It is a
little unfair to specify gender specifics when it comes to anything, mainly
because pigeonholing gender specifics often encourages people to take on the
associated roles.
Still, for
those of us who are stuck with our mind full of gender stereotypes, it is hard
to look at something and not recognize a gender issue. A boxy car with hard
edges and lines like a tank is considered more masculine, whereas a rounded and
curvaceous car is considered more feminine.
Some of the
cars on this list are there because they look outright girly, and some are
there because more women have bought them than men have.
1. Volvo S40
This car does have a few smooth edges and contours, but it still has a
masculine touch to it and is fairly imposing on the road. However, this is one
of those cars that is on the list because of female sales figures - 57.9% of
new Volvo S40 sales went to women. This may not seem like a lot, but even in
our times there are still far more men buying new cars than women. Even married
couples tend to have the man make the purchase, so even though 57.9% of the S40
purchases went to women; it actually took a very large number of women to get
up to that point.
2. VW Cabriolet
This car has actually picked up a girly image that is hart to shake. It is mainly due to
female students having too much money and buying cars that are a little bit
different.
3. Nissan Juke
This is a four-wheel drive car that is still pretty imposing considering
that it is trying to appeal to a feminine market. It gets its girly “feel” from
the fact that it has no hard lines. The typical land rover is a perfect example
of hard lines looking masculine, but, this car looks more like a smooth pebble
that has washed up on the beach.
4. Fiat 5000
If hard lines on a car make it masculine, then this car is a born semi
circle. The entire body has hardly a sharp corner or hard line on it. Every
element is rounded. Even the decorative line on the front about the license
plate has a rounded end to it. A glossy pink version was issued and displayed
in honor of Barbie’s 50th birthday.
5. Toyota Matrix
Around 54.1% of new car purchases are made by women, and there is a
certain indescribable something to it that makes it slightly more feminine. The
front of the car almost looks indignant. It almost looks as if it has an
expression on its face similar to if you told a British person that their champagne
needed a few more minutes to chill. If you were to ask people to pigeonhole the
car as masculine or feminine, then few would pick masculine, but the exact
reason why is hard to pinpoint.
6. Honda CR-V
It is not a burningly girly car, but it is easy to see why people think
so. It seems to have such an inoffensive look about it. It looks apologetic
through simply how the bonnet is shaped. It is the sort of car where if it hit
you as you crossed the street you would dust yourself off and assume the driver
didn’t mean it. There are lots of women who gravitate towards SUV cars, and
given the choice, it is easy to see why they would pick the Honda CR-V.
7. Nissan Rogue
The
Nissan Juke is the Nissan Rogue crossover. The Nissan Rogue has
actually sold better with woman, where 56.9% of total purchases of the
Rogue were mady by women. In design and convention terms, the Rogue is
the normalized and "pop" design, where the Juke takes the less trodden
path and differs from most cars.
8.Volkswagen Beetle
The
modern beetle has smooth contours and to this generation has little to
do with hippies and long hair. Still, its smooth design and curves does
make it a girly looking car. The hardest thing is picking a less girly
color because unless you paint it with the colors of your national flag,
then it is still going to look little girly. The sales figures show
that 54.6% of new car purchase are made by women.
9.Peugeot 308CC
This
one is a bit of a puzzle because if it's painted black, silver or blue
then it just looks like another unisex car. But, paint it orange, yellow
or any shade of red and it looks just like a woman's car. One of the
reasons it is more of a unisex car is because the windscreen has a very
low slant to it, which makes it look like it was built for speed.
10. Citroen Picasso
Sure,
one could say that it is the car of a responsible father and that is
fair enough. But, mainly it is the sort of car that one may expect a
woman to pick. It has sensitive curves and a body shape that says
'Precious cargo on board'.
Michael Schumacher, the seven time Formula 1 champion sustained a head injury on Sunday, Dec. 29 in a skiing accident in the French Alps, while he was skiing off piste with his 14 year old son.
