Two calls on this weeks show bring the subject into question – one, the husband insists his wife clean off each and any bird dropping from the car’s surface within 24 hours, and the other, the husband insists the wife not drive the car over 60 mph until the odometer reaches 1000 miles.
What are these husbands thinking? The wives are going to drive however they are going to drive! It’s not the husband’s perogative!
What is it with husbands, wives, and cars anyway? Why is it that husbands think they can control their wife’s car and driving habits?
THAT is a deeper psycological issue with the controling husband, The car is just a ‘tell’ about the underlying control freak he is.
Could also be that he can’t ‘control’ her in other aspects so he feels the need to exert his control over the cars.
still, borders on o.c.d.
Is it that the husband “Insists”…or just giving advise. I’ve given my wife and kids the same type of advise. And I explain WHY I think they should do it. It’s up to them if they want to follow the advise.
@kengreen; I agree that this smacks of control. However, driving slow for the first 1000 miles has a good basis; in this case the husband should just refer the wife to the manual’s section on “break in procedures” which shows the driving style until the car is properly broken in. We just bought a new car and I showed my wife the section and she’s not racing the car until it has some miles on it.
The bird poop should be removed as soon as convenient; but we wait till the car is ready for a wash.
In a normal family, the most knowlwdgeable person on the subject lists what should be done or asks the other to read the impartial operating manual. My wife can’t be bothered to read the whole Mazda manual which is over 1 inch thick. I’ve just tagged the important sections.
On the flip side, I don’t tell my wife how to operate the kitchen.
I think it has more to do with the psychological make up of PBS listeners maybe. Kind of eccentric and inflexible without a full understanding of the reasons or consequences involved. You know, rules are rules and must be obeyed without exception. Don’t you dare drive 56 or you belong in prison. Yeah bird crap is hard on the paint and there is a break-in procedure but I’m always the one cleaning the crap off the car when I see it and break-in procedures are far more flexible than in 1970.