When my sister was sixteen, the only car she ever wanted was a Pontiac Fiero.
Back then, this annoyed me to no end. I would ask her, “what’s so great about a 4-cylinder, 2-seater, plastic car that goes from 0-60 in a half-an-hour?”
“It’s cute,” she’d reply.
“You know they are recalling a bunch of them because the engine spontaneously catches on fire… and I think that they’re saying that if you rear-end a semi with it, there’s a very good chance of decapitation.”
“So?… I like it.” And every time she’d see one on the road, she’d eye it with longing.
No matter what I said, I could not convince her that it was a terrible car. It was like she was brainwashed or something. I didn’t know at the time, but it was my introduction into the intricacies of the female decision process when choosing a car. I wouldn’t call myself an expert on the subject, but I’ve noticed some trends when I talk to some women and what they look for in a car.
Bankrate.com recently came up with its top five ‘chick’ (their word, not mine) cars.
- VW New Beetle
- Mini Cooper
- VW Jetta
- Mazda Miata
- Mustang Convertible
I’m not saying these are bad cars, but I don’t think I’d buy any of them. Yes, I actually drove one in a rental car mix-up a few years ago and enjoyed it. I’ve also eaten quiche on occasion, but I would still choose a steak over it 99 times out of 100.
So with my limited experience and the list above, I would like to proffer my personal insights on the subject of female automobile selection criteria. I’ll call them my “3 C’s” of girl cars.
Color:
I’ve actually had a conversation with a woman who, when I asked what kind of car she was getting, she replied, “a silver one.” I think many of the factors that go into choosing a car have to do with aesthetics with color being one of the highest of priorities. Before they think of powertrain or wheelbase or even trunk space, they know what color they want. I once bought a car in a color I didn’t originally choose simply because they offered to take $500 off the price because it wasn’t selling. I don’t think most women would do this. It would be like asking them to wear their bridesmaids dress again to another function.
Cuteness:
I don’t know what exactly makes a car “cute,” but I think it’s one of those things that you just know when you see it. Cuteness doesn’t make a car safer or faster or even more fuel efficient. In fact, I think it might actually hurt all these things, but it doesn’t matter. You could put a tractor engine on wagon wheels with ropes for steering, but if you can make it cute, some woman somewhere will buy it. I don’t think this is because they have some attraction to the car, but rather due to how they look in them. Perhaps the cuteness of the car will extend to their own personal appearance.
Convertible:
I think it’s no coincidence that four out of the five cars in the list above come in convertible models. I’ve always been astounded by how many women like convertibles. I thought that this was counter-intuitive because wouldn’t it mess up their hair? But I think convertibles are appealing to them because if they’ve taken so much time to find a good-looking car, they want people to see how this good-looking car looks on them. But then as I was looking at photos of these cars, I realized something… these convertibles look like SHOES! It all makes sense now. They don’t DRIVE these cars… they WEAR them.
Now, again, I’m not saying this is true for all women. I’m always impressed when I meet a woman who drives a manual transmission car or knows the difference between naturally aspirated and turbo-charged engines. But I think that what was true for my sister is true for a lot of women. And nothing is wrong with that. Car manufacturers will continue making cute “chick” cars because a dollar from a man is the same as a dollar from a woman.
It would be nice if people would remember one important thing – guys buy cars because they look cool, too.Disagree? Then what are all of those sports cars that can only fit two people inside doing on the road – you know, the ones with decals and paint jobs and everything that costs thousands of dollars for no reason?
Well, no reason except for looking cool, I suppose.Anyway, Harleys are better than any car ever.
Haha The shoe part was my favorite. I’ll admit I owned a Beetle Convertible but realized I had no trunk space whatsoever! Now I drive a GTI, which I love. It’s red, not exactly my first choice (my first choice would be white) but it was the only one with leather so I took it.I’d much prefer to drive an SUV or a convertible again but the MPG is fantastic on my car. With a four hour drive to school from home, I think I’ll stick with the 32MPG Highway. haha I’m that girl that knows a lot about cars compared to my friends, not the one who says “oooh I like that black car!”. My sister picked her car according to your “3Cs”. haha. She wanted a BMW but realized that finding the Sappire Blue 3.28i Coupe with Black Leather interior was like finding a needle in a haystack. (She would NOT budge on the black interior, I thought it was absolutely ridiculous) She ended up with a Black 2006 Mitsubishi Eclipse with grey cloth interior. (I hate the car but she thinks it’s “cute”)
Oh yeah, my dad owned a Fiero when he was in his late 20s and said it was an alright car. He said the 0-60 in a half hour thing too. haha
Wow then I must not be a ‘chick’ in their senses because I would take an M6, or in more affordable terms a new Evo. I wonder what their definition of ‘chick’ was..
hahahaha as a girl, i can say that that’s very true…. we like pretty colored, cute cars. (i don’t like convertibles, though.) however, i do have a turbo-charged car.. and like it. =]
Hey,
Ahahaha, I can see where you’re coming from, I know a lot of chicks that like cars because of what they look like. But at the same time I’m a chick and I don’t think any of those cars on the top 5 are “cute” or worth buying. Maybe if anything the Mustang but convertable isn’t all its made to be. I want a Toyota Supra =]. Now I’m a racing kind of girl, a Supra with a twin turbo engine, manual, custom made interior, would be sooo nice. Now color does mean a lot to me, I want a red, black, or silver. Anyway cool blog.
[music_is_my_release]
The Fiero reminds me a lot of the latest-gen Toyota MR2 Spyder. The chassis had a lot of potential (light weight, MR layout), but the weak engine put to rest any sporty aspirations it might have had.
Of course, the right engine swap could work wonders for it. There is some footage floating around out there of an LS1-powered (5.7L camaro engine) RX-7 and S2000. Scary when you see those cars roll up and you hear the V8 rumble…
lol. a few years back i wanted a vw jetta b/c it had great mpg, was short length-wise (good for parallel parking), and looked cute. as for defining cuteness, i think cars that have a nice balance of straight edges and curves are cute. cars with huge lights are not so cute. boxy cars like hummers and most trucks are not cute, excluding those little white chevy trucks.
LOL…
correct on all counts. I own a pearl white infinity G35 Coupe… not a covertable, but pretty close.
“But then as I was looking at photos of these cars, I realized something… these convertibles look like SHOES! It all makes sense now. They don’t DRIVE these cars… they WEAR them.”hilarious!
Out of all of that, I would rather have a car in a colour that I liked then hated. Orange! ^^ And, I hate bulky cars, I always have. I know guys that are more ‘girly’ about cars then me. I want good gas mileage and after that, I have no idea. I would want to make sure that it ran good. But, honestly, nothing really matters after that. To me anyway, and if anything goes bad, my boyfriend’s dad works on a cars..XP
I love how the part about being likely to be decapitated if you rear end a semi had no effect on her because it is cute. My wife likes cute cars and cute houses.
hahaha. my dad said the same thing about me. he was like i could get you a pretty metallic pink convertible thats second hand & you’d still like it. just because its pretty.pink.& a convertible.
garr. you men know us too well. m just kidding. lol
My answer to that would be good gas milage….4 cyl. is good on gas…
Hugs
LP
I drive a dark blue Chevy Malibu.Honestly, (as a female) I wantsomething cheap and economic…because I’ve never had much moneyto waste and I am determined notto be in debt.As it was my mother’s car, I stoleit from her for $600. What a deal.My car’s name is Ethel(BERT!). Youcan call her Ethel for short. She’sa good girl.
this is true for most *sigh* stupid girls haha but i would never drive any of those cars i drive a lexus IS250 manual and hopefully getting the new m3 next year
ha ha ha…that’s soooooooooo true….i personally love and would never trade my car 4 any other car….
i drive a manual transmission v-8 GT Mustang!!!!!! red and HARD top! converables only add weight n look gay!!!
but….sadly, yes, most women do choose their cars utilizing the “C-concept” ….i’ve tried convincing my girl friends to choose their cars more wisely….but nope….this will go on forever…but also, do keep in mind that some guys pick their cars based on the same idea…small percentage…but still there….
: )
oh yeah….out of curiousity….what do u drive??????
ha ha ha ……..this entry is very true….and sad…all at once….but I personally am that small percentage that does not drive a “shoe” around b/c it makes me look “cute”
I drive a 300 hp V-8 GT Mustang!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! manual transmission…..red….HARD top
Converables not only look gay(both the car n the person inside), but they add extra weight that is unnecessary
And i dunno…me personally prefer the naturally aspirated…nothing like a roaring engine to turn me on….
anywho, i have tried convincing my girl friends to not choose their cars utilizing the “C-concept”…but it is useless….but if it makes anyone feel better…i have guy friends who choose cars on the same concept…
also, just out of curiosity….what do u drive?????
a pontiac fiero?
ha ha ha j/k
I loved this! Very funny and so true. I pick cars on color and “cuteness” then rely on my Dad or my boyfriend to tell me if it’s safe and all that “stuff” that I don’t worry about. While I don’t like convertables, I hate driving with the windows down-I don’t like wind blown hair——I love how you were like SHOES!!! Another obsession of mine. Anyway this was entertaining! Thanks for the laugh.
For the record, when I went to buy my current car, which has been my dream car for about 4 years now (A 2004 Chevy Malibu), I not only didn’t care about color (and wound up with a dark grey one because it was $800 cheaper than the white one right next to it), but my top reasons for buying it were that it had low mileage, A clean and clear CarFax report (NO ACCIDENTS), a TON of trunk space (You could fit at least three our four bodies in my trunk!), a reliable engine and powertrain (Along with an extended year bumper to bumper warranty, which is where the $800 I saved on color went), and all the safety features a mom could ever want (LATCH, Power safety locks, power safety windows), despite never actually HAVING kids.
So not all women pick a car because it’s “cute”. Some of us know a thing or two about getting the most out of a car you plan to run into the ground.
Ah, superficial generalization. Always funny.
I definitely needed a laugh. But I don’t look for cute cars, I like nice features, not nothing like engine-wise. I want a Chrysler Pacifica. I can’t jump from sedan to SUV, it’s not my style…yet.
Plus, all those cars you listed are small than the regular size sedan…I think cute means colorful compact…
i chose my 1st car because it was “cute” and yes, i’m still choosing cars for its cuteness. when it comes to cars, i think i’ll always choose “cute” over “function”. 🙂
it’s kinda the opposite for me, except for the color aspect of that.i wouldn’t ever buy a car if it wasn’t black or silver.and personally, i’d like a car that’s fast.very fast.screw VW beetles! those are DISGUSTINGso are jettas.so are mini coops.so are miatas.
theres nothing like the rumble of a v8 in the morning….cute can kiss my ass ;3…id pick power over looks any day
My brother has a jetta. It’s cute (to affirm what you said before)
I just bought a stick-shift car (which I previously didn’t know how to drive) for several reasons, including it’s color and cuteness (it also has a sunroof, which is enough like a convertible for me. So, your intuitions are scary accurate.
However, I did have an expert check the car out before I bought it, so it was not a blind buy.
wow what a popular entry…out of that list the only one i wouldn’t mind driving is the mini.. however if it came down to ACTUALLY forking over my own money i wouldn’t buy any one on that list…it is true the 3 C’s are very attractive but the order in which you listed them (it so happens) is also the list of importance to me… color: is essential… i love blue… or silver.. but i think ultimately which ever would give me the highest resale value would win out (unless i made tons of money and i wouldn’t have to worry about that so much)cuteness: this is a distant second… lots of cars can be cute… but personally i want a car that is just more than cute… sure it catches the eye and i’ll definitely make a comment with glee in my voice but really i want something a bit more edgy.. and practical.. hahahaconvertible: this is a way distant third… convertibles are fun to rent, or if you have the luxury of affording more than one vehicle at a time… if i was only able to afford one car (which will be more than likely the case for the rest of my life) i would never buy one…but you can tell a lot about a person from the kind of car they actually pick out and buy (not counting hand me downs). i once knew a guy that had a brown civic and i thought how boring… not so much the civic part but the brown…and indeed he turned out to be a ho-hum type of guy….
That’s it, I’m reporting you to your sensitivity traning supervisors.