A total of 40 participants, 20 men and 20 women from professional backgrounds, aged between 22 and 61 years of age, took part in Hiscox’ (they couldn’t have picked a worse name) experiment. The participants were exposed to a 30 sec recording of the engine sounds of a VW Polo, a Maserati, a Lamborghini and a Ferrari. After 20 minutes their response was measured by the amount of testosterone found in their saliva -now, don't get perverted boys. The result? -Continued
Hiscox –this is getting really stupid but we can’t help it- found that the Maserati had the biggest impact on women with 100% of the female participants showing a significant increase in testosterone secretion. Surprisingly, only 50% of male participants showed an increase in testosterone in reaction to the Maserati. The boys seemed to get a bit more turned on with the Lamborghini as 60% showed an increase in testosterone levels. Not surprisingly, 100% of the female participants showed a decrease in testosterone in reaction to the Polo’s engine sounds
David Moxon, the psychologist who conducted the study commented: “We saw significant peaks in the amount of testosterone in the body, particularly in women. Testosterone is indicative of positive arousal in the human body so we can confidently conclude from the results out today that the roar of a luxury car engine actually does cause a primeval physiological response.”