(DA) Gender and cars

I accept that I know very little about cars. I'm learning little bits at a time, but if my car broke down I'd have to rely on someone else to fix it. I feel like that's the way with 'most' people. I'm not saying 'most girls', I mean people. 

When I talk to my friends most of them don't know how to change a tire on a car. Or change their oil. A select few haven't even put wiper fluid in their car. And then on the complete opposite side of the spectrum I have a couple friends who could build a whole car themselves. 

If I ask my friends if their parents could fix up a car most of them answer yes. Whether this is true, or this is the eternal 'my dad can do everything' mindset I don't know. But I do know that many of my parents friends are far more handy and hands on in their lives than my friends are. So I believe that even if my parent's friends can't completely fix a car, they get the general idea and can at least fix a burnt out tail light. 

So, when I'm out of my element and take my car to the garage, a strange thing happens. 

I immediately get helped. My car gets accepted at the mechanics (despite being told that this mechanic never takes new clients), and I get shown the inner workings of how my car runs. I can get away with "Oh. I had no idea our filters were dirty! It's my husband's car, I'll let him know when I get home!" (I've done it at Mr. Lube just to see if I could, which doesn't the gender stereotype of girls and cars) But I can also get away with, "I have no idea what that is, how does it work and why isn't it working properly?" without having someone laugh at me or roll their eyes. 

I hear going to a mechanics is difficult for most people. Unless you speak the language it's a challenge. Women either get pushed aside, ignored, babied or catered to. Men either get swift and brisk service, or sarcastic service. This is obviously an over exaggeration. Lots of people have excellent experiences with mechanics, but there are still lots of people who have negative experiences, which is why I hear of people going so long between visits. Yes, the money is an issue, but everyone knows you pay more if you prolong the issue, and yet people still avoid going to the mechanic until their problem is unavoidable and dangerous. 

I've been lucky in my experience. I think it's because I openly admit I don't know much, but I am also curious and want to learn about my car. 

Being at the mechanic today I realized I found another job I could have really enjoyed if I had gone to school and studied to be a mechanic. I've often thought I would be better suited to a job in the trades; I wouldn't have liked all the grease under my nails, but working on a car is like working on a big puzzle. It's challenging and exciting. I loved the atmosphere, and could have seen myself fixing up cars, if I hadn't decided to pursue writing. 

-Brandolyn

What have your experiences with your car been like? Do you know a lot? Or wish you knew more?