Colorado Springs, CO – A recent study of the olfactory spectrum and its correlative reception by the human mind is a fancy way of saying that nerds were recently looking into how we respond to both good and bad smells. The Lemon contacted those nerds for further insights, but it was somewhere around the point where they mentioned how “EEG power spectrum is classified into different frequency bands such as delta (0.5–4 Hz), theta (4–8 Hz), alpha (8–13 Hz), beta (13–30 Hz) and gamma (30–50 Hz)” that we just got tired…or maybe the weed the kicked in (we’re not entirely sure).
Now, you might be asking yourself, “why” an automotive news publication was suddenly so intrigued with smells. Well, it was inspired by a recent award given at Denver Auto Show, which has ‘sparked’ some interest in the psychology behind smell. Association President Van Sanderson offers an explanation…
“Inspired by the grooming of their own used cars Colorado Springs dealerships were the first to suggest the category of ‘Most Popular Car Smell.’ Their thought process was that it would be largely overlooked by the consumer attendees, but would provide valuable insights to the dealers themselves. It could even empower them to make their offerings more enticing, by using car scents that fit the evolving palate of prospective Coloradan car-buyers.”
“The Top 10 finalists, in descending order were (10) Citrus Magic (9) New Car (8) Natural Air (7) Pine (6) Charcoal Neutrality (5) Hawaiian Aloha (4) Ozone (3) Black Ice (2) 2AM Chick-fil-A, and the eventual winner (1) Hemp-Fueled Rebellion.”
Which raises the question: what exactly IS ‘Hemp-Fueled Rebellion’? To answer that question, we spoke to Ryan Woodland, Professor of Sociology at CSU Fort Collins.
“Do you realize that over 70,000 people relocated to Colorado in 2017,” offers Woodland. “And of those transplants, nearly 80% were under the age of 27. From college freshmen to college graduates, outdoor enthusiasts to music lovers. The predominance of free spirit culture that prevails in Colorado proves an enticing lure for so many. Plus, we were the first U.S. state to decriminalize weed, so…yeah, Colorado’s a great way to flip your upbringing the bird.”
So, if cannabis is a way of life for countless Coloradans, is it really any surprise that it’s their favorite manufactured car smell? But get ready to be surprised, because some of the insights The Lemon has been able to gather would indicate that it’s not solely motivated by an enthusiastic love of the scent itself.
“It’s not so much the smell,” explains Matt Girard, a sound and lighting technician originally from MA. “It’s that you can get lambasted, and if you get pulled over by the cops, you can blame the smell on the air freshener. I mean, if you look and act fucked up, that’s on you. I suggest you score yourself some smoother shit, brah.”
(And score ourselves some smoother shit, we did indeed, brah…)
