More than one in three owners of imported cars were women, according to a recent survey.
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According to the Korean Automobile Importers and Distributors Association (KAIDA), the ratio of women to total owners of imported cars reached about 35% this year, marking the highest level ever, the Korea Times reported.
The cumulative number of imported cars registered by female owners came to 42,250 as of June 2006, while imported cars owned by men stood at 77,658 units.
Women accounted for 22% of owners of all registered cars.
This year, almost half of the motorists who registered imported cars were women, with the ratio coming up to 48%. Women exceeded men in the age bracket between 50 and 60. The same female dominance was recorded among imported car owners under 20.
The ratio has continued to rise over the past few years _ 24% in 2000, 26% in 2001, 29% in 2002, 30% in 2003, 32% in 2004 and 34% in 2005.
“A growing number of women, including singles, can afford to buy imported cars, independent of their spouses or parents,” a Volvo Korea official told the newspaper.
Foreign carmakers are moving to strengthen promotions targeting female drivers.
Hanbul Motors, the Korean importer of Peugeot, plans to launch the 1007, a micro-van designed for women, in several months. The 1007 is an urban-style compact model with two electric sliding doors enabling women with babies or lots of shopping to get in and out of the car more easily.
Jaguar’s S-Type series allows women or short drivers to vary the position of the pedals by up to 6.8cm by simply pressing a button, the Korea Times noted.
