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The international day for women at the wheel

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ROME – “An extra shock for the economy, not to be underestimated”. Word of Marta Garcia, President of WWCOTY, an international jury of 50 journalists, who has been meeting for over 10 years to vote for the car of the year. “We do not reward the best car for women – he is keen to say immediately – because this category does not exist: on the podium the car that in the 40 countries we represent is the best according to very specific parameters, such as safety, comfort, consumption”. Obviously, the award was born when women were not yet “included” in the automotive industry like today.

Why June 24?

On 24 June three years ago the last barrier in the world fell for those who wanted to get behind the wheel. Saudi Arabia lifted the ban on women from driving. The last obstacle to mobility in the world, therefore, has been removed. A day not to be forgotten. “Women make up half the population in most countries and can give the industry a big boost. Connecting with them is a good goal – continues Garcia -. Unfortunately, they have not traditionally been the target for car manufacturers, despite everything ”.

The president refers to the past. Dorothy Levitt (1882-1922) already in the twentieth century, with a mirror on her compact, had started an era of mirrors and safety, to see the cars behind her. Roads would have no dividing lines if June McCarroll (1867-1954) hadn’t been obsessed with reducing road deaths; Also, in the winter, we would probably still have brought blankets on board if Margaret Wilcox hadn’t invented a heating system for the car and patented it in 1893. The accident rate would be much higher, too, if a another inventor, Florence Lawrence (1886-1938) had not designed the first direction indicators.

A tribute to the women in cars of the past and present, therefore, the proposal of June 24? Not only.

Women behind the wheel today

The bull’s eye shifts to the potential of motorists: enormous. As mentioned, in advanced countries the female public influences more than 80% of purchases. In Germany 42% of all driving licenses are in their hands, the same in Spain; in the Czech Republic it reaches 48%; 49% in Canada and New Zealand; in Israel at 45%; in Argentina at 27%. “2021 will be remembered as the year in which many things changed. With sales at an all-time low, we think that drivers can be the salvation of the industry – comments Garcia -: the future of the automobile could also depend on them ”.

According to Forbes, women account for 62% of new vehicle customers in countries like the United States. Percentages, therefore, in dizzying increase compared to the past and which also see an increase among professionals, from the dealerships to the engineering departments of the car manufacturers ”.

Also an international award

For the WWCOTY international jury, the effectiveness of the female target in the sector is nothing new. Every year the car of the year awards are accompanied by the WOW, that is the Woman of Worth Award, which recognizes a personality from the industry or motor sport at an international level.

This year the award went to the deceased Sabine Schmitz, also known as the “queen of the Nurburgring”, the first woman to win the 24 Hours, in 1996. Special edition, this one of the post-lockdown, where the need was born to celebrate even those who remain out of the spotlight: hence the promotion of an international day dedicated to female drivers. All.

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