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People Prefer Angry-Faced Cars
fatalfury writes "Researchers from the University of Vienna asked 20 males and 20 females to rank vehicles based on their appearance. The list of traits included arrogant, afraid, agreeable, disgusted, extroverted, sad, and others. Cars with 'meaner' traits (such as BMW) ranked higher, whereas cars with 'nicer' traits (such as Toyota's Prius) ranked lower. With billions spent on developing new products in the automobile industry, this could spur a trend in meaner-looking cars and perhaps explain why sales of the Prius and other green cars are slow to take off with average consumers."
... pop-up headlights. It looks like my car's asleep, which is fairly representative of what's going on in my driver's seat too...
Really, this car can't be described with just "angry" or "happy."
... is the Triumph Herald Vitesse.
On another bright side, thieves are people too and this made me more interested in my dream of owning a pink Prius. (who knows, maybe they will steal it and return it piano black to me)
but I had to settle for just a pink DS now
To tell you the truth, there's been one car in the last decade that I thought looked interesting (under $50K, anyway), and I bought one, the PT Cruiser. Why can't they make decent looking cars anymore? Design by committee?
So apparently we don't only need to worry about road rage from the drivers, apparently the cars are angry too!
I intend to live forever, or die trying. - Groucho Marx
100% of the people I just asked agreed with you on that.
Yes, I agree. People should have no preference whatsoever vis a vis the outward appearance of their auto-mobile contrivances, as it is sure to lead to dangerous driving behavior.
I'm still trying to get over the fact that people beside patriotic Italians would buy Fiat or Alpha Romeo at all. ;)
In Austria they only prefer BMWs because of the better 'roo-bars.
my dream of owning a pink Prius.
That would be the car with an "O"-face.
Old news ... to boost Prius sales, Toyota are giving the 2.0 a face lift. I can't find any good online reference, but spy photos report looks similar to this:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Honking
"Good news, everyone!"
Well, this thing is right off the scale...
Mad Max
It's part of the mentality that people drive very aggressively. Hard to do in a cute car.
New keep one thing in mind. Of the people who drive/own vehicles, this population consisted only of those with the time and interest in rating the emotional appeal of their vehicles. For the rest of us who don't care... Maybe that is a small part of why the Prius, Beetle, etc are selling better than the H3, Mustang, Cherokee, etc. I think people who take importance in their vehicle tend to be more aggressive drivers and are therefore willing to pay the price at the pump for their personal lifestyle.
So, with this, and other comments already provided I think all they have confirmed is that dicks, on the road and off, are always trying to f#@K you. And the nice thing is that now it is so much easier to identify who the dicks are. A license plate frame might help too.
*something* tells me youâ(TM)re voting for McCain/Palin.
Girls must really admire your efficiency.
Cheap bastards get tons of chicks, right? (All of them HOT...)
I suggest you read Slashdot
You obviously have never encountered a Chrysler PT Cruiser
I always let a PT Cruiser go ahead of me. About five seconds later, I realize that it's actually not either the start of a funeral procession or Grandpa Munster.
Who buys their gas on eBay?
I hate the new (post 2001) BMWs. Their fronts and back look like they are angry at me. Why a car's ass would be angry at me, I'll never know.
- Zav - Imagine a Beowulf cluster of insensitive clods...
I personally avoid hitting BMWs because I suspect they're really damn expensive to get fixed.
YMMV.
That's still better than what others think of me.
"The car is yellow, therefore the car is a lemon, therefore the driver had lemon pie for dessert."
Wait, what?
I once felt the same way that you do... then I purchased a BMW, and it turns out, with it, you do in fact get a deed stating that you own the road.
Now excuse me, I need to go refill my latte.
Just another ignorant American.
I think the same thing about women. The pretty ones cost WAY more than they're worth--not to mention the much higher maintenance costs.
SJW: Someone who has run out of real oppression, and has to fake it.
I prefer cars that look like a college woman.
- curvy exterior
- firm
- no blemishes or rust
The government is not your daddy. Its purpose is not to raid middle-class neighbors' wallets and give it to you.
Let's all play the Slashdot "How much of this is true" game!
My turn: I guess... 10 percent. Parent owns a car, possibly a dark blue one.
Who's next?
cmd-q.co.uk - some sort of stupid fucking internet bullshit
I prefer cars that look like a college woman.
- curvy exterior
- firm
- no blemishes or rust
You forgot to add
- easy to get in and out of.
The enemies of Democracy are
As an owner of a BMW, I can tell you without any doubt whatsoever that we don't think we own the road, we DO own the road. After all, we paid for it. It was part of the option pack I had to get to get the sunroof. Why do I have to pay an extra 52 million for an interstate highway just to get the sunroof?
My lights come on when they need to, because they are on automatic, just like everyone else's.
As for thanking people for being let out, sometimes I do and sometimes I don't. Just like everyone else. And sometimes when I do, people don't notice it. I think you just happen to notice it more from drivers of more distinctive vehicles. Just like I always look for the drivers of slow SUVs or minivans in the left lane with the "My child is an honor student at..." to be on their cell phones.
I know a number of drivers who have BMWs, Corvettes, Mercedes and other sorts of cars. Some of them are jerks, but most of them are better than average drivers. You don't spend money on a car with any sort of performance and not want to take care of it, and that includes knowing how to drive so that you don't wreck your car. Do you have any idea how much it costs to fix one of these things?
I don't regard my car as intimidating or important. I didn't buy it to be intimidating, I bought it because I like good engineering and style. There are cars significantly more intimidating looking than a BMW of any model and many of them are cheaper too.
What can I say? I know both how to configure WPA2 under linux, and unhook a bra without looking. Call me a renaissance man.
The enemies of Democracy are
I see this study as further evidence that people should not be allowed to drive.
"The biggest problem with communication is the illusion that it has taken place."
Clarkson, is that you?
It really depends on the make and model, who you buy from, etc. I bought my 01 Altima used for 6800 and for the last five years I've had it, it's been running strong, despite being exposed to an immature college student drunk driving and crashing in to things. Yup, with a few new control arms, it has still never cost me a single dime to repair that wasn't my own fault.
P.S.
This post is a good indication as to why you should look in to your vehicle's history and prior owner(s) before buying. If you don't, it's really your own fault.
P.P.S
Is anyone looking to buy an 01 Altima in great condition?