How Many People Had Their First Kiss In A Car

There’s not much that’s more American than making out in a car, is there? Personally, I have a few treasured memories involving cars and romance. One of them is the time I borrowed by dad’s purple 1972 El Camino in order to impress a girl I was trying to woo. I pulled up to pick her up, dressed in my usual 1950s high femme style, and then went for a drive around town, only to end up nervously making out in a parking lot. She even wore a leather jacket, which just made the whole gender-bending classic scene that much more awesome.

My other favorite memory involves that same El Camino, which I was hoping would impress the local barista I had been making out with for a couple weeks. After driving him to pick up his truck at the garage, I turned to him and huffily asked what, exactly, we were doing. Were we friends? Were we more than friends? “I don’t even really care,” I said, obviously lying. He gave me a long winded, crappy explanation for why he wasn’t available to date right then and I responded by peeling out as I left the parking lot. The owner of the garage probably didn’t appreciate me leaving rubber on his parking lot but it sure made me feel better about the barista.

While everyone probably doesn’t have a sick El Camino to use for impressing dates, plenty of other people undoubtedly have their own great stories related to cars and romantic prospects. Ford teamed up with YourTango to find out about people’s relationships to having relations in their vehicles. Here’s what they discovered in their Love On The Road survey:

1. All Of The Firsts

Of the people surveyed, 57 percent had some kind of “first” in a car. Those firsts included first time having intercourse, first breakup, first heart break, first “I love you,” and first kiss. One in four of the respondents who had a “first” in a car had their first kiss, while one in five said “I love you” for the first time.

2. And The Sexiest Vehicle Is…

Unsurprisingly, the vehicle that got the most votes for sexiest — 39 percent — was the truck. (‘Merica!) Coming in close second, however, was the sports car, which was preferred by 34 percent. I wonder which category my dad’s El Camino fits into?

3. Top Car-Related Turn-Offs

Nope, it’s not those pine tree-shaped air fresheners. Sixty-eight percent of respondents said they wouldn’t want a date to see fast food containers in their cars, while only 23 percent was worried about their embarrassing taste in music. (I would definitely fall into the latter category.)

However, on the flip side, only 39 percent of people thought that a fast food container in a date’s car would be a turn-off, 33 percent really wouldn’t be into seeing dirty laundry, and 9 percent would hop out of the car if embarrassing music came on. I guess we’re always harder on ourselves than we are on each other, huh?

4. Car Talk

Considering how much time Americans spend it cars, I guess it’s not too surprising that 78 percent of the people surveyed said they’d had a serious relationship discussion in the car. More awkwardly, 35 percent realized their relationship wasn’t going to work out on a couple’s road trip (eek!) and 34 percent experienced their first heartbreak or break up on the road. Lesson here: Don’t take couples road trips.

5. That Romantic Car Atmosphere

How do you make a cramped vehicle without bench seats romantic? Well, 49 percent of people think that a sky full of stars is all you need (I guess they all have sun roofs?), while 21 percent are parking near the beach and another 18 percent is all about that romantic playlist.

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