This is the only car I never saw a man driving.
How come this car became women's only car? Don't think VW ever tried to make this impression because they would lose 50% of market automatically.
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ahem, cough, I occasionally drive one, but I try myhardest to limit it to taking it out the driveway!
Missus has one, she loves it, I hate it. Part of that is psychological and I am still getting therapy for it, you see, I had to chop in a Fabia vrs to get the Beetle. Long story!
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I have an ex-colleague who's got one (still I believe) must have owned for around 8 years. It replaced a Golf. His wife drives an SUV of some sort. H's one of these fastidiously tidy types and barely tolerated scruffs like me. Strange bloke.
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I thought Movi was referring to the old Beetle - must be an age thing.
But he's right, I know two barristers who run new Beetles, and both are women.
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Do (or did) these cars have a flower vase on the dash board? Hardly a masculine touch.
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The one my colleague had most certainly did - despite being an anal type he rarely locked his car doors in work, cue all kind of monstrosities appearing in his little vase - until he removed it. His was an 02 car.
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>> The one my colleague had most certainly did - despite being an anal type
>>> Given that there are a lot of gentlemen who are hairdressers, window-dressers, and concerned with the theatre who drive them in this neck of the woods, that is a rather unfortunate statement.
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He is the world's biggest homophobe as well - I have a theory about that.
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...I have a theory about that...
So do I, and it's probably the same one as dramatised in The Naked Civil Servant.
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>> ahem, cough, I occasionally drive one, but I try myhardest to limit it to taking
>> it out the driveway!
>>
>> Missus has one, she loves it, I hate it. Part of that is psychological and
>> I am still getting therapy for it, you see, I had to chop in a
>> Fabia vrs to get the Beetle. Long story!
>>
Are you implying a degree of poofter-ness for those 'men' seen driving a VW Beetle - shame on you. I'm sure that my red-blooded friend will be delighted to read this thread!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
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>> Are you implying a degree of poofter-ness for those 'men' seen driving a VW Beetle
>> - shame on you. I'm sure that my red-blooded friend will be delighted to read
>> this thread!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
>>
For the ragtop, definitely.
They just exude ginger beerness.
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>> >> Are you implying a degree of poofter-ness for those 'men' seen driving a VW
>> Beetle
>> >> - shame on you. I'm sure that my red-blooded friend will be delighted to
>> read
>> >> this thread!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
>> >>
>> For the ragtop, definitely.
>> They just exude ginger beerness.
>>
>>
In my case, that would be an Apple and Mango J20 if you don't mind!
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>> This is the only car I never saw a man driving.
>>
>> How come this car became women's only car? Don't think VW ever tried to make
>> this impression because they would lose 50% of market automatically.
>>
Yep, I was thinking this only yesterday, even higher female %age than the Mini; although not quite as high as the Nissan Figaro - I don't think I've ever seen a bloke driving one of them, whereas I have seen 1 or 2 blokes driving Beetles.
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>>although not quite as high as the Nissan Figaro - I don't think I've ever seen a bloke driving one of them<<
Watch the beginning of the Andrew Marr show then.
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Bloke (in the full two-sugars-love, come-on-West-'Am sense) in my office has a Beetle. Think I'd rather have a Golf.
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Never took the new Beetle something about the car.I had a drive in one when they first came out on the continent.
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I always thought that the beetle looks a bit like an Audi TT that someone has over-inflated.
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Whenever I see a man driving a Beetle ( or a TT for that matter ), as JC said once, you always suspect they have a sunglasses collection, which is worrying in any male.
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>> you always suspect they have a sunglasses collection
That was said about the Ford Ka, I think. My cousin had one a while back, her husband would only drive the thing if she accompanied him in it.
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Err, I've had the dubious privilege of driving both a Beetle and a Figaro for a number of years...! Story goes something like this. New job in 2001, choice of company car. I chose a black Golf GT TDi and was chuffed to bits. At the same time, Mrs Moo was opting out of her company car scheme and given that I'd just got the Golf, I wasn't too bothered what she went for. A bright red Beetle 2.0 duly arrived. A few months later, the company I was working for went under and the Gold went back. Wished I'd paid a bit more attention to her car choice, as it then effectively became my car too. We had the Beetle for 10.5 years and 120k miles and only sold it a couple of months ago, as my job now comes with a car (another Golf TDi on order at the moment!).
One of my memories of driving the Beetle (complete with flower in the vase), was when we went to South Wales for the weekend. I popped out on Saturday morning to get a paper. Whilst waiting to pull out of side road, with the window down, a passing Welshman shouted, 'Oi, you big puff, driving a girls car!' Never really lived it down...
To add insult to injury, when we needed a second car in 2005, SWMBO decided that a Figaro would make a great second motor and there are times when it's just easier not to argue. We've had the Figaro for 6 years now and in spite of being 20 years old, it's given no trouble at all, starts first time and runs like clockwork. You can't really fault it on that front.
Pleased to say that when the dog arrived a couple of years ago, we acquired a Freelander 2, so I've been back in touch with my masculine side for a full 24 months!
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My brother has a 'new' Beetle and has had it since they came out in the USA in 1998/98. It's had problems but seems to still be sound.
I think the new 'new Beetle' looks better and more masculine. And has ditched the holder for flowers too. You still compromise internal space for the design but it's got better.
Last edited by: rtj70 on Wed 21 Sep 11 at 23:33
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I've never been inside one, let alone driven one....
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...when the dog arrived a couple of years ago, we acquired a Freelander 2...
Good choice, Mr Moo. Every dog loves a walk.
Dear oh dear, we have some insecurities here, don't we? Stu worries about other people's sunglasses; Mr Moo feels he has to 'live down' a catcall from a passing peasant, and needs a pseudo-macho agricultural vehicle to demonstrate his virility; and Movilogo raised the question in the first place, so what's bothering him? Relax, boys - the 1950s are over; nobody cares any more.*
};---)
*Unless it's a Figaro, of course. There are limits. And as for the Cappuccino...
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Qashqais are a bit metrosexual. Well, ok, they're a bit girly. I like to keep mine a bit muddy just in case of confusion.
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Not so much a Cashcow as a Cashbull....
I don't know what this says about masculinity - but I don't think I've ever seen a woman driving a Reliant.
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>>I don't think I've ever seen a woman driving a Reliant.
Princess Anne had a Scimitar, perhaps she doesn't count. ;>)
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I was thinking of the 3-wheelers. I'd imagine some discerning women drove Scimitars - the GTE, with Ford Zephyr mechanicals, was well-regarded in its day.
Last edited by: Avant on Thu 22 Sep 11 at 23:22
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I meant she's more butch than me.
I should her other half's quaking in his boots right now. ;>)
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I saw a conservatively dressed middle-aged man driving a lime-green VW 'new' (hardly) Beetle today, no vase but a fluffy toy on the dash. Taste in HK is really quite different to the UK....
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>> I meant she's more butch than me.
>>
>> I should her other half's quaking in his boots right now. ;>)
>>
Are you confusing Anne with Zara?
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I shouldn't post just before going to bed.
Mind you, he's a brave man to have her for a mother-in-law.
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>>I'd imagine some discerning women drove Scimitars -
There used to be one in my area - the woman owner had an afghan hound sticker on the back, and she looked like an afghan hound!
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>>I'd imagine some discerning women drove Scimitars -
There used to be one in my area - the woman owner had an afghan hound sticker on the back, and she looked like an afghan hound!
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Reminds me of what Jeremy Clarkson said about the seriously girly Ford Streetka:
"Ford says that 80% of Streetka buyers will be women. But I’m struggling to think what the remaining 20% might be. Not men, that’s for sure. "
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Acid test - Could you turn up for rugby training in it and get away with it?
Beetle - Maybe, just. But they'd still be sniggering behind your back.
StreetKa - Nope, no chance.
Figaro - Don't be silly.
:-)
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Back in Surrey there was a Street Ka in bright pink, my (then) 6 year old daughter decided that this was the car she wants when she learns to drive. She's now 10 and I quite like the idea of a car that her (future) boyfriend would refuse to get into if he has any self respect...
Last edited by: idle_chatterer on Mon 26 Sep 11 at 02:34
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...Scimitars - the GTE, with Ford Zephyr mechanicals, was well-regarded in its day.
Last week, however, the one that had broken down at the top of the M4 exit sliproad at J8/9 and was causing a tailback onto the carriageway...rather less so.
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Ever seen a man driving VW Beetle? - BobbyG
