Why are most women car ignorant??

[SpeedracerIndy]

I have to vent here. My girlfriend has a 95 Chrylser Sebring V6. Decent car, fairly reliable, comfortable, gets the job done. Over the past two months she has managed to nearly destroy this car. First, she calls me while I'm on the road to tell me she thinks she has a flat. She's on the highway. I tell her if it is safe (which it was), to leave the car there and get a ride home. And told her "DO NOT DRIVE ON THE FLAT TIRE!" So, what does she do, she drives on it. I take the tire off when I get in town, plug it, and fill it with air, and shure enough it's ruined from her driving on it. $100 down the tube. Of course the tire shop does not give you any bargains when you need one H rated tire at 8:30 at night and have to have the car by the next morning. Then, a few weeks ago she calls me to tell me that her temp gague is fluctuating between the VERY TOP and the bottom!!!! I told her to shut the car off immediately and we would take care of it. So what does she do, she drives it home. Luckly she didn't do any damage, and I was able to replace the thermostat and get it back on the road. Don't get me wrong, she's a great girl, but she is just so stupid when it comes to making decisions regarding this car. Ok, venting done, I feel better now.

Anyone here have good stories about their significant others doing stupid stuff with a car?

[surflvr911sc]

I had a g/f that drove from San Bernardino to San Diego (120 miles) in her Nissan Sentra and the oil light came on half way down, but of course she went to rest of the way w/o stopping. What does she do about it, she comes back home w/ the light still on!

I couldn't find a drop of oil in that car. I filled it up, it ran great, and was sold a couple years latter. I wonder how long it lasted, those Nissan engines are bulletproof.

[bell]

best thing i've found is to nicely explaine that if she blows up her engine because she didn't watch the guages then it'll cut into her shopping money........then the ears perk up
the girl i'm seeing right now actually sat through "lemans"......she also likes the way my carrera sounds abouve 4000rpm and the way it forces her in the seat
for xmas she got me "the complete porsche" coffee table book and and need for speed underground.......she's a keeper

[island911]

most men are 'car ignorant.' (how else would BMW sell so many? . . tic)

though, just enough men know just enough, for those times when the woman bats her eyes and ask 'can someone help me?' . . .that's the arrangement. (derangement?)

[LeeH]

I have to say my wife is OK on that kind of stuff. She was on her way home from a four day trip and her parents were here from TX. She couldn't wait to see them. Our 325i had a slow coolant leak and started getting hot as she drove home from the airport. She parked it on the side of the highway just a few miles from home. I think most people (ie women AND men) would have tried to push it.

[SpeedracerIndy]

Originally posted by island911
most men are 'car ignorant.' (how else would BMW sell so many? . . tic)

though, just enough men know just enough, for those times when the woman bats her eyes and ask 'can someone help me?' . . .that's the arrangement. (derangement?)

Funny you should mention that. When my GF had the flat (in the story above), she called a male friend of hers to help her change the tire. She called me while he was changing the tire, and HE asked me which way to turn the bolts to get the tire off!!!! Now, I know lots of people don't know everything about cars, but which way to turn a bolt to unscrew it is a pretty basic thing here. Needless to say, I told her to tell him to put everything back in the car and not touch it. That is why I had to come home early to fix the tire.

[Moses]

When I was in high school, one of my prettiest classmates asked me to have a look at her car. It was running badly on the way to school and now it wouldn't start.

I got in the car and before I turned the key I noticed a little paper rectangle taped to the dash. Over the oil light! I asked her why it was there and she told me the light had been flashing on and off for quite a while but got so annoying she just covered it up.

(Yes, she was blonde, but that's not the point.)

[pwd72s]

Originally posted by CDiercks
Now, I know lots of people don't know everything about cars, but which way to turn a bolt to unscrew it is a pretty basic thing here. Needless to say, I told her to tell him to put everything back in the car and not touch it. That is why I had to come home early to fix the tire. [/B]

Ever rotated tires on an old MOPAR? His question was legit...

[dd74]

I'm of the mind that you can't teach a woman anything about car maintenance. They figure there will always be a man around to help them with what may be wrong...two or three thousand dollars later.

My best advice to you guys is to occasionally get behind the wheel of your wife/gf's vehicle and drive it yourself. In fact, drive it like you would when test driving a car. Find the typical female faults that come with automobile ailments - anything from brakes to tire pressure. Then, if you can torch the cel phone from her ear and dismiss the "deer-in-the-headlights" look you'll get when you tell her she's driving on borrowed time, firmly place your checkbook in one of your hands and the holy rosary in the other hand, and essentially hope for the best.

BTW: if Wayne's reading this, I already have publishing dibs on "101 Projects for Explaining Automobile Care to a Woman."

[speeder]

Originally posted by pwd72s
Ever rotated tires on an old MOPAR? His question was legit...

I always thought that was funny, Paul, that Chrysler engineers were the only ones in the world who worried about a spinning wheel loosening the lug nuts.

Actually, they were not the only ones. Can anybody name the other company that reverse-threaded the lugs on the left-hand side? (Hint, not a domestic/U.S. company).

[Milu]

Originally posted by pwd72s
Ever rotated tires on an old MOPAR? His question was legit...

or even an old Alfa (clockwise on one side and anti on the other)

[Moneyguy1]

Studebaker did it too.........(Grunt.....'snap')

[Isabo]

Two reasons I guess, but I think it applies to some men too, not just those of us on the distaff.
1) Just not interested. Love it for the freedom and status it gives and as a means of getting from a to b.
2) Plain stupid. Like a friend of mine, who was taught to change an electrical plug by her mother using a table knife instead of a screwdriver, my friend showed me how, I asked why not use a screwdriver? No, she said, you use a tableknife like I just showed you!

[Isabo]

Post scriptum:
and I guess some people don't understand that animals and mechanical devices try to talk to us

[speeder]

Originally posted by Milu
or even an old Alfa (clockwise on one side and anti on the other)

Winner! Back when Alfas were built like tanks.

The best thing is when people (not just women) fill some extra air in their tires "because they look like they need it"

[CJFusco]

"Can anybody name the other company that reverse-threaded the lugs on the left-hand side? (Hint, not a domestic/U.S. company)."

ACTUALLY the Porsche Carrera GT has side-specific wheel lug nuts.

[mattdavis11]

Side specific, my 58 Willys CJ 5 Jeep is.

[Sarah]

Couple things:

Some people (gals or guys) may never have been into working on cars so they don't have the knowledge that people who dive in to it have. (I know guys & gals on either side of that fence).

Also...the driving on a flat thing...some people would rather get to what they think is a safer location to be stranded or call for help. (when I was in law enforcement..there were plenty of situations where people stranded on an un-populated road or in a poorly lite area were victims of crime).

Let's see...one more thing...don't make your girlfriend feel stupid about what she does not know unless you plan on her being your soon to be ex-girlfriend. If she feels yuck about asking you for help...she'll find someone who does not make her feel that way. Explain that you are concerned about her and her car and don't want to be frustrated when she isn't making safe decisions.

OK..i'm done.

[Icemaster]

Does sound like she's a bit ignorant on the mechanical side...however it sounds more like she just doesn't like to pay attention to what you're saying.