Ask The Best And Brightest: Are Brazilian Women Wearing The Pants?

Is good old machismo dying in Brazil? On the eve of Women’s International Day (May 8), women are now held responsible for buying up to 40 percent of brand new cars in Brazil, and are said to influence over 80 percent of purchases. According to well-known Brazilian news site Globo, those are the numbers. But what motivates a woman to buy a car in Brazil?

Fiat’s marketing director, João Batista Claco, said to Globo that women value ergonomics, lots of little niches and space to put away and organize their various knick-knacks. And they definitely don’t want a girly car. So, no pink cars. Eeek, eek, that would be the ultimate turn-off.

At Brazilian car news site Rodao, Volkswagen states that men are more emotional when buying a car. They seek out great design and high performance (good luck finding that in Brazil, the land of quart-sized engines). Also, they don’t mind paying the price. Hopes VW. According to the guys at VW, Women are more rational when choosing and look for things like internal space, practicality (big inside, compact outside, no comments, please) and safety. They also place a lot more emphasis on having creature comforts like air-conditioning and power steering.

Sounds about right, doesn’t it? Most women don’t suffer from penis envy and want a comfortable, even if slow vehicle. They could care less for horsepower. Men want a big engine to impress their pals and a flashy design to get (as they mistakenly believe) the girl. Women want a modicum of comfort and practicality. Getting the guy with a car doesn’t even register on their RADAR. As you probably heard by now, Brazilian women use other techniques to attract the elusive male.

All of this according to allegedly representative studies. In Brazil. But in the real world, does this hold true? And how about other countries? What’s your take, B and B?