Cars: Is It Really a Man’s World?

The reason why clichés endure is that they are usually true. One of them, though, is proving itself an exception: a love of cars isn’t the dominion of men only.

Yes, classic car collectors are mostly men, but there is a growing interest among women who are starting to acquire classic cars too. Shannons, a vehicle insurance group in Australia, has reported an increase of 38% in female ownership of classic and muscle cars.

Women can be even more passionate about their vehicles than men and are as knowledgeable when it comes to their mechanics and not afraid of donning overalls and sliding under the car.

However, the relationship between women and their cars seems to be more emotional than men’s. They will form a real bond with them - one lady admitted spending the night in her car when she took it home to get closer to it, and even claimed that it stopped breaking down after that!

Women’s interest in cars isn’t a recent phenomenon, but it was indeed a ‘boy’s club’ and their contribution was largely ignored for a long time. They weren’t considered an acceptable hobby for women either, and they were often discouraged to pursue it.

Women and Cars in History

Nevertheless, if we look back through history, we can find famous female drivers from the beginning. American writer Emily Post was one of them, and she would have known whether it was suitable for a lady to drive a car as she was a well-known author on etiquette!

In Europe, during World War I, as men went to fight, it was up to women to drive tractors, trucks and any other vehicles to carry on in their absence. And obviously once they had got a taste for it, they were rather reluctant to let go when their brothers, fathers and husbands came back.

Hellé Nice is one of the female pioneers of motor racing. She set a land speed record for women in an Omega Six in 1929 and took part in five major Grand Prix in 1931 with a Bugatti Type-35C. Sadly, a near-fatal accident in 1936 and World War II put a stop to her career.

At home, the first New Zealand woman who made her mark in the world of national motor racing was Sybil Lupp. Born in 1916 in Hawkes’ Bay to a wealthy family, she showed talent in mechanics from an early age, which was frowned upon by her parents as it wasn’t ladylike. This didn’t hold her back, however, and at age 14, she managed to persuade her father to buy her an M-type MG which she could be seen driving everywhere.

Later on, she served in the New Zealand Women’s Auxiliary Air Force as a driver, and trained in vehicle maintenance. After World War II, she founded the Otago Sports Car Club with her husband and became the first woman delegate to the newly created Association of New Zealand Car Clubs (later renamed the Motorsport Association of New Zealand).

She then started racing and went on achieving impressive results, winning the Otago Automobile Association’s Sundstrum Memorial Trophy in 1951 as well as the following year; the South Island hill-climb in 1949; and coming fifth in the first ever New Zealand Road Racing Championship the same year - the only female competitor out of 22 entrants. She also broke a few speed records, reaching a speed of 164.58km/h (102.27 mph) in May 1950 in a flying-start quarter-mile event, and set a new record in New Zealand for class F cars at 161.77km/h (100.52 mph) – which remain unbeaten until 1957.

In 1957, she turned her attention to business, opening a company specialised in tuning high-performance motors with two or more carburettors, which she did herself. It was a resounding success and she would continue using her mechanical expertise all throughout the rest of her life – proof that cars can inspire the same passion in women as in men.

Now, you may have heard of Sir Stirling Moss, a legendary British Formula 1 driver and an officer of the Order of the British Empire for its services to sports. In a notorious press interview in 2013, he said that ‘ladies’ didn’t have the strength to deal with the pressure brought on by F1 racing and simply didn’t have what it takes to win a F1 race.

Interestingly, Stirling has a sister, Pat, who not only penned The Art and Techniques of Driving in 1965 but also had a magnificent career as a race driver. She is actually one of the most famous race drivers of all times. She ended on the podium of international rallies and was crowned European Ladies' Rally Champion five times. Perhaps Stirling’s comment was a case of sibling rivalry!

Among the new generation of rising stars, a few names have been impressing crowds, such as Courtney Force, an American drag racer coming from an illustrious family of racers as her father is John Force, a 16-time champion of the National Hot Rod Association World Funny Car. She won her first national event in 2009 and since 2014 has held the record for ‘most Funny Car wins by a female driver’ in NHRA history.

In Germany, Jutta Kleinschmidt is another woman to watch. She is a very serious competitor in off-road races and is best known for having won the Paris-Dakar Rally, one of the toughest rallies in the world, in 2001 and being the only woman in the world to have ever won it.

In our line of business, we must admit that we tend to have more male clients, but rest assured that you won’t find the smallest hint of sexism in our company. We love cars and people who love cars and we are committed to looking after your vehicle with the utmost care. If you want to ship your vehicle to Australia or New Zealand, why not get a quote online or give us a ring on +64 9 303 0075.