The dashcam manufacturer Nextbase commissioned the opinion research institute YouGov to determine how German drivers swear. YouGov asked 1,059 car owners in Germany aged 18 and over online in the period from November 23rd to November 26th, 2023 which swear words they used most often while driving in 2023.
The result is initially not particularly original: “Idiot” is the most frequently used swear word at 15 percent. The usual suspects can also be found in places 2 to 5:
Top 5 of the most popular swear words used by drivers in Germany
- Idiot: 15 percent
- Asshole: 11 percent
- Penner: 6 percent
- Stupid: 5 percent
- Depp: 5 percent
But among the automotive contemporaries there are obviously also people with imagination. YouGov also created a ranking of the most unusual swear words based on the people surveyed. These are definitely worth seeing:
Top 10 most unusual swear words
- Blind flange
- Banana brain
- Side dish eater
- Pinstripe hooligan
- Egg arrows
- Miserable
- Frog ass
- Snoring cones
- Toilet cleaner dick boy
- Driver’s license lottery winner
Interesting: According to the study, men allegedly swear slightly less than women. 16 percent of male survey participants said they never use swear words while driving, compared to 14 percent of women. But well, you can say a lot…
Apparently there is also a different swearing tradition depending on the federal state. According to the survey, people in Saxony-Anhalt complain the least behind the wheel. At 39 percent, more than a third of those surveyed said they did not complain. According to the study, Germany’s biggest cursers live behind the wheel in Baden-Württemberg and Hamburg. Only nine percent said they would avoid insults in traffic.
The older you get, the calmer you seem to become. While only five percent of those surveyed between the ages of 18 and 24 said they did not swear, 17 percent of those aged 55 and older said they did not.
Unfortunately, the study omitted the most exciting distinction: it remains unclear whether drivers of certain car brands complain more than other drivers.
