Is "she" a "he" or a "it" ?

EGLITOM · 10-30-07, 06:39 PM

Hallo

I´m new on this forum. See my introduction here. Newbie from germany.

As i plan to do a GT 40 by myself in the near future you will see me posting more and more in the next time.

To begin with lets get a little philosiphical.

Why do most of you refere to the GT 40 as a "she".

OK she( as long it is not finaly cleared i will stick to your definiton) is a beauty and she is fascinating, but other than that she also has a lot of male features.

From a grammar point of view, it is male in german " DER GT 40". A car as itself is neutral " DAS AUTO"( as it is in english"THE CAR " is neutral). So one could refere to it as " THE GT 40" as a neutral.
A cobra for example would be female ( because the snake itself is female) " DIE COBRA".
From my language feeling, i just have always thought, that she is a "HE".
For me " THE GT 40" is a male.

Would be interrested in your opinions, may be it differs from country to country.
Paolo would be interrested also in the your italian view.

Also if there is any smart reasoning why "SHE" is a "SHE" would help to convince me and set it right.

Thanks
TOM

Bobski · 10-31-07, 07:25 AM

It simple. My cars will always be a "SHE", as no one wants to ride a "HE".

Paul Thompson 'Hooligan' · 10-31-07, 07:32 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Bobski

It simple. My cars will always be a "SHE", as no one wants to ride a "HE".

Well - hopefully your partner does Bob - especially if its your birthday...

Seriously though I would always think of cars bikes etc as 'SHE' cos you can both love em and hate them alike, pending on how they behave...

I LOVE GT40- Paolo · 10-31-07, 07:37 AM

donne e motori...gioie e dolori ...so, yes..is a she (just i hope NOT a shemale eh..)

Duncan Potter · 10-31-07, 09:53 AM

No offense to your native country or language, but the German languages gender assignments have confused American English speakers for years!

Quote:

TALE OF THE FISHWIFE AND ITS SAD FATE [2]

2. I capitalize the nouns, in the German (and ancient English) fashion.

It is a bleak Day. Hear the Rain, how he pours, and the Hail, how he rattles; and see the Snow, how he drifts along, and of the Mud, how deep he is! Ah the poor Fishwife, it is stuck fast in the Mire; it has dropped its Basket of Fishes; and its Hands have been cut by the Scales as it seized some of the falling Creatures; and one Scale has even got into its Eye, and it cannot get her out. It opens its Mouth to cry for Help; but if any Sound comes out of him, alas he is drowned by the raging of the Storm. And now a Tomcat has got one of the Fishes and she will surely escape with him. No, she bites off a Fin, she holds her in her Mouth -- will she swallow her? No, the Fishwife's brave Mother-dog deserts his Puppies and rescues the Fin -- which he eats, himself, as his Reward. O, horror, the Lightning has struck the Fish-basket; he sets him on Fire; see the Flame, how she licks the doomed Utensil with her red and angry Tongue; now she attacks the helpless Fishwife's Foot -- she burns him up, all but the big Toe, and even she is partly consumed; and still she spreads, still she waves her fiery Tongues; she attacks the Fishwife's Leg and destroys it; she attacks its Hand and destroys her also; she attacks the Fishwife's Leg and destroys her also; she attacks its Body and consumes him; she wreathes herself about its Heart and it is consumed; next about its Breast, and in a Moment she is a Cinder; now she reaches its Neck -- he goes; now its Chin -- it goes; now its Nose -- she goes. In another Moment, except Help come, the Fishwife will be no more. Time presses -- is there none to succor and save? Yes! Joy, joy, with flying Feet the she-Englishwoman comes! But alas, the generous she-Female is too late: where now is the fated Fishwife? It has ceased from its Sufferings, it has gone to a better Land; all that is left of it for its loved Ones to lament over, is this poor smoldering Ash-heap. Ah, woeful, woeful Ash-heap! Let us take him up tenderly, reverently, upon the lowly Shovel, and bear him to his long Rest, with the Prayer that when he rises again it will be a Realm where he will have one good square responsible Sex, and have it all to himself, instead of having a mangy lot of assorted Sexes scattered all over him in Spots.

Mark Twain

Big-Foot · 10-31-07, 10:28 AM

My Cars / toys are all HE for the simple fact that I have only one woman in my life and there will never be another...

Neal · 10-31-07, 11:07 AM

She is a cranky old bitch that comes alive when she warms up. She flaunts her curves everywhere she goes. She holds you tight no matter which way you turn. She carries a little more weight in the rear, knows how sexy she is and isn't affraid to show it off. She may be a little short but she makes it up with her hourglass figure. She can be demure or a raging lunatic. She has a funny accent but claims to be American. She has a bit of a drinking habit. She is the envy of all your buddies. She sucks all the cash out of your wallet. She knows how to stand out in a crowd.

That's my girl...

Steve26 · 10-31-07, 11:16 AM

Well said Neal, I was wondering how to answer this adequately and then I read your post and you said exactly what I was thinking. How could you look at the GT40's "figure" and not think of a very sexy woman? I personally have never seen another car as sexy as the GT40 which is why I have spent eight years of my life building HER.

Steve

MReid · 10-31-07, 11:23 AM

I agree with Neal!

I was going to also offer the hurricane, mother nature, and ships as all referred to as "she" in the English language. Although, many women took offense to the hurricane naming convention and that has now changed. I still think of a hurricane as a woman (you can all insert your own reasons, but I'll stick with unpredictable and only comes when the conditions are right).

Keith Hardy · 10-31-07, 11:24 AM

Please note:

"She sucks all the cash out of you"

But unlike a real woman, she doesn't rip out your wallet through your genitals......

AND the ride is better.......

Chris · 10-31-07, 12:58 PM

I feel that some cars are masculine and others are feminine. Most exotics such as Lamborghinis are feminine. I'm not saying that they're "chick cars". It's entirely appropriate for a heterosexual man to own a feminine car such as a Lamborghini. On the other hand, a car like a Chevelle SS is masculine, partly because of the styling and partly because of the V8 rumble. A big cross-plane V8 makes a very masculine sound. Where does that leave the GT40? I'd say mostly masculine. It's low and sleek like a Lamborghini, but there's something different about the styling. It's very brutal and menacing. It's badass. It has sensuous curves like a Ferrari P4, yet somehow on the GT40 they look more like bulging muscles. I'm referring mainly to the Mk I, but also to other GT40s. It's low and midengine, but it has the heart of a musclecar. It has a unique personality and a personality that I like very much.

charlie c · 10-31-07, 03:02 PM

With an rearend like that, how could anyone refer to the GT40 as male? Unless.....

Sandy · 10-31-07, 04:13 PM

I think this is like the old thread on who names their cars. Some cars are guys, and some are gals, some are neither -

Current -

1965 Mustang Fastback - "Jack the Ripper"
2003 Aston Martin DB7 GT (BLACK) - "The Count" as in Dracula, Suave and smooth but will eventually bite you and usually in the coffin sleeping.
1966 Sunbeam Tiger - "Tony" ask my son, likely too much sugar cereal influence
2006 RCR-GT40 - Unnamed, but for now the "Go Dog Go" car
VSE 1966 454 Chevy Cobra - "Too Loud" (Daddy... Too Loud)

No longer owned -

1993 850ci - "Greta"
1980 323Alpina - "Sparky"
1986 GSX-R 750 - "Mr. Pibbs" (Was a cat we had and was really dangerous to play with)

Hmm, I might be in some trouble, seems like I a lot of boy names here

Sandy

Pete. · 11-01-07, 01:54 AM

All the cars I like I refer to as "she" the others are it's. Like "she is a Ferrari and it's a Porsche", or "she's a Ford and it's a bloody Holden".
BTW everyone I know calls their boat she. The aircraft I flew were always referred to by their registration letters. I.E. "I took Charlie Whiskey Foxtrot up today".

Randy, I hope your Missus reads your post, that's gotta be worth a

Russ · 11-01-07, 03:12 AM

If its got (*)(*) or wheels its going to give you trouble .. .so why would we males refer to it as one of our own?. . .question closed

**brianstewart** · 11-01-07, 06:07 PM

I showed a female friend a rear threequaters view of a MKII similar to what I am building and she said "How could anything with such a big arse look so sexy?". I guess that makes it a she.

EGLITOM · 11-01-07, 07:39 PM

Visited Reinhard today. He lives closeby and is building a MDA GT40. First chance for me to spend more than 4 h looking at this beautiful design in real life. I´m deeply impressed by this gorgious car. ´
Can defintely see why most of you refere to GT 40´s as a she, but for my part this is also very much depending how the cars are dressed up. If they are all shiny, polished, chromed, leathered aso they could be a she, but if they are more the racer´s style ( like RON´s) the are male mainly because i hate to be beaten by a female on the track.
So i guess as often it´s in the eyes of the viewer, Thanks for all your responses