Found this blog, interesting...
http://taraummomar.blogspot.com/2010/04/women-driving-in-saudi-arabia-my.html
From Shaykh Nasirud-deen Al-Albaani, rahimahullah (translated by Adnan bin Salam)…
Questioner: Is it permissible for a woman to drive a car?
Answer: If it is permissible for her to ride upon a (female) donkey then it is permissible for her to drive a car.
Questioner: But there is a difference between a donkey and a car.
Shaykh Al-Albaanee: Which is more concealing – riding upon a donkey or in a car? I would suggest (riding in) a car.
Shaykh Muqbil Al-Waadi’ee (rahimahullah) issued a similar ruling...
Question: What is the ruling on a woman driving a car, and what is your view in making it similar to a woman riding a beast (i.e. Horse)?
Answer: ... if the woman is righteous and is safe from fitnah and she needs something in the market then this is no problem (driving) and I do not see any prevention in this. For the car is a machine made of iron and we do not make this haraam upon her.
It’s like life on another planet, you need to consult a cleric with a long beard - wearing a dirty nightshirt if it’s ok to breathe.
hahaha.. shows the mentality & logic, doesn’t it?
>>”Which is more concealing – riding upon a donkey or in a car? I would suggest (riding in) a car.”<<
Which one is more animate, a car or a donkey? How about a horse?!
Ever saw this bit of news back in 2007? — the Iranian mullahs’ regime & their ‘female’ lackeys I reckon get their stuff from the same source -—> Bedo Arabs. Yet, they (and we) often want to say there is a difference in Shi’ite vs. Sunni or Wahhabi or whatever that crawled out of Arabia infesting the region and now the world!
“Iran To Make ‘Islamic Bicyles’ For Women
May 17, 2007 — Iran will soon start manufacturing “Islamic bicycles” for women to allow them to remain largely hidden from view as they ride.”
http://www.rferl.org/content/article/1076545.html
Then again, maybe it is simply ‘marketing the contraption to the right crowd’..