Though a recent study found that Ford has one of the lowest female representations of any automotive brand in terms of the percentage of people that own and drive its vehicles, when it comes to sheer volume, it has fourth-most female owners of any brand. As such, The Blue Oval takes time each year to celebrate International Women’s Day, oftentimes with inspiring stories or special edition models. This year, however, the company is doing something a little bit different – it has debuted a Ford Explorer “Men’s Only Edition,” which is a unique way to celebrate the contributions women have made to the automotive industry over the years.
The Ford Explorer Men’s Only Edition is somewhat of a tongue-in-cheek commercial of sorts, though it’s also a clever way of enlightening the masses about just how big of a role women have played in the automotive business for decades to this point. It does that by introducing a “new” model that’s missing all of the features women have come up with over the years, including heaters, GPS, Wi-Fi, rearview mirrors, brake lights, turn signals, and windshield wipers.
In addition to this new ad spot, Ford is also spending this month celebrating the women who developed these now-essential features that we’ve come to rely on in modern automobiles. That list includes Hedy Lamarr, innovator of the communication system used in cellular technology, Wi-Fi, and GPS; Florence Lawrence, pioneer of brake and turn signals; Dorothy Levitt, creator of the rearview mirror; Dorothée Pullinger, innovator of the rearview mirror; and Dr. Gladys West, pioneer of the modern-day GPS.
In addition to these groundbreaking women and the folks that make Ford’s social media channels tick, the Ford Heritage Vault is also celebrating Women’s History Month with a selection of products designed and engineered by women, including the 1994 Ford Mustang, the 1975 Ford Granada, and the 1999 Ford Windstar.
We’ll have more on Ford’s efforts to celebrate women soon, so be sure and subscribe to Ford Authority for 24/7 Ford news coverage.
