X-Type Marketed Towards Women (archive)

And the Venus-Mars dichotomy explains why car makers are prodding women to view Cadillacs, Jaguars and BMW's as high-class fashion accessories. "We want women to view a Jaguar as a beautiful piece of jewelry," said Sue Callaway, general manager for Jaguar North America.

Using 12 criteria, including "grocery-getting potential," American Woman Road and Travel gave high marks to the Jaguar X-Type, known in the trade as an "entry" luxury sedan because it is relatively affordable (starting at $29,950, plus dealer charges). "As women become more successful they still don't buy cars as toys," Ms. Caldwell said. "Practicality will always come first."

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Not mentioned in the article is the well-known situation of how women are treated by car salesmen, and how women are less apt to strongly negotiate the price. So you can understand the natural tendency for dealers and manufacturers to want to cater to women buyers.

Also not lost on me is that there are always exceptions to every generalization. For every 1000 females who want a nice, practical, safe car, there are a few who want a big beefy engine and screaming performance with two seats and attention-getting bodywork.

Jim

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