Women Drivers: Difference between revisions

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* This trope was such a staple of old sitcoms that on at least one occasion, [[Nickelodeon|Nick at Nite]] devoted an entire marathon to episodes featuring bad women drivers.
* This trope was such a staple of old sitcoms that on at least one occasion, [[Nickelodeon|Nick at Nite]] devoted an entire marathon to episodes featuring bad women drivers.
* [[Zig Zagged]] ''and'' [[Justified Trope|Justified]] with [[Britains Worst Driver|Britain's Worst Driver]] and its international spinoffs: played straight in that the women are truly terrible, subverted in that the ''male'' contestants are no better, subverted the ''other'' way that judges are often women drivers who are anything from just fine to ''bona fide'' [[Badass Driver|Badass Drivers]], and justified in that the shows are [[Exactly What They Say On the Tins]] and literal [[Truth in Television]].
* [[Zig Zagged]] ''and'' [[Justified Trope|Justified]] with [[Britains Worst Driver|Britain's Worst Driver]] and its international spinoffs: played straight in that the women are truly terrible, subverted in that the ''male'' contestants are no better, subverted the ''other'' way that judges are often women drivers who are anything from just fine to ''bona fide'' [[Badass Driver|Badass Drivers]], and justified in that the shows are [[Exactly What They Say On the Tins]] and literal [[Truth in Television]].
** [[Canadas Worst Driver (TV)|The Canadian version]] has gone through seven seasons now. So far the 'worsts' are three men and four women. Mind the season five "winner" was pretty much the [[Dumb Blonde]] brought to life, and the Season 6 runner-up was [[The Ditz|just as clueless.]]
** [[Canada's Worst Driver (TV)|The Canadian version]] has gone through seven seasons now. So far the 'worsts' are three men and four women. Mind the season five "winner" was pretty much the [[Dumb Blonde]] brought to life, and the Season 6 runner-up was [[The Ditz|just as clueless.]]
* An old ''Candid Camera'' prank invokes this trope by placing a car in a garage door in such a way that the frame of the door is only an inch away from the bumper. Then they had an attractive woman call a mechanic (or some other professional) to help her out before "Her husband comes back and see what she did to the car".
* An old ''Candid Camera'' prank invokes this trope by placing a car in a garage door in such a way that the frame of the door is only an inch away from the bumper. Then they had an attractive woman call a mechanic (or some other professional) to help her out before "Her husband comes back and see what she did to the car".
* For all the [[Incredibly Lame Pun|stick]] they give to [[Acceptable Lifestyle Targets|some people]] the hosts of ''[[Top Gear]]'' never say bad things about women drivers. In fact, they even had racing driver Sabine Schmitz coaching Jeremy Clarkson (in a Jaguar) round the Nurburgring, and then trouncing his lap time. Then in a later episode nearly beating his time in a ''Transit van''. Having guest stars like Jennifer Saunders, Billie Piper, Jodie Kidd, and yachtswomen Ellen McArthur (who set the fastest lap in the old car) drive the Reasonably-Priced Car round the track quite rapidly also subverts this one rather nicely.
* For all the [[Incredibly Lame Pun|stick]] they give to [[Acceptable Lifestyle Targets|some people]] the hosts of ''[[Top Gear]]'' never say bad things about women drivers. In fact, they even had racing driver Sabine Schmitz coaching Jeremy Clarkson (in a Jaguar) round the Nurburgring, and then trouncing his lap time. Then in a later episode nearly beating his time in a ''Transit van''. Having guest stars like Jennifer Saunders, Billie Piper, Jodie Kidd, and yachtswomen Ellen McArthur (who set the fastest lap in the old car) drive the Reasonably-Priced Car round the track quite rapidly also subverts this one rather nicely.
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* Lisa Douglas of ''[[Green Acres]]'' plays this trope straight in an episode where she's forced to go to high school, though her lack of driving skills comes less from the fact that she's a woman then the fact that she's... well, [[Cloudcuckoolander|Lisa.]]
* Lisa Douglas of ''[[Green Acres]]'' plays this trope straight in an episode where she's forced to go to high school, though her lack of driving skills comes less from the fact that she's a woman then the fact that she's... well, [[Cloudcuckoolander|Lisa.]]
* ''[[Tosh 0 (TV)|Tosh.0]]'' devoted an entire segment to women drivers, specifically parallel parking. Two women managed to bump into the neighboring vehicles, one even asking in a bubbleheaded fashion, "Did I hit something?" One teenager who only had her learner's permit, though, completed the test successfully.
* ''[[Tosh 0 (TV)|Tosh.0]]'' devoted an entire segment to women drivers, specifically parallel parking. Two women managed to bump into the neighboring vehicles, one even asking in a bubbleheaded fashion, "Did I hit something?" One teenager who only had her learner's permit, though, completed the test successfully.
* Shows up in [[Doctor Who (TV)|Doctor Who]], of all places. In "[[Doctor Who (TV)/2011 CS the Doctor the Widow And The Wardrobe/Recap|The Doctor, the Widow, and the Wardrobe]]", the 2011 Christmas special, the Doctor lands in 1938, wearing a space suit backwards, and is found by Madge Arwell. When Madge tries to drive the Doctor to the TARDIS, he comments that "We seem to bump into quite a lot of things" when she crashes to a stop. Her excuse: "Well, a lot of things get in the way, it's hardly my fault."
* Shows up in [[Doctor Who]], of all places. In "[[Doctor Who/2011 CS the Doctor the Widow And The Wardrobe/Recap|The Doctor, the Widow, and the Wardrobe]]", the 2011 Christmas special, the Doctor lands in 1938, wearing a space suit backwards, and is found by Madge Arwell. When Madge tries to drive the Doctor to the TARDIS, he comments that "We seem to bump into quite a lot of things" when she crashes to a stop. Her excuse: "Well, a lot of things get in the way, it's hardly my fault."
* Taken to an extreme with Lori Grimes in ''[[The Walking Dead]]'', who somehow manages to flip her car despite likely being '''''the only person driving on the entire planet''''' at that moment.
* Taken to an extreme with Lori Grimes in ''[[The Walking Dead]]'', who somehow manages to flip her car despite likely being '''''the only person driving on the entire planet''''' at that moment.
* Addressed by the [[Myth Busters]] in a 2012 episode. They determined there was no meaningful difference between gender and driving competency.
* Addressed by the [[Myth Busters]] in a 2012 episode. They determined there was no meaningful difference between gender and driving competency.
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== Western Animation ==
== Western Animation ==
* Referenced in several [[Looney Tunes]] shorts, usually by Bugs Bunny: "[[Had the Silly Thing In Reverse|I had the silly thing in reverse!]]"
* Referenced in several [[Looney Tunes]] shorts, usually by Bugs Bunny: "[[Had the Silly Thing In Reverse|I had the silly thing in reverse!]]"
* In Disney's ''[[One Hundred and One Dalmatians (Disney)|One Hundred and One Dalmatians]]'', the man driving the moving van, which the dalmatians had hidden in, refers to Cruella as "crazy woman driver" when she tries to force him off the road during the climactic [[Chase Scene]]. (Of course, he didn't realize she was doing it ''on purpose''.)
* In Disney's ''[[101 Dalmatians (Disney)|One Hundred and One Dalmatians]]'', the man driving the moving van, which the dalmatians had hidden in, refers to Cruella as "crazy woman driver" when she tries to force him off the road during the climactic [[Chase Scene]]. (Of course, he didn't realize she was doing it ''on purpose''.)
* Benny the Cab from ''[[Who Framed Roger Rabbit]]'' calls everyone he passes "lady", even though he is the one who [[Drives Like Crazy]].
* Benny the Cab from ''[[Who Framed Roger Rabbit]]'' calls everyone he passes "lady", even though he is the one who [[Drives Like Crazy]].
** He might be adressing the cars themselves, though.
** He might be adressing the cars themselves, though.
*** or they could've actually been women.
*** or they could've actually been women.
* [[Tex Avery]]'s ''[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9bBpDNRP5qQ The Car of Tomorrow]'' has a gag about a garage that lifts up so that the little woman can park without crashing into it and another gag with a car equipped with speaking turning signals; when the woman is about to turn, it goes "Turning left... no, right... no, left..." Interestingly enough, a couple of [[Once Acceptable Targets|politically incorrect gags]] were taken out of the cartoon when it aired on [[Cartoon Network]], but the joke about women drivers was left in.
* [[Tex Avery]]'s ''[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9bBpDNRP5qQ The Car of Tomorrow]'' has a gag about a garage that lifts up so that the little woman can park without crashing into it and another gag with a car equipped with speaking turning signals; when the woman is about to turn, it goes "Turning left... no, right... no, left..." Interestingly enough, a couple of [[Once-Acceptable Targets|politically incorrect gags]] were taken out of the cartoon when it aired on [[Cartoon Network]], but the joke about women drivers was left in.
* An episode of ''Disneyland'' devoted to the future of the freeway had a sequence of humorous suggestions for bettering the nation's highways. The very first one is having his and hers lanes. A car on the hers lane weaves out of control and crashes.
* An episode of ''Disneyland'' devoted to the future of the freeway had a sequence of humorous suggestions for bettering the nation's highways. The very first one is having his and hers lanes. A car on the hers lane weaves out of control and crashes.
* Referenced on ''[[The Simpsons]]'' in an episode where Homer reads a "Motoring Ms.-Haps" cartoon in ''[[Readers Digest|Reading Digest]]''. Marge tells him off for thinking there is any truth to the stereotype.
* Referenced on ''[[The Simpsons]]'' in an episode where Homer reads a "Motoring Ms.-Haps" cartoon in ''[[Readers Digest|Reading Digest]]''. Marge tells him off for thinking there is any truth to the stereotype.
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* An old joke: Why don't they let Helen Keller drive? Because she's a woman.
* An old joke: Why don't they let Helen Keller drive? Because she's a woman.
* A "joke" that still rears its head on message boards whenever a female race car driver has an embarrassing incident -- like [[Indy Car|Danica Patrick]] hitting her pit crew at one race, then hitting someone's else crew a few races later. Considering male drivers like [[Indy Car|Paul Tracy]] used to make a habit of such minor incidents the double standard is pretty tired. Interestingly when Katherine Legge had a ''huge'' crash, splitting her [[Indy Car|Champ Car]] in half and emerging unharmed, there weren't any "LOL Women Drivers" comments, just a lot of compliments about her toughness.
* A "joke" that still rears its head on message boards whenever a female race car driver has an embarrassing incident -- like [[Indy Car|Danica Patrick]] hitting her pit crew at one race, then hitting someone's else crew a few races later. Considering male drivers like [[Indy Car|Paul Tracy]] used to make a habit of such minor incidents the double standard is pretty tired. Interestingly when Katherine Legge had a ''huge'' crash, splitting her [[Indy Car|Champ Car]] in half and emerging unharmed, there weren't any "LOL Women Drivers" comments, just a lot of compliments about her toughness.
** Tellingly, Katherine Legge is not known just as much for looking [[http://images.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://i.a.cnn.net/si/features/2008_swimsuit/images/sections/other_danica-patrick_2.jpg&imgrefurl=http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/features/2008_swimsuit/danica-patrick/&usg=__vELbOlKAq-6UL8Y8OiiFy-mf3XA=&h=300&w=415&sz=25&hl=en&start=5&um=1&tbnid=[[KH Twxqe 7 x Dy 6 NM]]:&tbnh=90&tbnw=125&prev=/images<!-- 3Fq3DDanica%2BPatrick%2Bswimsuit%2Bphotos%26hl%3Den%26safe%3Doff%26sa%3DX%26um%3D1 extremely hot in a swimsuit]] as she is for being a racing driver. As such...regarding Danica ''specifically''...HypeBacklash moving toward {{Hatedom}}, especially from many who ''despise'' the sexualizing of their chosen [[strike:sport]] [[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CSzgwCql_mo drug-of-choice]]. -->
** Tellingly, Katherine Legge is not known just as much for looking [http://images.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://i.a.cnn.net/si/features/2008_swimsuit/images/sections/other_danica-patrick_2.jpg&imgrefurl=http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/features/2008_swimsuit/danica-patrick/&usg=__vELbOlKAq-6UL8Y8OiiFy-mf3XA=&h=300&w=415&sz=25&hl=en&start=5&um=1&tbnid=KHTwxqe7xDy6NM:&tbnh=90&tbnw=125&prev=/images%3Fq%3DDanica%2BPatrick%2Bswimsuit%2Bphotos%26hl%3Den%26safe%3Doff%26sa%3DX%26um%3D1 extremely hot in a swimsuit] as she is for being a racing driver. As such...regarding Danica ''specifically''...HypeBacklash moving toward [[Hatedom]], especially from many who ''despise'' the sexualizing of their chosen <s>sport</s> [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CSzgwCql_mo drug-of-choice].
** Milka Duno is a standout example. At St. Petersburg, Florida, second race of the 2010 [[Indy Car]] season, she was five and a half seconds off the second slowest time...which was one and a half seconds off the ''fastest'' time. In a sport that has recently embraced several female drivers who possess quite a bit of talent, Duno is now causing the vast majority of fans to scream invectives at race control director Brian Barnhart, that he is allowing her on the track solely for Venezuelan CITGO sponsorship dollars.
** Milka Duno is a standout example. At St. Petersburg, Florida, second race of the 2010 [[Indy Car]] season, she was five and a half seconds off the second slowest time...which was one and a half seconds off the ''fastest'' time. In a sport that has recently embraced several female drivers who possess quite a bit of talent, Duno is now causing the vast majority of fans to scream invectives at race control director Brian Barnhart, that he is allowing her on the track solely for Venezuelan CITGO sponsorship dollars.
*** People have been upset with Brian Barnhart's management of race control for years prior to Milka Duno's arrival. Duno being allowed on the track is just the most obvious example of why he needs to be removed.
*** People have been upset with Brian Barnhart's management of race control for years prior to Milka Duno's arrival. Duno being allowed on the track is just the most obvious example of why he needs to be removed.
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[[Category:Tropes Examined By the Mythbusters]]
[[Category:Tropes Examined By the Mythbusters]]
[[Category:Women Drivers]]
[[Category:Women Drivers]]
[[Category:Trope]][[Category:Pages with comment tags]]
Retrieved from "https://allthetropes.org/wiki/Women_Drivers"