When studying how gender affects the various ways in which we live our lives, we find that almost every aspect of everyday livelihood is engrained with dual realities of femininity and masculinity. Even as we study the automobile, vehicles are built, altered, and marketed with men and women in mind. While studying the concepts of how accessories have been gendered, we will first take a brief look at the history of the automobile and see what evolutionary concepts have been introduced to bring it to the attraction and comfort of today's car owner.

The history of the car is long and torrid one with no true beginning and no single person to accredit. The ideas involve over hundreds of people and improvements to the car date back as far as the 14th century. Although many have different ideas on when the first car was created because of the loose definitions of an automobile, Captain Nicolas-Joseph Cugnot's invention was considered to be the first true automobile in 1769. His invention consisted of a three-wheeled steam driven vehicle that was relatively unsuccessful. But none-the-less, this French army engineer was inspired and did inspire many of the inventors that would come after him. In the years to follow, over 100 American plants were producing steamers, with the top producer Stanley Brothers in Newton, Massachusetts .

With the turn of the Industrial Revolution, patents for car parts and engines were hopping up everywhere. In 1860, Etienne Lenoir applied for a patent on an internal combustible engine powered by coal gas. By 1879, George B. Selden applied and received a patent for a "road machine". Many of today's car companies took these ideas and improved on them, making automobiles that were convenient and surprisingly affordable. The first popular car created by Ransom E. Olds was the Osmobile. The Osmobile consisted of two seats, a 1 cylinder, and a three horsepower engine. Olds was able to introduce a car that was popular to the public at half the price of his competitors until Henry Ford's release of the Model T. Henry Ford created Ford Motor Co. in 1905. After several attempts at car construction, Ford was finally able to break successfully into the industry with the creation of the Model T. The Model T introduced stability wrapped into a 4 cylinder and 20 horsepower engine with two speeds for forward and a reverse.

The production of the car also a generated a social revolution that offered households everything from a choice in education to a change in mating habits. Households could now drive into town to send their children to school and as far as the mating habits, well let's just say it went from the front porch to the back seat. As unconventional as this may sound, it managed to bring together different classes and types of people. In addition to the basic choices of transportation the automobile offered, it also affected the traditional family. The automobile industry became swamped with inventions and accessories that were targeted to introducing vehicles designed and marketed with the average, middle-class woman in mind. Charles Duryea described the invention of the gasoline motored car as "a further item of ease and convenience for the lady". The manufacturing companies for the Model T starters also marketed their products as "ladies aids". The automobile freed women from the confines of the home and transformed them from the producers of food and clothing into the major consumers. Ruth Schwartz Cowan adds, women moved from being the prime receivers to the transporters of goods. In essence, the automobile caused many of the deletions in delivery services, but sparked a "new girl" attitude with its various marketing campaigns. To follow is a look at the various accessories and ideas that have been added to cars with an approach of either femininity or masculinity.

When it comes to cars and car accessories for women the two vehicles most people think about are the station wagon and the minivan. These two vehicles bring to mind the idea of the "soccer mom." The woman who runs around taking her children and husband to work, school, practices, and then turns around and picks them up to probably take them somewhere else. This idea is displayed through various websites such as momsminivan.com which is a website for women about various games they give their children to entertain them while they are in the car. This idea does not hold up when we view the list of the top five cars for women the first being the Volkswagen Cabrio. The second and third are the PT Cruiser and the Ford Escape. The fourth is the Toyota RAV4 and the fifth is the Chrysler Town and Country. While four of the five are sports utility vehicles none of them are minivans or station wagons.

One website created by a few men discusses how they feel all women should drive a pink car so as to alert other drivers they are female. They do not feel women can drive and so therefore feel their vehicles should be painted with the stereotypical pink. They go on to list rules for female drivers and then describe what they feel is the perfect female car (www.mpnetworks.co.uk/pinkcar/). Female drivers should be viewed equally to male drivers. Neither the vehicle they drive nor should the color of that vehicle stereotype them. Women are just as capable as men to drive sports cars and men should not be looked down on if they drive a minivan. All cars are different and each of us needs to find the one that best fits us.

In relation to men, a plethora of information is available to create speedier, more eye appealing cars. Male car exterior accessories are based on two main principles, which are performance and personalized looks. Body kits, spoilers, wings, and car rims are just some of the most popular exterior car accessories bought today. Each of these items is especially designed for males to reinforce their views of what other people believe a male's car should look like and perform. These features are made to stand out and draw attention to the car.

Body kits, which are also known as ground effects, are additional car body parts that come in different styles but are all designed to decrease downforce or lift underneath the car. Downforce is the same as the lift experienced by airplane wings, only it acts to press down, instead of lifting up. Every object traveling through air creates either a lifting or downforce situation . "Each aero kit (body kit) design is unique and tailored to match the curves and personality of the specified car." This statement from a car accessory company is appealing to the male's idea that his car is unique and has a personality.

Spoilers and wings technically provides the best aerodynamics during acceleration, deceleration, and cruising by creating the right amount of down force distributed between the front and rear wheels and to decrease drag. Drag is comprised of two forces called front pressure and rear vacuum. Each of these forces can seriously decrease a car's speed. "Spoilers are the most popular car accessory in America today. Dollar for dollar, no accessory can do more to improve the looks of your car", this quote supports the importance of looks over performance for males.

In conclusion, the invention and the roles of the car have come a long way. History has given us many makes, models and styles of cars. Over the past several decades, the concept for the car's use and who uses it has changed to meet the needs of its male and female customers. Whether it's defining the role of the "soccer mom" or just enhancing the looks of the car, accessories have been targeted to address a specific market of individuals. The hype we have placed on the automobile and what is stereotypical to the genders will continue to play a role in what is gendered, who has the power to separate genders, and what technology will give us next.

Suggested Readings:
Automotive History. Automotive 101. www.autoshoponline.com/auto101/histtext.html

Brickman, Joanne. Driving Through Automotive History: Woman's Journey from the Passenger Seat to the Driver's Seat. Women Motorist. 2002 www.womanmotorist.com/ftrs/jb-women-history-01.shtml

Cowan, Ruth Schwartz. More Work for Mother. Basic Books, 1983.

Mom's Minivan. 2002 www.momsminivan.com

Pink Car. 2001 www.mpnetworks.co.uk/pinkcar

Top 5 Cars for Women. About, Inc. autobuy.about.com/cs/toppicks/a/women28.htm