I've often wondered about the gender of my Vanagon. My vehicle still
goes by the name I gave it in jest shortly after purchase-- "Der
Geldsauger" (The Money-Sucker)-- and the masculine article "Der"
certainly indicates it's a "he". Then again, I'm not sure this is my
Vanagon's actual name yet-- we'll see how it goes after I get it
running again and I can actually put some real miles on it.

 I've always found anthropomorphization of mechanical devices
difficult, particularly with regard to gender. The tradition of
assigning female names to conveyances has always seemed weird to me.
It seems to me as if the namers see them as mysterious or inscrutable,
when to me mechanical devices are exactly the opposite: they require
only technical knowledge and diligent maintenance. If only people were
as easy to deal with as machines!

> Anyone else out there refer to their V'gon as a boy? I know the tradition is
> to call all things mechanical (cars, boats, etc) "she," but to me, my van is
> a "he" - nothing feminine about him.
>