Happy International Women’s Day!
First marked by the United Nations in 1977, March 8 is a global day to celebrate the accomplishments of women and shine a light on continuing gender inequality.
Ford is celebrating the occasion with a special, limited-edition 2023 Ford Explorer called the Men’s Only Edition. It’s OK. We promise.
In a new ad narrated by actor Brian Cranston of “Breaking Bad” fame, Ford plants its tongue firmly in its cheek as it explains that the all-black SUV features no windshield wipers, no heater, no turn signals, and no rearview mirror — all the inventions of women in the auto industry.
Cranston’s voice grows more exasperated as he notes, “no GPS. Are you kidding me?” In a press release, Ford explains that you can thank Dr. Gladys West, a Black mathematician whose models of the Earth’s shape laid the foundation for modern global positioning systems, for your turn-by-turn directions.
Ford credits inventor and actress Hedy Lamarr for the research behind Wi-Fi. Silent film actress Florence Lawrence gets credit for the first turn signal (hers, invented in 1914, used a moving flag).
As for the limited-edition Explorer, we assume it’s a joke to make a point. Ford didn’t even build it — a close look shows a rearview mirror on the model shown in the ad.
So, it’s not for sale. Had Ford built it, we imagine it would have cost $43,009 — 17% more than the $36,760 starting price of the 2023 Explorer, representing the gender pay gap in 2023 as calculated by the United States Bureau of Labor Statistics.
