Sweeet Baybay Jaysus! This is a tragedy! You clearly have never had a hummer while driving a hummer! Tant pis pour vous! (Don't try it in a 'vette. It's like a cock pit in one of those things. Talk about sausage fest! And I consider it a true test of skill to do this with a four on the floor. It also provides truck drivers with entertainment, no extree charge! It's a public service, damn it!)
Anyway, for the original poster... Dawson, was it?
Since I had a case of writer's block, I felt compelled to wonder more about this question. So here are some fun quotes I came across, below leads for answering your q:
Americans are a broad-minded people. They'll accept the fact that a person can be an alcoholic, a dope fiend, a wife beater, and even a newspaperman; but if a man doesn't drive there's something wrong with him. - Art Buchwald
Natives who beat drums to drive off evil spirits are objects of scorn to smart Americans who blow horns to break up traffic jams. - Mary Ellen Kelly
---- I searched on the expression "love affair with the automobile" more than "love affair with the car." I'm guessing that the expression dates back and that the original expression would have used automobile, rather than car. Just a guess, though. I've always had good luck writing people and asking, following lead to lead to lead until I get the answer or at least some solid paths to pursue at the library or an archive.
The American Heritage Dictionary uses the expression in the entry for "love affair": NOUN: 1. An intimate sexual relationship or episode between lovers. 2. A strong enthusiasm: America's love affair with the automobile.
I would imagine they would be able to provide you with leads as to where _they_ came up with the example. ----
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/tg/detail/-/6303494358/qid=1078877443/sr=1-1/ref=sr_1_1/103-4589935-4633427?v=glance&s=video The creator of this vid might know....
Here's an LOB archive entry for the film: http://squawk.ca/lbo-talk/9909/1345.html ----
The Sat. Evening post published a Nov 1976 issue devoted to "America's Love Affair with the Automobile:
Stories Included: America's Love Affair with the Automobile; A New Love Story by Garson Kanin;
Jack Anderson: The Dirtiest Tricks in Campaign History; Mac Davis Writes About Himself; Camels, Cadillacs and Kings; Isaac Asimov on Life in the Future; The 10 Most Beautiful Cars Ever; and, A Look at the '77 Models. ----
Timothy Noah, of Slate, might know. He put quotes around the phrase which suggests, to me, that he's acknowledging that it's a phrase that's attributable to someone, although he may know to whom he ought to attribute it but it's a shot: .. "Twenty years ago, when liberals bemoaned America's "love affair with the automobile," they would have been marching in the streets over such a car-friendly regulation. Today, the price of oil has risen above $30 a barrel, but Chatterbox predicts the greens still won't kick up a fuss. Which shows that America has made some progress."
Timothy Noah writes "Chatterbox" for Slate. http://slate.msn.com/id/1004680/
----
This faculty member might have more info.
"How many of you have heard the phrase "America's love affair with the automobile"? How would you feel if you learned that this "love affair" was actually the result of a skillfully-manipulated program by some of America's leading corporations to eliminate all other options for transportation? The documentary, "Taken for a Ride" is about the role that General Motors played in orchestrating the destruction of America's rapid-transit systems, which literally "paved the way" for our dependence on the automobile." http://www.personal.psu.edu/faculty/g/h/ghb1/ http://www.personal.psu.edu/faculty/g/h/ghb1/sts150/sp99/st150-23.htm
----
Clark Humphrey at Misc Media might now who came up with the phrase: http://www.miscmedia.com/7-20-00.html
----
This radio show uses it as its tagline, perhaps they recall who came up with the phrase: http://www.autoworldradio.com/awr_TheShow.asp
---- This author? Divorce Your Car! Ending The Love Affair With the Automobile Alvord, Katherine.
----