Question:

Is a woman allowed to ride a private car alone -without a Mahram (unmarriageable person), if the driver was an acquaintance of her family?

Answer:

1. What applies on the home applies on the private car, because both need a permission to enter (ride).

2. Therefore no one is allowed to be in it with the woman, other than her Mahram or husband, similar to the home.

3. Nothing is excluded from that, except what the text had excluded in the homes, such as the relation of kinshipulwah (private) such as the cousin, it is allowed to visit their kinship in feasts for example and so on, becausenships, recommend relationship for the kinships who are not Maharem without Khulwah (private).And any other case, if it has a text which allows Ijtima' (the meeting) of men and women at home.

4. Another exception was mentioned in the private means of transportation (which is similar to thhip with her, but not in Khulwah (seclusion), meaning there should be others in the car from her acquaintance or those of the driver, whether they were Mahram for her or not.The proof on this exception is the Hadith narrated by Asma -may Allah be content with her- and reported by Al-Buhkari from Asma Bint Abi Bakr -may Allah be content with them- she said:

"I got married to Al-Zubair…. And I used to carry seeds on my head from the land of Al-Zubair which Rasulallah (saw) gave to him, the land is about one third of a Farsakh (parasang) ale carrying the seeds on my head, I met Rasulallah (saw) with some men of the Ansar, he called me and asked me to ride behind him, I was shy to walk with the men and remembered Al-Zubary jealous man, so Rasulallah knew that I was shy so he went along…." (the Farsakh (parasang) is about three miles, about 5.5 kilometers).

We understand from this Hadith that:Rasulallah (saw) allowed Asma to ride behind him on his horse which is a private one and not for public transport.Rasulallah (saw) was going with a number of his Sahabah -may Allah be content with them- in a caravan, going on together.It is obvious that the traveling was a short one and not a long one to necessitate a Mahram.

That Rasulallah stopped to let her ride, because she is related to him in kinship, because she is the sister of Aisha –Um-ul Mu'mineen- wife of Rasulallah (saw).We understand from the stopping of Rasulal or the private car, relying on the Ayat which included the friend with the kinships in the issue of eating from houses (private life) Allah (swt) said:

"…that ye should eat in your own houses, or those of your fathers, or your mothers, or your brothers, or your sisters, or your father's brothers or your father's sisters, or your mother's brothers, or your mother's sisters, or in houses of which the keys are in your possession, or in the house of a sincere friend of yours." [Al-Nur: 61].

The friend is the one in whom friendship is realized, meaning intimacy and affection.

The Conclusion:

A woman is allowed to ride in a private car if she has kinship with the driver or her family arg that the driver must have others with him (from her or his relations) who are trustworthy, because those who iver had only one of his or her relations in the car, then he should be a Mahram for her, or else there should llah (saw) in the hadith of Asma had a number of the Ansar -more than one- but there was no Mahram in them to Ashould be a Mahram, where he says:

"A man is not allowed to sit in Khulwah with a woman, without a Mahram" reported by Muslim.So, if a man sits with a woman in a private car, she should be a kinship to him or he shoullations or her trusted relations in the car, or one Mahram for her.

 And it should be a short traveling and not a long one to necessitate a Mahram.This is in the case were men are together with (the driver and the woman) in the car. So it must like above.But if there are women together with the (driver and the woman) in the car, (i.e. if there are women with th is with the driver his wife or woman Mahram to him, then no khalwa considered, some say even if there is anomen) can be revised in the books of the fuqaha.