endless supply) bashing everything and in the process bringing the thing they supposedly like down in the process.

 

[Daniel]

The key problem is that lot of Motorsport and car-based events (races, shows, exhibitions etc) happen around fields or grasslands, making it really hard to walk in stilettos and a pencil skirt.

Doesn't stop you from doing it.

 

[Grayfox]

The key problem is that lot of Motorsport and car-based events (races, shows, exhibitions etc) happen around fields or grasslands, making it really hard to walk in stilettos and a pencil skirt.

Women also work in restaurants, work sites, ect

Each of these places has their own dress code.

Going to a racetrack means you use the right clothing for the job.

No high heels and clothes that suit the weather.

 

[TenEightyOne]

Going to a racetrack means you use the right clothing for the job.

No high heels and clothes that suit the weather.

None of your business, you'd poop a kidney if somebody told you how to dress. Far too many people worrying about what other people should be doing/shouldn't be doing.

 

[MatskiMonk]

None of your business, you'd poop a kidney if somebody told you how to dress. Far too many people worrying about what other people should be doing/shouldn't be doing.

It should just be common sense, but it's the look of despair on the husband/boyfriends face when he realises he got to put up with it all day that gets me.

On-topic, I've only got one female friend who is passionate about cars. I would perhaps have married her, had the opportunity even been close to even the embryonic stage

 

[kikie]

* A man's brains is wired to like to watch objects, e.g. cars and a woman's brain is wired to like to watch people.

* It's a primeval thing. It is imbedded in the male DNA to travel, to go a find food, to not stay in one place. Women on the other hand stayed in the caves with the children.

We still want to travel and leave our house. It is also a male ego thing (speed and expensive objects). If cars were boring and very slow, we wouldn't car less and only look at women.

 

[niky]

I'm fortunate to have worked with a lot of women in the industry... Women who like cars.

The appreciation is generally different, though.

Aside from a few racing drivers who could kick my arse five ways to Tuesday on the track, few of them are as interested in the nitty gritty mechanical details as we are. That part is basically hardwiring. Man brain likum tinker. Women likum style, practicality and comfort.

Buuuut... A lot of men who appreciate cars are the same way. An inclusive enthusiast culture will recognize this.

Unfortunately, we can't even get along with each other... So what chance do non-meat heads have?

*Fixed smartphone autocorrect errors.

 

[PeterJB]

Car girls are hot.

Just sayin'.

 

[TenEightyOne]

Car girls are hot.

Just sayin'.

So are car boys. What's the point in mentioning it?

 

[PeterJB]

So are car boys. What's the point in mentioning it?

As in girls that like cars always grab my attention in way that others don't. Not grid girls.

 

[TenEightyOne]

As in girls that like cars always grab my attention in way that others don't. Not grid girls.

And men that like cars can grab attention in ways that others don't. So still... what's the point?

 

[PeterJB]

And men that like cars can grab attention in ways that others don't. So still... what's the point?

It's less of a surprise when men like cars. If you're looking for a romantic attachment then it's the same thing. But again, I'm not exactly shocked when I meet a guy that likes cars.

 

[TenEightyOne]

It's less of a surprise when men like cars. If you're looking for a romantic attachment then it's the same thing. But again, I'm not exactly shocked when I meet a guy that likes cars.

I get you know; you're making the point that more men like cars. You should have just said that instead of lounging around the thread in a smoking jacket and false chin

 

[Grayfox]

None of your business, you'd poop a kidney if somebody told you how to dress. Far too many people worrying about what other people should be doing/shouldn't be doing.

If a women dresses up in an evening dress and a guy dresses up in a tux for a race in winter or summer, your gonna have a bad time.

 

[TenEightyOne]

If a women dresses up in an evening dress and a guy dresses up in a tux for a race in winter or summer, your gonna have a bad time.

And vice versa, but vive la difference and the choice with it. To be clear though; were you talking about going to the racetrack to race or to spectate?

 

[Grayfox]

And vice versa, but vive la difference and the choice with it. To be clear though; were you talking about going to the racetrack to race or to spectate?

Spectate.

If your gonna race, rules state you need to wear the racing gear.

 

[Beeblebrox237]

It is true that most of us male enthusiasts are constantly dreaming about dating a girl who loves cars. And because female car enthusiasts are fairly uncommon, we do tend to go a bit gaga over girls who like cars. Which probably turns the girls off the car enthusiast community, because they're not really looking for a community of guys who all want to date them, rather they just want some friends who like cars, like any car enthusiast does.

 

[Adamgp]

There seems to be plenty of car girls around here.

I met a bunch in high school, one of whom drove a 1980 Corvette with a built 350 that she built with her dad.

I just met another girl not too long ago who was a huge car nut and racing fan. Even helped work on her dad's Sprint car.

 

[Dennisch]

Doesn't stop you from doing it.

I tree'd you by a good 9 hours.

 

[Daniel]

I tree'd you by a good 9 hours.

 

[Pseudopod]

I think the comic on the first thread pretty much nailed it. Or at least a large portion of it. To truly appreciate the technical side of how cars work, and especially those that push the limits of what's physically possible, you need a certain degree of interest in, well, technical stuff. Even if there are innate differences in what males and females are interested in from a young age (I don't really know, but I'll accept the possibility), basically every single male in the entire developed world gets tons of chances to explore that side of himself from like as soon as he is able to walk or maybe even earlier. If you're female, however, you might not get nearly as many opportunities to do that, so even if a girl actually could develop a real interest in both the mechanical and aesthetic side of cars, only a small portion actually gets the chance to. And when the teenage years hit with that side still dormant, that might be too late.

For all we know, the "split" between interests could be something like 60/40 in the males favor, but if only one quarter of those 40 female actually get a chance to discover that side of themselves, the actual percentage of female car enthusiasts naturally drops a lot.

Interestingly though, I was never really interested in cars in my early teens and childhood, but actually just gradually started getting interested when my brother got a PS2 and GT3. I was just interested in games in general, and because I didn't have all that big a selection when I was young, I'd try just about anything that was in the house. I've always been technically minded and had an interest in how things work though, which is probably why I liked GT more than most other racing games.

I'll admit that GT3 and 4 weren't the games I played the most back in the day, but the occasional racing sessions were enough to keep the interest alive, for so to get a lot stronger later.

 

[Wolfe]

Aside from a few raving drivers who could kick my arse five ways to Tuesday on the track, free of them are as interested in the nitty gritty mechanical details as we are. That part is basically hardwiring. Man brain likum tinker. Women likum style, practicality and comfort.

Since she met me, my wife began to notice cars by more than their most basic description: "silver car" or "red truck". She discovered that she's fond of cars like the BMW 2002 or S30 Fairlady Z (several girls I've known like Zs), pre-WWII cars, and old-school trucks/4x4s like the Ford F100 and mid-century Jeeps/LRs/Toyotas. Style and practicality.

 

[Joel]

I remember with my ex girlfriend even after being together and me driving everywhere for 10+ months she still had no idea what kind of car I drove or what it looked like. She knew it was blue and that's about it, she'd walk towards an Accent or a Civic and try to open the door while I was chillin by the Corolla

 

[TenEightyOne]

chillin by the Corolla

Story fake because this can't happen.

 

[mirial]

As far as I can tell, these natural roles have persisted throughout time. I'm not exactly sure why these anti-gender role/equality/feminist people are so upset about that. Women certainly can do anything men can do and vice versa, but as it happens neither of us are as good at doing the other's jobs as they are. So how about instead of bitching we just focus on what we do best and get on with it. This is when they'd all call me an asshole because of course men are assholes - and yet they still want the D. Being an asshole ain't half bad sometimes, ya know.

If they are angry about the gender roles, then let them fulfil their desires with whatever they choose. Alpha dominant men will however always carry more authority than Alpha dominant females, especially in a male dominated environment. I even hear so many times that women prefer male bosses! It's natural for a man to look up to iconic men with which to learn from in their chosen interests, not women. I hear that Eastern European women say that there is confusion in the US over gender roles too, where they also think that women have become masculine and men less so. Maybe this fits society better as approx 65% of women and 35% of men are dominant. Needless to say, both these types sexually avoid each other like the plague anyway.

I used to work along with a few female engineers and to be honest I felt from observation that they were never really suited to it as it required you to be naturally into all the areas that make up a good engineer. Nearly all would migrate over to data or project management type roles after a few years, whilst the majority of men would remain in an engineering role. From memory, the majority of men had an engineering based interest from cars, motor sport, cycling or mending cars for fun, whereas the women didn't.

Women did however make up most of the financial department where they were into their accountancy jargon just as much as the men were into their specialised area.

Women by nature are more nurturing and caring. I've witnessed so many pieces of cowboy workmanship of all kinds where I can't help thinking that women with the same skills and training as men would take more responsibility, which includes the cosmetics regardless of whether they like their 'occupation' or not if made aware of the potential outcome when a job isn't done properly.

 

[Encyclopedia]

As already stated, gender stereotypes. Hopefully they'll become extinct (or less prevalent) as society become more equal.

 

[TenEightyOne]

If they are angry about the gender roles, then let them fulfil their desires with whatever they choose. Alpha dominant men will however always carry more authority than Alpha dominant females, especially in a male dominated environment. I even hear so many times that women prefer male bosses! It's natural for a man to look up to iconic men with which to learn from in their chosen interests, not women. I hear that Eastern European women say that there is confusion in the US over gender roles too, where they also think that women have become masculine and men less so..

But isn't everything you say there implicitly accepting a perceived difference enforced by society?

You think it's unnatural for a man to have a female icon for example, that in itself is very telling.

Maybe this fits society better as approx 65% of women and 35% of men are dominant. Needless to say, both these types sexually avoid each other like the plague anyway.

Source, please.

 

[FoolKiller]

While I do believe that gender stereotypes play a role in many instances, my personal experience with my daughter has been that the physiological differences between the genders play a huge role. And before anyone tries to argue there are no physiological differences, talk to a doctor about hormonal differences between men and women and instinctual reactions to varying stimuli.

In the case of my daughter, I specifically went out of my way to avoid a focus on princesses and baby dolls for the first year or two. I did this to the point of putting away gifts of this nature. Her very first stuffed animal was a dinosaur. Her first toy was a car. She has Megablocks and access to video games. Before she was born I would play racecar engine sounds on my wife's stomach. I would have her sit with me to watch car races. We take her to railroad museums and car shows.

Nearly five years into this social experiment and she loves Frozen while Cars bores her. The most recent toy car I bought her at Petit LeMans, at the beginning of this month, has already been set aside. That isn't to say that I don't see the affect I had. She will get excited when she sees a racecar, but it is especially exciting if it is pink or purple. She wants to run and jump and climb trees, but she has a 50% chance of wanting her Elsa or Barbie doll with her. She sits with me and watches Justice League and similar cartoons, but if she has control of the remote and I don't suggest something she winds up watching something with princesses, fairies, Barbie, or Bratz (which is clearly created by men. Have you seen what they are wearing?).

That comic is so oversimplified that it ignores one big factor: If the girl had the boy toy would she magically have a higher tendency to be an engineer?

Fact is, there are differences in genders as well as individual tendencies. There are things my daughter likes that no one in our family or any of her friends enjoy. She likes dancing and music. No one we know dances (with exception of the people we met at dance class) and I only sing Christmas Carols...badly. Her teacher has mentioned that she will occasionally join the boys playing blocks and whatnot, but it is not very frequent. Perhaps my attempts have had some effect, but once we opened her up to both gender typical toys she went in the female direction.


I also think that we are being prejudiced and stereotyping in what we expect a car enthusiast to be. If she doesn't show up at the car show or can be seen under the hood we don't think a female can be a car enthusiast. Fact is, I know plenty of girls who can talk about cars, enjoy sports cars, and own enthusiast style cars. But the woman driving a Corvette doesn't show up at the car show or track and so we write her off as just being another Paris Hilton. Females approach the enthusiasm differently. I found out a year ago that actress Lake Bell had a father who was a car guy (he reopened VIR)and she is a wrencher herself. But she doesn't go around showing it off. Few people know she writes the automotive column in The Hollywood Reporter.

I think the better question some should be asking is why you don't recognize a female car enthusiast.

Ultimately, what is more offensive: recognizing that the genders are different and that can affect tendencies to like certain things or expecting people to fit such a narrow view in your definition that you don't see when someone has a liking in an atypical gender preference? Are we being too White & Nerdy to allow us to see a female car enthusiast because she won't fit our narrow preconceived notion of what a car enthusiast must be?