Author Topic: What women think of men based on their cars  (Read 47590 times)

MgoSam

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Re: What women think of men based on their cars
« Reply #50 on: February 16, 2015, 10:41:29 AM »
Sorry, as a guy I feel like I am crashing this thread, but just felt like I should share this. A friend of mine that recently became single and I was attracted to told me that she just bought a Lotus. I didn't know what the car was and she had to tell me that it was very expensive, and my first instinct was to lose interest in her, thinking that she might have expensive tastes.
« Last Edit: February 16, 2015, 10:44:25 AM by MgoSam »

sweetproserpina

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Re: What women think of men based on their cars
« Reply #51 on: February 16, 2015, 11:11:48 AM »
I fell for my now-husband when I saw his ride: A 20-year-old Volvo 240 wagon with a third row seat.

I still miss that car.

When i met my husband, he was driving a 1983 240 volvo, (this was 2002), we loved that car! Drove all over the country, DH pimped it out, put in newer engine etc.. It was an awesome car. We finally gave it up when the kiddos arrived and need more room for car seats in the back.. so now the fella has a rebuilt 1995 butter yellow luxury model volvo. My mother is always asking when we're going to get a new car.. after the old Volvo, the yellow feels like we are swimming in luxury- heated seats, cup holders, practically no road noise... why would we buy something else?

joat

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Re: What women think of men based on their cars
« Reply #52 on: February 16, 2015, 11:16:25 AM »
What I think of women who judge a man based on his car:  Skanks.

Exactly. I love all these things regarding this is what women think of you if you do whatever. Any woman that is like that is only good for one thing.

I don't most of the people in this thread are saying that they're going to judge someone solely based on their car, end of story. They're simply saying that what someone chooses to drive can reflect their personality (and therefore affect their first impression) - just as other decisions someone makes in life often reflect their beliefs, values and personality.

I agree the idea that what you drive can influence someone's first impression of you. Because of this and the fact that my daily driver looks like I wasted a lot of money customizing it (even though I didn't - one of previous owners did), I generally prefer to avoid letting a date see my cars (and avoid mentioning that I own 2 cars) for the first few dates while they get to know me. I find that people who own/drive older nice cars (classic, sports, muscle etc) are often a different crowd from those who drive new fancy cars because they're usually driving them for an entirely different reason - passion.

I would also point out that just because someone drives a fancy looking car, doesn't actually mean that they spent an absurd amount of money on it (although I think it's the exception rather than the rule). It is quite possible to buy older, fun-to-drive sports cars and fix them up without spending a lot. There are many ways to get reasonably nice (even fairly luxurious) cars for really good prices.

I have broken a couple of stereotypes w/ past girlfriends.  They have said similar things as you all, most of the guys they'd dated before with a fancy car were kind of jerks about it.  Not that my cars are fancy, but I enjoy the hell out of them, and I think pure enthusiasm towards any hobby can be contagious.  For instance, very tough to talk about how expensive or nice of a status symbol something like this is (not my car, very similar):



But I sure do love mine.  Cost $1200 and drives like a go-kart :).

Turning the tables, I find a woman who can drive stick very appealing.  Not just because it's a good skill to have, but also its implications.  It suggests good coordination, care/dedication to whatever they are currently doing (much harder to drive distracted when using both hands and feet), situational awareness, and common-sense.
+1 (from a fellow mid-engine 80's sports car owner)

(Not mine, but similar)

johnny847

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Re: What women think of men based on their cars
« Reply #53 on: February 16, 2015, 11:41:01 AM »
Sorry, as a guy I feel like I am crashing this thread, but just felt like I should share this. A friend of mine that recently became single and I was attracted to told me that she just bought a Lotus. I didn't know what the car was and she had to tell me that it was very expensive, and my first instinct was to lose interest in her, thinking that she might have expensive tastes.
Damn a Lotus? I definitely agree, that's just absurd. I'd never date a woman like that.

RetiredAt63

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Re: What women think of men based on their cars
« Reply #54 on: February 16, 2015, 11:54:39 AM »
You've seen my car!  Come spring it is car-wash time, and take out all the floor carpets and get them clean time.  Not to mention the dog hair.

Actually, if a guy picked me up in a car (any car) that he had barely cleaned the snow off of, so that he could hardly see and was shedding snow and ice as he drove, I think that would be it right then and there.  I have easily spent 15 minutes cleaning my car off when needed, so he could do the same.

I live in farm country - the number of trucks around here is a large proportion of vehicles.  But mostly they are used as trucks, they are valid purchases.  In a big city, not so much.  In a big city even a small car can be more bother than it is worth.

I'd be more likely to judge on the general condition of the car --> i.e., if a guy picked me up for a planned date with a car that was filthy inside and out (Canadian winter excluded for outside, because EVERYONE's car is gross here in the winter), then I would not be impressed, just because it's gross.  I wouldn't care WHAT the car was, so long as it was in good working order, decently clean inside and had working heat.  ;)


Albert

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Re: What women think of men based on their cars
« Reply #55 on: February 16, 2015, 11:54:52 AM »
But only in America would driving stick be considered badass. Everywhere else in the world everybody drives stick all the time.

Everybody still learns it for getting a licence, but in fact automatic transmission cars are becoming more and more common in Europe. My parents and sister have three cars between them (10-15 year old) and only one of them is manual.

gaja

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Re: What women think of men based on their cars
« Reply #56 on: February 16, 2015, 02:02:56 PM »
Well my 15 year old truck is a stick so I guess I meet all the criteria for badass. Now if it just got better gas mileage (V-6) and men appreciated a woman with an old, manual truck :-)!

Not ALL the criteria.  There has to be a lighter side......when driving my friend's S2000, I've been know to run it up through third gear yelling, "Vvvvvvvvv.........TTTTTTEEEEEEEEEEEEEKKKKKKKKKKKKKKK!!!!!!!!!!!!!!" whilst giggling like a madman.

I suggest making fake turbo noises while shifting gears.  That's a good start. 

On a more serious note, men SHOULD appreciate a woman that drives stick (and vice versa, naturally).  When I was in the UK, a neighbor drove a Toyota Sienna for her school run with the kids....and it was a stick :).  Bad.  Ass.
Ha Ha! Yep I forgot about making the all important vroom vroom noises! I also had motorcycles all my life - they go vroom vroom pretty good too :-)!

The EU is planning to make silent electric cars illegal. You have to add some noise. On one side, I like the idea of having speakers on the outside of the car going "Star wars empire", or some kind of weird japanese jazz. On the other side, I think it is crazy to add more noise to the cities, when one of the big upsides to the EVs is that they reduce noise pollution.

But until that happens, me and the kids will make sure to make broom broom noises when we are cruising along in the leaf.

Rural

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Re: What women think of men based on their cars
« Reply #57 on: February 16, 2015, 02:03:21 PM »
I suspect the reactions on this board are just as biased as those women from the "financial district".  While that population probably appreciates the prestige of a new, shiny BMW, this population is just as biased towards thinking, "Probably makes payments". 

When I met my husband he drove a Mustang.  He saved money during his teens/while in community college and paid cash for it before he went away to university at age 20.  It was a splurge, yes, but it was one he could afford, and splurging wasn't a habit for him. 

What loser can't drive a stick?  They sure don't live in the South.  I was driving a manual-transmission tractor when I was still small enough to have to stand up /use all my weight on the clutch.   


You'd be amazed at the number of losers in the South i encounter. 😃

johnny847

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Re: What women think of men based on their cars
« Reply #58 on: February 16, 2015, 02:10:32 PM »
The EU is planning to make silent electric cars illegal. You have to add some noise. On one side, I like the idea of having speakers on the outside of the car going "Star wars empire", or some kind of weird japanese jazz. On the other side, I think it is crazy to add more noise to the cities, when one of the big upsides to the EVs is that they reduce noise pollution.

But until that happens, me and the kids will make sure to make broom broom noises when we are cruising along in the leaf.
I assume the EU is considering this out of safety concerns.

I understand where they're coming from, but I also think it's crazy. I can still hear an electric car so long as I don't have any headphones in. Heck I can very easily recognize an electric car (or a hybrid that is currently only using electric power) from a gasoline one just by how it sounds (it's really not that difficult, I'm sure most if not all of you can do this too).
So that only leaves people who are wearing headphones and not looking at all while trying to cross a street. Which I think is a bad idea anyway. There's more threats to a pedestrian than just things they can easily hear. For example, a cyclist can reach 20+ mph, and is virtually silent.

nazar

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Re: What women think of men based on their cars
« Reply #59 on: February 16, 2015, 06:47:18 PM »
This reminds me of those Chevy truck commercials showing pictures of the same guy standing in front of their truck and a Honda respectively and asking focus groups what they think of each guy.  Rather offensive, especially the focus group of children.

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Re: What women think of men based on their cars
« Reply #60 on: February 16, 2015, 08:48:06 PM »
I think the only thing I judge men (and women) for is driving a completely spotless big ass truck.  It's a truck.  Unless the back is full of something, it's covered in dirt, or has some other indication of actually being needed as a truck, I can't respect that decision.  Also... it ticks me off to no end when people driving those giant lifted trucks and/or SUVs slow down to 3mph to go over a speed bump.

I do find it hilarious that my 'good ol' boy', tractor mechanic, farmer dad drives a new PT Cruiser with blue flames... and that my tattooed, biker guy boyfriend drives a 2005 volks beetle.

For the record... not only can I drive stick, but I can rebuild a carburetor... :)

MsPeacock

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Re: What women think of men based on their cars
« Reply #61 on: February 16, 2015, 09:34:20 PM »

The thing I definitely notice is interior cleanliness. If someone has to move a bunch of crap off the seat before I can sit down, I generally think less of them. Same if there seems to be a garbage or dirt or dust everywhere. Or bad smells.

+1   I don't care what kind of car it is, I do care if it is clean. Same w/ the house or apartment.   



GuitarStv

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Re: What women think of men based on their cars
« Reply #62 on: February 17, 2015, 08:21:12 AM »
I've been lucky enough to never need to own a car (although I have access to my wife's car).  Does that make me a man of mystery to these car judgement people?

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Re: What women think of men based on their cars
« Reply #63 on: February 17, 2015, 08:23:07 AM »
...is it usual for women to pay much attention to this? I'd assumed that a man using a fancy car to look more appealing to women wasn't actually a thing that worked. But I might be wrong there. (I'm female, but probably have weird taste in potetntial dates.)

I've always been deeply impressed by men who built (or rebuilt) their own cars. Extra points if they rebuilt a classic roadster.

DH is doing this...and I love the man, but good God there are better ways for us to be spending that money.

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Re: What women think of men based on their cars
« Reply #64 on: February 17, 2015, 10:06:43 AM »
...is it usual for women to pay much attention to this? I'd assumed that a man using a fancy car to look more appealing to women wasn't actually a thing that worked. But I might be wrong there. (I'm female, but probably have weird taste in potetntial dates.)

I've always been deeply impressed by men who built (or rebuilt) their own cars. Extra points if they rebuilt a classic roadster.

DH is doing this...and I love the man, but good God there are better ways for us to be spending that money.
Ha!  Yeah I agree. While I like a guy who can fix cars, I wouldn't want one who made it a hobby re-building cars.

Since my sweetie is a car-hater, I admire those men who build cars from afar. I don't actually need to support the hobby. I can just enjoy it with no hit to our budget. I am sure that makes it more fun for me than it would be if the sums were coming out of my chocolate budget.  :)

JLee

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Re: What women think of men based on their cars
« Reply #65 on: February 17, 2015, 12:07:24 PM »
That's funny about cleanliness. My primary gauge is that, if it has 4WD, it better have mud on it. A shiny truck is a sure sign of insecurity, idiocy, or both. Odds are mud on the outside means it's used as a truck, and there may be mud, hay, etc. in the bed and tracked into the floorboard. Also, if the bed is used for hauling, a bunch of other crap (anything that needs to go along and yet stay clean and dry) will be in the passenger seat.

lol, it's funny when people hear about my Lexus...which looks like this.

Kris

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Re: What women think of men based on their cars
« Reply #66 on: February 17, 2015, 04:58:40 PM »
I've been lucky enough to never need to own a car (although I have access to my wife's car).  Does that make me a man of mystery to these car judgement people?

I dunno, but to a woman of substance it isn't a negative.  When I met my ex-husband, he didn't have a car, and this was not a negative -- in fact, it was a plus, because he had constructed his life to be car-free.

Unfortunately, he was also a misogynistic asshole.  But I didn't know that then.

darkadams00

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Re: What women think of men based on their cars
« Reply #67 on: February 17, 2015, 08:18:31 PM »
I wonder what people think of my wife and me. We have one car between us that she uses 95% of the time.

I prefer my bike to do the town errands on.

We're doing very well financially  as a family, and the fact that we only have one car for three drivers (me, wife, son) amazes everyone who knows me. Biking year round (and my long-distance hiking) puts me in the category of "Crazy Outdoorsman" at work. During the winter and anytime it rains, I will get asked at least once if I biked to work that day. All affirmatives get a "Wow" from men and women alike. And I have to turn down a ride offer at least once per week if it's cold and/or wet.

Avidconsumer

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Re: What women think of men based on their cars
« Reply #68 on: February 18, 2015, 08:44:26 AM »
I have broken a couple of stereotypes w/ past girlfriends.  They have said similar things as you all, most of the guys they'd dated before with a fancy car were kind of jerks about it.  Not that my cars are fancy, but I enjoy the hell out of them, and I think pure enthusiasm towards any hobby can be contagious.  For instance, very tough to talk about how expensive or nice of a status symbol something like this is (not my car, very similar):



But I sure do love mine.  Cost $1200 and drives like a go-kart :).

Turning the tables, I find a woman who can drive stick very appealing.  Not just because it's a good skill to have, but also its implications.  It suggests good coordination, care/dedication to whatever they are currently doing (much harder to drive distracted when using both hands and feet), situational awareness, and common-sense.

Totally.  Being able to drive a stick is badass.

It's not that great. Driving stick is pretty much a requirement in the UK otherwise you can only obtain an automatic(car) license. Sitting in traffic with stick shift is not fun.

Shamantha

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Re: What women think of men based on their cars
« Reply #69 on: February 18, 2015, 09:09:28 AM »
Same in The Netherlands, standard driving license is stick shift, you can opt for an automatic one but then you get an automatic-only license and are not allowed to drive stick. With the standard license you can drive both.

On topic: I do not care about cars and do not care much either way what car a guy has, cheap or expensive, or no car at all. The way they drive their cars, now that is something different. Anyone who accelerates or brakes really hard all the time, wants to change lanes for every centimeter he can gain, complains about other people's driving habits is a real turn off.

Megatron

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Re: What women think of men based on their cars
« Reply #70 on: February 18, 2015, 10:07:31 AM »
I drove a 2004 honda (and still drives it when I first met my wife). She's a high 8 figure trust fund baby. i guess she really likes Japanese engineering.

MgoSam

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Re: What women think of men based on their cars
« Reply #71 on: February 18, 2015, 11:13:35 AM »
Sorry, as a guy I feel like I am crashing this thread, but just felt like I should share this. A friend of mine that recently became single and I was attracted to told me that she just bought a Lotus. I didn't know what the car was and she had to tell me that it was very expensive, and my first instinct was to lose interest in her, thinking that she might have expensive tastes.
Damn a Lotus? I definitely agree, that's just absurd. I'd never date a woman like that.

I think she wasn't interested in me when I had a confused look on my face, I had no clue what a Lotus and had to look it up.

johnny847

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Re: What women think of men based on their cars
« Reply #72 on: February 18, 2015, 11:41:42 AM »
Sorry, as a guy I feel like I am crashing this thread, but just felt like I should share this. A friend of mine that recently became single and I was attracted to told me that she just bought a Lotus. I didn't know what the car was and she had to tell me that it was very expensive, and my first instinct was to lose interest in her, thinking that she might have expensive tastes.
Damn a Lotus? I definitely agree, that's just absurd. I'd never date a woman like that.

I think she wasn't interested in me when I had a confused look on my face, I had no clue what a Lotus and had to look it up.
LOL.

Looks like you two wouldn't exactly make the best couple =P

MgoSam

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Re: What women think of men based on their cars
« Reply #73 on: February 18, 2015, 11:46:03 AM »
Sorry, as a guy I feel like I am crashing this thread, but just felt like I should share this. A friend of mine that recently became single and I was attracted to told me that she just bought a Lotus. I didn't know what the car was and she had to tell me that it was very expensive, and my first instinct was to lose interest in her, thinking that she might have expensive tastes.
Damn a Lotus? I definitely agree, that's just absurd. I'd never date a woman like that.

I think she wasn't interested in me when I had a confused look on my face, I had no clue what a Lotus and had to look it up.
LOL.

Looks like you two wouldn't exactly make the best couple =P

Yeah, I should add that she's a terrific person. We have lost touch lately, but she is a good friend. I definitely want this to be construed as criticism towards her.

johnny847

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Re: What women think of men based on their cars
« Reply #74 on: February 18, 2015, 11:51:58 AM »
Sorry, as a guy I feel like I am crashing this thread, but just felt like I should share this. A friend of mine that recently became single and I was attracted to told me that she just bought a Lotus. I didn't know what the car was and she had to tell me that it was very expensive, and my first instinct was to lose interest in her, thinking that she might have expensive tastes.
Damn a Lotus? I definitely agree, that's just absurd. I'd never date a woman like that.

I think she wasn't interested in me when I had a confused look on my face, I had no clue what a Lotus and had to look it up.
LOL.

Looks like you two wouldn't exactly make the best couple =P

Yeah, I should add that she's a terrific person. We have lost touch lately, but she is a good friend. I definitely want this to be construed as criticism towards her.
Are you missing a "don't" there?

pagoconcheques

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Re: What women think of men based on their cars
« Reply #75 on: February 18, 2015, 12:30:42 PM »
It's a truism (though quite possibly apocryphal) in the car-guy community that in new BMW sales the buyers of 7-series cars (the really expensive ones) have lower net worth than buyers of 5-series cars (the mid-range proposition). 

MgoSam

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Re: What women think of men based on their cars
« Reply #76 on: February 18, 2015, 12:35:28 PM »
Sorry, as a guy I feel like I am crashing this thread, but just felt like I should share this. A friend of mine that recently became single and I was attracted to told me that she just bought a Lotus. I didn't know what the car was and she had to tell me that it was very expensive, and my first instinct was to lose interest in her, thinking that she might have expensive tastes.
Damn a Lotus? I definitely agree, that's just absurd. I'd never date a woman like that.

I think she wasn't interested in me when I had a confused look on my face, I had no clue what a Lotus and had to look it up.
LOL.

Looks like you two wouldn't exactly make the best couple =P

Yeah, I should add that she's a terrific person. We have lost touch lately, but she is a good friend. I definitely want this to be construed as criticism towards her.
Are you missing a "don't" there?

LOL, good catch, that was a typo. I definitely DON'T want this to be construed as criticism towards her.

zephyr911

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Re: What women think of men based on their cars
« Reply #77 on: February 18, 2015, 01:12:31 PM »
It's a truism (though quite possibly apocryphal) in the car-guy community that in new BMW sales the buyers of 7-series cars (the really expensive ones) have lower net worth than buyers of 5-series cars (the mid-range proposition).
OH WOW. RELATED:
My LLC just bought a duplex from a guy who drove a 7.35... the sale closed on New Years Eve.
He was clearly overextended, unable or unwilling to fix small issues, causing tenant disputes and eating into his revenue (one side stopped paying months ago and escrowed the money due to living conditions). Subfloor in one bathroom was rotting from a leak, easily stopped... circuit breakers popping from a roof leak - simple shingle replacements. For a few thousand in upgrades, he could have charged at least 20% more in rent - this neighborhood is hot if you just take care of shit. Instead, he cheaped out and ran his property into the ground. On the plus side, we got it dirt cheap, and our sweat equity will pump the value up fast.
Mr. BMW 7.35 walked out with his check in the middle of closing, probably to go pay some overdue bill, and we splurged afterward on $10 worth of beer to celebrate our good fortune.

gimp

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Re: What women think of men based on their cars
« Reply #78 on: February 18, 2015, 01:23:19 PM »
Also, used 7-series are basically the same price (sometimes cheaper) the 5-series from the same year. (On the other hand, if you can't afford a new beamer, you can't afford the maintenance on a used one...)

I love hearing the M-series drive but good god do I not envy the folks paying for repairs. Some get lucky, some don't.

SpendyMcSpend

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Re: What women think of men based on their cars
« Reply #79 on: February 18, 2015, 04:06:08 PM »
What I think of women who judge a man based on his car:  Skanks.

Exactly. I love all these things regarding this is what women think of you if you do whatever. Any woman that is like that is only good for one thing.

I didn't even have a car when I started dating my wife. I now have upgraded to a piece of crap Hyundai Getz. My wife would be pissed if I was driving an expensive car.

Am I only one who finds this incredibly offensive?  Misogyny is everywhere.  It is disappointing when you come across it on the Mr. Money Mustache forums. :(

For the record, I am a girl who doesn't care what kind of car you drive (and looks down upon car financing, new cars and leases) but for shame, Steveo.

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Re: What women think of men based on their cars
« Reply #80 on: February 18, 2015, 04:54:39 PM »
What I think of women who judge a man based on his car:  Skanks.

Exactly. I love all these things regarding this is what women think of you if you do whatever. Any woman that is like that is only good for one thing.

I didn't even have a car when I started dating my wife. I now have upgraded to a piece of crap Hyundai Getz. My wife would be pissed if I was driving an expensive car.

Am I only one who finds this incredibly offensive?  Misogyny is everywhere.  It is disappointing when you come across it on the Mr. Money Mustache forums. :(

For the record, I am a girl who doesn't care what kind of car you drive (and looks down upon car financing, new cars and leases) but for shame, Steveo.

No, you are not the only one.   Women who judge men for their cars are shallow, but the implication that they are then only "good for" sexually satisfying a man is barf-worthy.   

The world is full of shallow materialistic people, but I've never in my life heard a man's materialism used to justify dehumanizing him to a purely sexual object.   I actually suspect that if I wrote such a thing it would look so odd (because such things are not said about men) that it would confuse readers.

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Re: What women think of men based on their cars
« Reply #81 on: February 18, 2015, 05:14:19 PM »
What I think of women who judge a man based on his car:  Skanks.

Exactly. I love all these things regarding this is what women think of you if you do whatever. Any woman that is like that is only good for one thing.

I didn't even have a car when I started dating my wife. I now have upgraded to a piece of crap Hyundai Getz. My wife would be pissed if I was driving an expensive car.

Am I only one who finds this incredibly offensive?  Misogyny is everywhere.  It is disappointing when you come across it on the Mr. Money Mustache forums. :(

For the record, I am a girl who doesn't care what kind of car you drive (and looks down upon car financing, new cars and leases) but for shame, Steveo.

No, you are not the only one.   Women who judge men for their cars are shallow, but the implication that they are then only "good for" sexually satisfying a man is barf-worthy.   

The world is full of shallow materialistic people, but I've never in my life heard a man's materialism used to justify dehumanizing him to a purely sexual object.   I actually suspect that if I wrote such a thing it would look so odd (because such things are not said about men) that it would confuse readers.


You're not the only one(s). I frankly was hoping to avoid encouraging steveo.

EarlyStart

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Re: What women think of men based on their cars
« Reply #82 on: February 18, 2015, 06:02:12 PM »
Anyone who's impressed by depreciable assets doesn't need to be attracted to me. I'll make it.

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Re: What women think of men based on their cars
« Reply #83 on: February 18, 2015, 08:19:28 PM »
What a silly article.  I will grant you that this is an important lifestyle choice if you cavort about nightclubs in your day glow orange spray tan hoping to procure fornication with other barflies.

And I will even grant you it will never ever help you to drive a real clunker, at least not in my experience.  Or there's a humorous PSA commercial where a guy is hoping to pick up and has to blow the breathalyzer in his car and the woman with him just sees that and leaves in disgust, at least I think that's funny.

But this is just silly, this same author/publication will be publishing another article in 5 months about how men who don't dye their gray hair are losers, and then after that it'll be complaining about wearing stupid clothes or who knows what.

Take this same article, get a camera and microphone as a reporter for the local news and ask random women on the street if they agree or disagree with this article.  You'll get 11 different responses between 10 different respondents, and depending on how the leading question is phrased the same person will give completely contradictory answers to the same reporter about said article.

In some cultures and sub cultures this might actually have some meaning I suppose.

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Re: What women think of men based on their cars
« Reply #84 on: February 18, 2015, 10:27:21 PM »
Things like this remind me of the expression quoted in "The Millionaire Next Door" about flashing one's luxury objects - 'Big hat, no cattle' :-)

While I don't think it's entirely fair to draw inferences about a person's character from what they drive, it can be difficult to resist making assumptions or extrapolating. Ownership of expensive cars seems to mimic the pattern of a 'handicap trait', as expressed in evolutionary biology (think male deer, who are deemed suitable mates for surviving despite being encumbered by unwieldy arrays of antlers).

Absent any context, the concept of driving a luxury land-yacht for the sole purpose of showing off one's apparent wealth (a status symbol) seems rather gauche to me, but I try my best to withhold judgment (maybe it was a gift/they built the hot-rod themselves/they like tinkering with the engine/DEEP employee discount, maybe it's their one splurge, etc.)

In my pre-Mustachian days, I would look around at the abundance of seemingly uninspired economy cars and muse about how I never wanted to drive something ordinary. Ironically, after discovering MMM, I realized that this is very much within reach, considering what much of America apparently drives ;-)

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Re: What women think of men based on their cars
« Reply #85 on: February 19, 2015, 12:44:09 AM »
The selection bias on this thread is profound. The vast majority of women on this forum are considerably less materialistic than your average person, to several deviations. Not because most women are materialistic, but because most Americans are.

IMO men buy cars to impress women, because your average woman is impressed. Owning only a bicycle (as I do) is a great screening tool to filter out the materialistic ones.

LalsConstant

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Re: What women think of men based on their cars
« Reply #86 on: February 19, 2015, 08:59:59 PM »
IMO men buy cars to impress women, because your average woman is impressed.

See I don't agree with that I; think a plurality of average women are impressed (probably because they're conditioned to be impressed) and that gets really exaggerated.  The reason I think this gets so blown up is it gives a concrete thing to latch onto that's easy to understand and relatively easy to imitate.

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Re: What women think of men based on their cars
« Reply #87 on: February 20, 2015, 06:11:39 AM »
What about people (male or female) that accumulate traffic tickets in their old, new, flashy or plain cards? For speeding, parking etc.?

Ignoring rules that apply to everyone but not to you (of course, you are special...) is annoying, however seeing a speeding ticket as a reasonable price to pay to arrive somewhere 2 minutes early to me is incomprehensible. Same with a parking ticket so that you can park 1 minute closer to where you need to be. I am very keen on saving time, but swapping time for traffic tickets is a definite no no for me.

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Re: What women think of men based on their cars
« Reply #88 on: February 20, 2015, 07:28:39 AM »
I drive a minivan, but it has some badass pads on the roof rack for our family paddleboards. I'm also in a lot better shape at 45 than I was at 25. It's always interesting to see out-of-shape folks step out of really expensive cars. If you can't get a handle on what you're putting into your body, you're likely not in control of your finances either.

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Re: What women think of men based on their cars
« Reply #89 on: February 20, 2015, 07:38:17 AM »

What loser can't drive a stick?  They sure don't live in the South.  I was driving a manual-transmission tractor when I was still small enough to have to stand up /use all my weight on the clutch.   

At least you're not judgmental :-)

I'm nearly 40 and I've never driven a stick...my family never had one when I was growing up and I never really felt like I was at a loss not knowing how.  I sure don't feel like a loser.

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Re: What women think of men based on their cars
« Reply #90 on: February 20, 2015, 08:14:28 AM »
This thread baffles me a little bit.  I drive a '05 Convertible BMW (On the MMM thread!  The horror, I know) that I bought used (<25K for those judging by Millionaire Next Door).  It is completely paid for and all maintenance/ repairs I have taught myself to do and successfully performed.  I have no plans to get rid of the car until it dies.  So, as a single guy who likes the top down feel in the summer and the beautiful combination of physics and engineering that my car offers me, I implore the women of MMM to be a little slower to judge a book by its cover. 

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Re: What women think of men based on their cars
« Reply #91 on: February 20, 2015, 08:20:10 AM »
This thread baffles me a little bit.  I drive a '05 Convertible BMW (On the MMM thread!  The horror, I know) that I bought used (<25K for those judging by Millionaire Next Door).  It is completely paid for and all maintenance/ repairs I have taught myself to do and successfully performed.  I have no plans to get rid of the car until it dies.  So, as a single guy who likes the top down feel in the summer and the beautiful combination of physics and engineering that my car offers me, I implore the women of MMM to be a little slower to judge a book by its cover.

Hey, I'm one of the women above who wrote that I've always thought of guys with showy cars as kind of jackasses.

I don't think your example qualifies.  And you know what? I'm in the same boat.  I have a 2008 Audi A4 convertible, which I bought used, paid in cash.  It's my first nice car of my life, my first convertible, and I love it.  Now, granted, it looks like an extremely snazzy car because I keep it well maintained.  Probably the same with you.

But what I meant is something different.  I'm talking about guys who clearly derive a lot of their identities from their cars.  The kind of guys who take pictures of themselves with their cars.  Having a car that happens to be nice, which you bought at a reasonable price? That's just getting a good deal.  The worst you could be accused of is choosing a little luxury instead of being strictly utilitarian about your vehicle purchases. 

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Re: What women think of men based on their cars
« Reply #92 on: February 20, 2015, 03:15:50 PM »
I have to make a confession....when I see a corvette, I immediately assume 50-60 year old man in crisis, hoping to attract a much younger woman.

caliq

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Re: What women think of men based on their cars
« Reply #93 on: February 20, 2015, 04:48:36 PM »
I have to make a confession....when I see a corvette, I immediately assume 50-60 year old man in crisis, hoping to attract a much younger woman.

LOL me too.  Especially if it's bright red or yellow!

I do have a weird affinity for Porsches though.  Ever since I was a very young child (like 6ish), 95% of the time a car turns my head and makes me go "ooh, pretty," it's a Porsche.  It's entirely unintentional; I don't know enough about cars to recognize most of them from a distance.  Provided my father a great deal of amusement when I was a kid -- unfortunately I didn't follow his (joking) advice to marry a very wealthy man, so my childhood dreams will most likely never come to fruition. 
« Last Edit: February 20, 2015, 07:18:40 PM by caliq »

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Re: What women think of men based on their cars
« Reply #94 on: February 20, 2015, 05:31:56 PM »
Turning the tables, I find a woman who can drive stick very appealing.  Not just because it's a good skill to have, but also its implications.  It suggests good coordination, care/dedication to whatever they are currently doing (much harder to drive distracted when using both hands and feet), situational awareness, and common-sense.

Or it suggests they aren't from north America or Japan.

Plenty of bad drivers, both male and female, in the UK, Ireland, France... And almost all of them will be driving a manual transmission.

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Re: What women think of men based on their cars
« Reply #95 on: February 20, 2015, 05:46:02 PM »
IMO men buy cars to impress women, because your average woman is impressed.

See I don't agree with that I; think a plurality of average women are impressed (probably because they're conditioned to be impressed) and that gets really exaggerated.  The reason I think this gets so blown up is it gives a concrete thing to latch onto that's easy to understand and relatively easy to imitate.

Lals....well, yes, it IS a concrete thing that both men and women can latch on to.


Biological explanation follows, based on the following:
Did anyone see "The Human Animal", a BBC Documentary?
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Human_Animal_%28TV_series%29

Gist: 

Biologically driven Female breeding strategy for success is to insure her offspring are fathered by strong male genes.  Male must also be a good provider, since the maximum number of times a female may potentially breed in her life is less than 50 (considering maturity, gestation time and subsequent menopause - assuming no chemical induced multiple births).  Therefore, the father of each offspring must be carefully chosen and the child provided with sufficient resources to be able to grow to maturity and breed itself, thereby passing on the genes successfully.  A male that is a good provider increases resources available to the child, increasing the odds of survival versus a lesser provider, or an absent one.  Side note:  In this strategy is the explanation for female infidelity - the one with the best genes for breeding offspring is not necessarily the one who is the best provider of resources to insure the offspring survives.  This brings up the potential to partner with a good provider, but secretly have children with another who has better genetic material for breeding.  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Misattributed_paternity  (0.8%-30%, median 3.7%).

Biologically driven Male breeding strategy for success is totally different that the female strategy.  The short version - sow your seed far and wide knowing that the progeny that results will be that of a female who has limited opportunities for breeding, hence will put the effort into raising her (and your) offspring to maturity and to breed itself, thereby passing on the genes.  Even if you run out on her, if you father enough children, some will make it to adulthood and breed themselves.  Potential number of times a male may father a child?  Lets see...thousands?  This is the (duh!) explanation for male infidelity and the typical desire for dirtbags to trade in Wife 1.0 for the younger Girlfriend 2.0 (and 3.0, and 4.0).

So, what the hell does this have to do with males and cars and "what women thing of males and their cars".....

Having a fancy, expensive car for a (typical) male is a demonstration that a certain level of resources are available (or used to be, before the advent of widespread, easy to get credit).  The (typical) female notes that said demonstration of resources indicates that said male may be a good provider of resources - one of the factors that will increase the probability for her successful breeding.  The biological imperative for a female is to want resources to insure the success of her breeding, hence the natural attraction to males that demonstrate the ability to provide said resources.  In other cultures or other times, the demonstration of resources would have been different - a big herd of cattle, a well stocked granary, pale skin and a bit of fat on the belly (yes - in some cultures, being pale and fat was good  "In times past, when most workers did physical labor outdoors under the sun and often had little food, being pale and fat was a status symbol, indicating wealth and prosperity (through having more than enough food and not having to do manual labor).
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Status_symbol

Note:  The above explanation from the noted program is a biological / zoological explanation of why (some) women are impressed with (some) men who have fancy cars, and is a hypothesis of why these certain behaviors are present.  Of course, it doesn't take into account modern social or culture norms nor rational thinking, with which a person can choose to ignore the simplistic cues that biology may provide.

Note:  I would imagine with the ladies and gentlemen here on the MMM forums, a flashy car would rightly be a demonstration of wastefulness of resources.

Personal note:  I drive a used Toyota Corolla.  I've never been into flashing status symbols and have never done that.  I find the whole behavior complex of status symbols (both males that do it and females that respond) to be juvenile. 

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Re: What women think of men based on their cars
« Reply #96 on: February 20, 2015, 06:10:47 PM »
As a trans woman, a guy that picks me up in a giant truck obviously ignored the whole part where I mentioned I'm not interested in topping.

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Re: What women think of men based on their cars
« Reply #97 on: February 20, 2015, 06:47:06 PM »
Quote
I'm talking about guys who clearly derive a lot of their identities from their cars.

Truth be told, a car tells a lot about a person, even if what it tells is "this person doesn't care about cars more than any other tool" or even "this person doesn't care about cars at all." A lot of people here ... well, not necessarily derive their identity from their car, but have a car that matches their identity in a fashion that clearly goes both ways, despite driving old cheap econoboxes. I certainly qualify, and my car is worth five grand on craigslist if I'm lucky; insurance says closer to 3500. I've driven that thing to every goddamn state that can be driven to (sorry Hawaii) and DC besides; at this point, it really feels like it's part of me. I feel similarly about computers - I build one, use it for half a decade or more for hours every day, right? I choose the right tools, I shape them, and they shape me.

Hell, I've even taken photos of my car... one under an aurora borealis (shitty photo, though, due to wide-angle distortion) and one at a death valley sunrise (quite decent). The car is permanently part of my memory of the journey and the destination.

I know what you're trying to say, but it's hard to say correctly. For every douchebag who loves his $model, there's another person who has equal love for the same $model without being a douche. I know a guy with - and I say this quite literally - a stable of ferraris. He races them pretty much every weekend, is super involved in the ferrari community. He's a nice guy and wouldn't judge you for driving a civic (as long as it doesn't have a fartcan attached) and he doesn't talk up his ferraris to impress anyone. He just likes the brand and he likes to race them and teach people how to race them. It's clearly a big part of his identity. The bit about being a nice and welcoming person can't be said for everyone, though.

On the main topic, my experience is that most girls and women don't care. They might care about an expensive car implying abundance of money - and they might care in a shallow way (he'll buy me jewelry) or a perfectly reasonable way (he's secure in a career and has money to provide). They care much less than men about the car itself - how nice its lines are, how fast it accelerates, how its suspension feels, how easy it is to drive through twisty mountain roads or on the track.

But most women will absolutely care how clean the damn thing is kept. My female friends usually tell me two things about my car: one, haha you drive an old man car; two: it's so clean inside and out and taken care of!

I also know more than a couple girls / women who are super turned off by flashy cars. "Eww, he drives a corvette."

I'm sure they exist, but I've never met anyone who buys a classic car to 'pick up chicks', though. A classic car gets you talking to other guys. A new nice car... maybe. I have seen people get accused of driving old cars to pick up chicks, and I just laugh.

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Re: What women think of men based on their cars
« Reply #98 on: February 21, 2015, 03:19:24 AM »
The EU is planning to make silent electric cars illegal. You have to add some noise. On one side, I like the idea of having speakers on the outside of the car going "Star wars empire", or some kind of weird japanese jazz. On the other side, I think it is crazy to add more noise to the cities, when one of the big upsides to the EVs is that they reduce noise pollution.

But until that happens, me and the kids will make sure to make broom broom noises when we are cruising along in the leaf.
I assume the EU is considering this out of safety concerns.

I understand where they're coming from, but I also think it's crazy. I can still hear an electric car so long as I don't have any headphones in. Heck I can very easily recognize an electric car (or a hybrid that is currently only using electric power) from a gasoline one just by how it sounds (it's really not that difficult, I'm sure most if not all of you can do this too).
So that only leaves people who are wearing headphones and not looking at all while trying to cross a street. Which I think is a bad idea anyway. There's more threats to a pedestrian than just things they can easily hear. For example, a cyclist can reach 20+ mph, and is virtually silent.
My understanding is that they are adding noise to electric cars for blind people.  I'm pretty sure that they have to make noise in California (or they were considering making this mandatory somewhere).  It could be possible that wherever you live they already have the no silent electric cars law in place.  From memory they were getting manufacturers to add a bit of a hum/whine/buzz or whatever that sound is so that blind people could recognise that a car was coming, it didn't need to be particularly loud, just there.

The selection bias on this thread is profound. The vast majority of women on this forum are considerably less materialistic than your average person, to several deviations. Not because most women are materialistic, but because most Americans are.

IMO men buy cars to impress women, because your average woman is impressed. Owning only a bicycle (as I do) is a great screening tool to filter out the materialistic ones.
One of my friends while driving on the road judges people by their cars in general.  I have no idea if any particular cars would be a turn on/off however some of her judgements are as follows: she hates SUVs, 4WD's should only be owned by people who actually go off road (which most who own them in the city don't) and they should be proper 4WD cars not sudo 4WD drive cars (you can tell by whether they have the the perscope looking exhaust pipe thing at the front on one side).  Also Audi drivers have taken over the arsehole driver car owner category from some other brand (Unfortunately I can't remember which).

Personally I don't know enough about cars (or care enough) to particularly judge people on them too much.  I would be in the general cleanliness of the car category, and whether the paint was pealing/it had a lot of dents.

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Re: What women think of men based on their cars
« Reply #99 on: February 21, 2015, 05:04:00 AM »
The EU is planning to make silent electric cars illegal. You have to add some noise. On one side, I like the idea of having speakers on the outside of the car going "Star wars empire", or some kind of weird japanese jazz. On the other side, I think it is crazy to add more noise to the cities, when one of the big upsides to the EVs is that they reduce noise pollution.

But until that happens, me and the kids will make sure to make broom broom noises when we are cruising along in the leaf.
I assume the EU is considering this out of safety concerns.

I understand where they're coming from, but I also think it's crazy. I can still hear an electric car so long as I don't have any headphones in. Heck I can very easily recognize an electric car (or a hybrid that is currently only using electric power) from a gasoline one just by how it sounds (it's really not that difficult, I'm sure most if not all of you can do this too).
So that only leaves people who are wearing headphones and not looking at all while trying to cross a street. Which I think is a bad idea anyway. There's more threats to a pedestrian than just things they can easily hear. For example, a cyclist can reach 20+ mph, and is virtually silent.
My understanding is that they are adding noise to electric cars for blind people.  I'm pretty sure that they have to make noise in California (or they were considering making this mandatory somewhere).  It could be possible that wherever you live they already have the no silent electric cars law in place.  From memory they were getting manufacturers to add a bit of a hum/whine/buzz or whatever that sound is so that blind people could recognise that a car was coming, it didn't need to be particularly loud, just there.

My EV makes a small hum when I'm driving slowly. That doesn't bother anyone, and is useful for pedestrains. But the EU has ruled we have to add "engine noise". http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2595451/Silent-deadly-EU-rules-electric-cars-make-artificial-engine-noise-fears-kill-unsuspecting-pedestrians.html

This is pure bull from the fossil car industry. Blind people don't just jump into the street in front of cars, just as they don't crash into people walking (silently) next to them. Above a speed of 40 km/h the noise of the tyres are louder than the engine noise, so you can hear the EV just fine. Below 40 km/h, a driver that isn't able to break for blind people wandering into the street should loose her licence.

What will be next? Mandatory engine noise from bikes? They are just as silent as EVs.