Why Are We In Love With Sports Cars?
Why do so many of us find sports cars irresistible? Few objects
inspire the emotional attachment that sports cars do among auto
enthusiasts. There are always dedicated fans of almost every
technology, but sports car fans band together in clubs, spend a
significant percentage of their free time preoccupied with their
car, and may even begin to create a self-definition that seems
to be centered upon their favorite auto.
There is something about sports cars that makes them uniquely
attractive to many drivers.
Of course, it would be impossible to isolate exactly what it is
about a well-designed sports car that engenders such attachment,
but there are some factors that would logically contribute to
the commonly seen love affair between men and their sports cars.
Initially, it seems as if much of the attraction is grounded in
symbolism. Sports cars have long been portrayed as sources of
freedom. Drivers are left unencumbered by the limitations of
other automobiles are seen as having a uniquely free and
flexible life on the open road. This notion of freedom is
intensified when one considers convertible sports car offerings.
In such circumstances the driver is not boxed in like others. He
can tackle any road while being completely open to the elements.
Additionally, the allure of sports cars lies in their innovative
technology. We live in a world that worships at the altar of
technological advances. The sports car is a moving amalgamation
of technical expertise. Sports cars are a bundling of
technological miracles. From aerodynamic styling to compact yet
powerful engines, they represent the cutting edge of
technological design. In a society entranced by technology and
innovation, the sports car has an iconic appeal that is
difficult to equal.
Sports cars also represent the flipside to our technological
obsession. Although we, as a society, crave more and better tech
we also fear these developments will diminish our humanity. Some
have even argued we have an underlying fear of losing control
over our own advances. The sports car simultaneously represents
our technological prowess while reassuring us we retain dominion
over our creation. Sports cars are built to respond the driver.
In fact, they are sold as being the most responsive cars
available. The driver is left in ultimate control. Man creates
the new technology and harnesses it. It is the perfect version
of our technological dream in action.
Finally, the sports car appeals to man's desire to reassert his
strength in a world that no longer requires physical prowess.
Humanity has grown softer and the need for violent power to
function successfully has been reduced to near zero. The sports
car provides an alternative means of expressing whatever
hard-wired tendencies toward strength and prowess that may be
lurking in the deep recesses of the human mind. The sports car
is an embodiment, after all, of the human physical traits once
needed for survival in leaner times. Speed and power are
combined and become a proxy body for the driver placed behind
the wheel.
The sports car, it would seem, is a perfect object of affection.
It allows us to explore our concept of freedom. It shows us our
continual technological advancement while simultaneously
reassuring us that we can keep our new technologies under our
control. Meanwhile, the sports car acts a proxy body for us to
express a seemingly instinctive need for demonstrating physical
prowess.