le beater extreme

On Friday, I took the ferry to a work retreat, and somebody was bringing this car on the ferry:


It looked like it had spent a year or two in the bush. Intrigued, I attempted conversation with the car's owner. I would have to deem the conversation a failure.

Me: "Neat car!"
Him: "That's what happens when you let a woman drive it for a few hours."
Me: *looking at my two female companions, trying to figure out who exactly he thought would receive his comment well* "That's not a very nice thing to say."
Him: "Huh? Why not?"
Me: *already walking away* "Because I can drive much better than that, thank you very much."

I wish I could have come up with a much cleverer response, but alas, I don't think that well on my toes. Any suggestions for a response to set my mental replays aright?