For decades, women have chosen  chosen, mind you  to take the back seat in most male-dominated fields.
But that’s all in the past.
Women are in places where our mothers never dreamed of being. We choose the work we do, the people we love, the games we play and in the recent past, even the cars we drive.
Mercedes-Benz  yup, the car that many of us might look at as the car for older folks  saw the growing number of female customers who walked into its showrooms and asked for test drives. Women were coming in and inspecting their car of choice, sans a man.
Benz also noticed that women looked at cars differently from men.
A woman’s psyche commands her choices. What looks good, feels good, tastes good, sounds good form the basic criteria.
"In this male-dominated industry, Mercedes-Benz recognizes the changes in the market, especially in the growing numbers of our women customers. Thus, the MB Women’s Day, the first in the Philippines, is a fantastic opportunity for us to pay tribute to the empowered woman of today who knows exactly what she wants and how our products can answer that need," says Mercedes-Benz marketing manager Apple Ting.
The spirit of Bertha lives in every woman  as can be gleaned from the different types of MBs for every kind of woman.
For the practical woman, the Mercedes-Benz B-Class. This model has just the right size, space and functionality to suit her organized, uncomplicated life. An extremely spacious and elegant sports-tourer, the B-Class’s unique "sandwich concept" provides a higher seating design and double floor, which allows the engine and transmission to slide away from the passengers in a serious collision.
The adventurous woman would like the M-Class. An SUV with 7G Tronic transmission dynamic and powerful V6 and V8 technology that delivers excellent acceleration and low fuel consumption, even on long trips. Alongside the dynamic handling systems and the safety features such as airbags and restraint systems, the unitized body further enhances safety. The high-strength passenger cell is protected by the energy-absorbing front and rear structures.
Glamorous ladies like the style of the SLK-Class. The woman who is an icon of sophistication will find that the SLK-Class more than meets her criteria. The exterior shows muscular styling and sporty curves, but the interior is filled with luxurious details. The SLK-Class can be equipped with leather appointments that harmonize perfectly with the silver-colored switches, fascia elements and trim strips. The seats have sporty contours and aluminum frames that are not only stunningly attractive but also offer plenty of lateral support during cornering. The Thermotronic luxury automatic climate control allows both driver and passenger to set their own individually desired temperatures. Even with the open roof, it boasts a luggage capacity of 208 liters compared to the previous model’s 145 liters, allowing that extra piece of luggage. SLK-Class whisks you from 0 to 100 km/h in a mere 5.6 seconds but keeps you safe with head/thorax airbags that prevent contact between occupants and the door or window in the event of a side collision. It is often dubbed the espresso of roadsters.
The corporate female loves the E-Class. The new-generation E-Class aims to meet a wide range of more personal wishes as well as being a privilege extended to those who have made it to the upper crust. The new E-Class’s engines are more powerful than ever before, but they also offer the advantage of producing low emissions. The Airmatic DC semi-active air suspension keeps uneven road surfaces at bay, resulting in a smooth ride even on poor roads. The special features of the new-generation E-Class include the Parkton option, which helps you squeeze effortlessly into the tightest parking spots, and a rain-sensing system fitted as standard for added safety and convenience during inclement weather.
It was a weekend of driving to as far as Tarlac in the North and to Laguna and Tagaytay in the South of Metro Manila in one day. I also drove this Sports Utility Vehicle (SUV) around Metro Manila in between the two destinations.
It took me about 10 minutes to become familiar with the ML 350. If there is one thing about life that I have been taught, and in turn have learned, it’s that we have to be willing to try anything once. And we only really learn new things in life when we open ourselves to the possibility that everything new is a fun challenge. So it was with this humongous SUV.
Once I got over the initial fear that this SUV was much too big for me  that is, in order to get into the driver’s seat I needed to make a small leap upward  everything else came easy.
The experience began with the feel of the leather seats. The knobs were all within easy reach and best of all, the side view mirrors automatically adjusted to a lower view when the Benz was backing out.
The MB is powered with a 3.5-liter gas engine, 7G Tronic transmission dynamic and powerful with V6 technology that delivers excellent acceleration and low fuel consumption even on long trips. The motoring jargon is something that my girl friends tell me is a turn-off when it comes to cars.
Really, they said to me, who cares about the transmission or engine displacement? What one friend asked was, "Does it have a big vanity mirror? You can’t very well get off a car like this looking like a mess, can you?"
Guess not.
Yes, there is a vanity mirror for the driver and one for the passenger, too.
The mirrors are on the shade of the SUV. Is there a place for storing the cell phone, wallet, and drinks? Sure, there is one, which is located right by the driver’s side. And, yes, the back seat has its own little compartment to store the stuff of kids or perhaps even a finicky lady passenger. "I can put my whole pencil case in here," a niece said to me.
Making long-haul drives is what I consider a de-stressing activity. As I sat behind the wheel of this power-packed SUV by my lonesome, I had much time to think about life. Sure, I played some CDs on the audio radio with eight speakers. But as a driver and a loner most of the time, I like a lot of peace and quiet. I love to put my rubber to the metal and let my thoughts take over.
The wide stretch of road that is the North Luzon Expressway is a good place to let one’s thoughts wander. I can keep my eyes on the road at all times and listen to the lovely sound of silence that so evades my noisy everyday life.
My thoughts turned to my dad. When he was alive, he was the car lover in the family. His work revolved around developing a better car industry for the country. Matter of fact, when I started writing for the newspaper (not the STAR) I wrote for the motoring page. I remembered Dad because my foray into writing began as a motoring writer in 1996, the year after he died. I know that he would have loved to take a spin in this SUV.
I got to Tarlac in a little under three hours. I reached a top speed of 150 kph in areas where it was possible (which were few). The MB had so much more to give, but speeding is no longer in me. I prefer to relax as a driver, and let the other cars pass me by.
In Tarlac, I searched for a place to eat. I had a sandwich and turned around and headed back to Manila. When I got there, I decided a trip to Laguna was good.
The trip to Laguna was cool. I was getting used to the size of the Benz. Backing out and changing lanes no longer fazed me. Imagine that. I made it to Laguna, had an early dinner, and then headed back to Manila.
It was a fun-filled, adventure-loving and SUV-driving weekend which brought me to places that gave my mind and spirit reason to pause. The joy of being a woman  driving, a Benz.