Wheels for women?
Minnie Palmer was the first
woman to own and drive her
own car in the UK, back in 1897.
Car companies have jostled to
sell to women ever since, and
had varying degrees of success
with their ‘thoughtful touches’.
From the flower vase in a VW
Beetle (fun) to the ‘handbag
hook’ in Volvo’s XC40 (essential
for takeaway curries). In 2016,
when Seat trumpeted the launch
of its Mii Cosmopolitan with
‘eyeliner headlights’ as a car
specially for women, Twitter
erupted. “Does it also have
holders for my tampons?”
was one of the more polite
put-downs. It seems that on
the road, as in life, we just
want to be equal.
savouring the freedom and sanctuary of our own
cars when they became more affordable and
attainable. As a means of escape, a haven when
we couldn’t go home or just a safe space to sing
Celine Dion and eat Haribo, cars have always
been so much more than just a way to get around.
“My very first boss knew my bus commute
took hours,” remembers Nicola, 40, an HR
consultant. “I found a cheque for £500 in my
paypacket with a note saying I should buy myself
a car. Dad found me a Mini Metro at an auction
and I felt like I’d been handed a new life at 18. The
sense of possibility was mind blowing.”SMALL WAS EVER BEAUTIFUL
Launched 60 years ago, in response to the Suez
oil crisis, the Mini I fell in love with answered
the need for an economical drive for housewives
and the girl around town, who, like Nicola, found
their horizons expanded further than they’d
dreamt of. “For the first time, I could go
anywhere, any time,” says my 77-year-old mum.
“Ironically, I was happy to stay home, but it was
my choice to do so. The keys were in my pocket.”“The future is ours. It’s female
drivers who will lead the way
with cleaner, greener choices”PHOTOGRAPHY: HERITAGE-IMAGES/TOPFOTO; GETTY IMAGES; MARY EVANS PICTURE LIBRARY; WILLIAM LOVELACE/DAILY EXPRESS/HULTON ARCHIVE/GETTY IMAGES; SHUTTERSTOCK; TOPFOTOFrom left: Advertisers
patronising women
at the wheel is far from
a new phenomenon, as
these adverts show;
British VADs (Voluntary
Aid Detachments) with
their ambulances on the
British Western Front in
France during the First
World War; delivering
the (fe)mail: the first
female driver of a mail
van, Henrietta Furley, in
1941; Mary Quant, as
stylish as ever behind
the wheel of a limited-
edition Austin Mini