There Aren’t Many Women Who Love Cars

I think the number of people who are passionate about cars is shrinking year by year. We often hear about “young people turning away from cars,” and more and more vehicles are designed around practicality and fuel economy rather than the thrill of driving. In a world like this, a woman who’s genuinely into cars is a pretty rare breed… So it’s not often that I meet a woman I can really talk cars with.

I often meet with female representatives from other companies for work, but cars almost never come up (Then again, it is a business meeting, so that’s hardly surprising… lol)

Once, someone asked me, “What do you like to do on your days off?” I replied, “I’m into cars, so I go for drives with my family.” She answered:

“I love cars too! I often go for a drive after work. I cruise down the highway with the music cranked up, singing along at the top of my lungs! It’s so much fun!”

But I couldn’t help thinking that maybe she didn’t love cars so much as enjoy driving to blow off steam… I just said, “Yeah, it really is,” without committing either way, and quickly changed the subject.

She Hadn’t Heard of the Porsche Panamera

I was once talking with someone at a Japanese car dealership when they asked, “Are you into cars?” I mentioned that I liked the Porsche Panamera, and they replied, “The Porsche Panamera… I know the Cayenne, though…”

Another time, I was chatting with a woman who liked imported cars and figured she’d know what I meant when I said, “I love the Porsche Panamera!” Instead, she asked, “Huh? The Primera?” At that point, all I could do was laugh.

The Cayenne and 911 are well-known Porsches, but the Panamera doesn’t get as much recognition. It’s such a great car, too (Though I have to admit, I didn’t know about it myself until a few years ago.)

Maybe I’d meet more women who shared my passion if I were the kind of driver who loved nothing more than “pushing a manual-transmission sports car to the limit,” like Yoko Natsuki. But I’m not quite that obsessed with driving itself…

Actually, now that I think about it, I’m basically only interested in the Panamera. No wonder I haven’t met many women around me who share my enthusiasm for cars.