OK, and now for something a little lighter:
Tom and Ray Take on Cars and Dating
As part of our ongoing effort to help you understand what statement your date is trying to make with his or her car, we asked Tom and Ray of Car Talk to give their take on these cars. Here’s what they said.
Date Cars Driven by Men
[…]
Hummer H2: “You mean there are people in the world other than me?” Self-centered poser.
Dodge Grand Caravan: “Have I told you about my other family?” Somewhere, this guy has at least three or four kids you haven’t seen.
[…]Date Cars Driven by Women
[…]
Ford F-250: “I like horses.” Warning: Horses are expensive, and you compare poorly to a stallion.
Porsche Boxster S: “I am extremely high maintenance. You should see my jewelry budget.”
[…] elisions mine, just sharing a few favorites there.
For the H2, they didn’t take the obvious line about a man compensating for the size of his equipment; I’m not sure if I’m disappointed they missed such an obvious one, or if it would have been a cheap shot.
They also have links to the Cars.com blogs on similar stereotypes.
Regarding the supposedly “obvious” line about a man compensating for the size of his equipment by driving a Hummer H2: I realize than man-bashing is all the rage at the moment, even among certain men (i.e., SNAGs). But I’m confident that if you start taking note of SUVs when you drive, you’ll see that most of them (particularly the biggest ones) are actually driven by women.
That’s reflected in the advertising. For example, you might recall a TV commercial depicting a woman fantasizing about driving over boulders, etc., in her SUV in order to beat someone else to a choice parking space at a shopping mall.
You’re very likely right, but “obvious jokes” are less about real stereotypes than perceived ones.