Friday, February 14, 2014

Valentine's Day: Women Most Attracted to Men in Pickup Trucks?

A recent survey by Insure.com wanted to know what kind of cars attracted men and women to the opposite sex. From what we see everyday in the media, I had thought that this topic pretty much already had its answer. Needless to say, the results were somewhat surprising.

Women on an Attractive Man's Car
Image courtesy of Truck Trend
Our media generally portrays women as being attracted to men with sports cars or exotic cars. Based on this survey, at least, it would seem that a large majority of women like a man with a pickup truck. Admittedly, this result surprised me a bit. When I think of a man in a pick up truck, I generally think of three types of men: 1. the frat boy or surfer with their lifted "bro" truck, 2. rednecks or 3. the construction worker or farm hand that actually needs the truck for work. I can maybe see why a woman could be attracted to a hard- working man who uses his truck for its intended purpose, but not so much the "bro" truck owner.

This survey also asked of women what make and color their attractive man would drive. The results put Ford as the top runner for make, with the color black being the women's car color choice for the attractive man. Why? Ford's best selling vehicle is the F-150 pickup truck after all. As for the choice of color? We will get to that in a little bit.

Joe Wiesenfelder, executive editor of Cars.com was asked about these results. Wiesenfelder finds these results to be fairly accurate, stating that the general public finds a man with a black pickup truck to be masculine. To Wiesenfelder, women see a man with a pick up as "...a guy who can help me move, bring me large gifts from Crate & Barrel and do repairs around my condo." As for the reason behind women picking black as the most attractive color for an attractive man's car? Black is actually a difficult color to maintain on a car, and Wiesenfelder adds that a woman who sees a man with a clean black car might think that it is a man who can help clean her car too. 

Mike Magrath and Jessica Caldwell of Edmunds.com also weighed in on the survey, finding it plausible, if not exactly scientifically accurate. Magrath views the truck owner as a rugged man who is still financially well off enough to buy one and maintain it. Caldwell agrees that trucks give off the "rugged man" image, but personally prefers a more "cosmopolitan" man in a Range Rover or Tesla.

Men on an Attractive Woman's Car
Image courtesy of CarGurus.com

The survey results for what kind of car men prefer to see an attractive woman in does not
surprise me in the least. Sports cars have an overwhelming lead over every other type of car asked. In modern media, women who drive sports cars are almost always portrayed as being sexy and financially well off. As for make and color, men tend to prefer women in BMWs and red colored cars.

Though there are probably many factors to men picking BMWs as the attractive woman's car of choice, Wisenfelder points out one factor that I somewhat agree with. Wisenfelder points out that a BMW, being a luxury car, suggests that the owner has disposable income. He says, "As a single man, that's attractive to me. I don't want to carry the entire relationship." I say that I somewhat agree with Wisenfelder's point because while it may be true an attractive woman driving a BMW may be financially responsible, there are also women who drive BMWs that act like princesses, expect men to pay for everything, and the BMW was actually paid for by her parents or a trust fund.

Other Factors to Consider
Image courtesy of Edmunds.com
Make, model, and color are not the only factors men and women consider when looking at the attractiveness of the opposite sex. Vehicle cleanliness (both inside and out), vehicle reliability, as well as other automotive related "turn-offs" were also a part of this survey.

The biggest factor that both genders agree on is vehicle cleanliness. Both men and women agree that a clean vehicle, both inside and out, generally indicates that the owner takes good care of themselves as well. Magrath also goes on to mention that the cleanliness of a vehicle also reflects how a person maintains their possessions as well.

There are also a couple of automotive "turn-offs" that the survey team asked of the survey group. Some of these turn-offs included:

  • Cigarette butts in the ashtray
  • Trash on the seat
  • Playing bad, loud music
  • Political bumper stickers
  • Dents
  • Loud exhaust
  • Pine tree air fresheners
Caldwell also believes that Hawaiian leis hanging off the rear view mirror and backseats occupied by stuffed animals are huge turns-offs as well.

Survey Says...?
Long story short, your car and how you maintain it can reflect the type of person you are. Granted, this may not be 100% accurate as there are factors that can be leveraged to boost your odds with the opposite sex. At the very least, it does give you something to think about if you find yourself at home by yourself on Valentine's Day this year. Who knows, it could very well be your car that is preventing you from getting a date!

Tags: automotive, dating, survey, Valentine's Day

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