Car Commercials, the good, the bad, and the annoying!

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  • robr2robr2 Member Posts: 8,805
    I was shocked that Nissan would drop the equity they had in the name at the time. Never got why.

    Well the brand was always Nissan for cars and Datsun for trucks in Japan. From what I gather, when Nissan decided to sell in America in 1960, it was felt that the target market wouldn't buy a Nissan as it had a huge role in war manufacturing for Japan. But Nissan was always to corporate name here in the US.

    In the 70's they started labeling their vehicles "Datsun by Nissan". It was 1982 when they actually started to market the Nissan name and it was 1984 before they dropped Datsun altogether. The reason for changing the name was to have a world known brand name. ROW had changed to Nissan years earlier and Nissan was a bit jealous that Honda and Toyota had known corporate names and they didn't.
  • ab348ab348 Member Posts: 20,352
    Yes, the 510 was touted as the poor man's BMW 2002 back int he late '60s. It had a 90+hp OHC engine, decent steering and handling, and was certainly a bargain. Of course, you also had to deal with thin plasticky upholstery and cheap trim bits, and a biodegradable body that would rust with a vengeance in anything other than a desert environment. You almost never see any around today for that reason. My brother owned a 510 wagon for a time and it was pretty good at first, but it did not last.

    2017 Cadillac ATS Performance Premium 3.6

  • roadburnerroadburner Member Posts: 18,389
    I had a Datsun SPL311 in college:

    image

    Mine: 1995 318ti Club Sport-2020 C43-1996 Speed Triple Challenge Cup Replica
    Wife's: 2021 Sahara 4xe
    Son's: 2018 330i xDrive

  • iluvmysephia1iluvmysephia1 Member Posts: 7,709
    I'd like a Datsun 1600 just like that one above! Cool car.

    2021 Kia Soul LX 6-speed stick

  • roadburnerroadburner Member Posts: 18,389
    I love the one where the girl says she is saving a "crap load" of money driving her Volt- the ditz conveniently forgets she paid thousands more than other fuel sippers for the thing. How long will she have to drive it until she breaks even?
    Are Ford and GM trying to have a competition to see who can put the dumbest customer in their ad?

    Mine: 1995 318ti Club Sport-2020 C43-1996 Speed Triple Challenge Cup Replica
    Wife's: 2021 Sahara 4xe
    Son's: 2018 330i xDrive

  • ateixeiraateixeira Member Posts: 72,587
    Yeah, not very appealing.

    Fiat's 2nd ad for the Abarth is even worse, the one with Charlie Sheen:

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jjYxE2VD7VE
  • kyfdxkyfdx Moderator Posts: 267,528
    I like the Abarth ads... especially the full-length first one...

    Too bad the car is crap..

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  • steverstever Guest Posts: 52,454
    "Ford Motor Co. will break ground in advertising next week when it becomes the first automaker to launch a vehicle through prime time television.

    "Escape Routes," an hourlong NBC reality series produced by Ford and featuring the 2013 Ford Escape, will debut March 31."

    TV's 'Escape Routes' rides into new territory to launch vehicle (Detroit News)
  • ateixeiraateixeira Member Posts: 72,587
    First ad was epic. They watered it down a bit for TV - no whipped cream spill.
  • ateixeiraateixeira Member Posts: 72,587
    How much is too much? I think this is taking product placement a bit too far, but maybe that's just me.

    The show probably does well, watch...
  • steverstever Guest Posts: 52,454
    That's what we need - an Edmunds cable TV channel going 24/7. There's enough video gear and talking heads back in Santa Monica to get it off the ground. :shades:
  • fintailfintail Member Posts: 58,517
    But would it be off the air 12 hours a day? :shades:
  • ateixeiraateixeira Member Posts: 72,587
    Not if they feed the gerbils enough! ;)
  • kyfdxkyfdx Moderator Posts: 267,528
    Ouch! ;)

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  • fintailfintail Member Posts: 58,517
    Local MB dealer has a dumb spot touting the C over the IS, claiming it costs the same to run yet is cheaper to buy, etc. Stupid thing though, it shows a pre-facelift model. Maybe they are trying to get rid of 36 month old lease returns.

    The "Now That's a Hyundai" ads are tiresome now, too.
  • steverstever Guest Posts: 52,454
    "and more stylish."

    Behind the Scenes on Shaq's Buick LaCrosse Ad (Straightline)
  • carnaughtcarnaught Member Posts: 3,583
    edited March 2012
    but I really like the "Mr. Sandman" one of the guy dreaming with the white Kia Optima tooling around flagged by the hot girl.

    (Even though it's not a car ad, I hate Verizon's "Susie's Lemonade" commercials.)
  • carnaughtcarnaught Member Posts: 3,583
    edited March 2012
    Disagree with Shaq on the "oh" effect. Doesn't the "wow" effect top it? :P

    (Shaq has nice digs.)
  • steverstever Guest Posts: 52,454
    Wow, as in "wow, his knees are just about up to his ears" sitting in that sedan?
  • fintailfintail Member Posts: 58,517
    The new Cruze "Eco potato potahto" themed ad could be one of the worst of the year.

    Recent Honda ads are pretty dumb too.
  • anythngbutgmanythngbutgm Member Posts: 4,277
    The back and forth bantering Honda ads are kind of annoying to me as well but they do hit some important bullet points regarding the vehicles they are trying to market.

    One commercial that annoys me the most right now is the uber whiney, nails-on-chalkboard "It's all about Love" subaru Impreza commercial. Maybe it's an ode to the whiney CVT drivetrain? :P
  • fintailfintail Member Posts: 58,517
    From what I can see, a lot of Honda buyers will buy Honda no matter what.

    Subaru is fiercely trying to differentiate itself from the rest of the toaster cars, by trying to appear a choice of enthusiasts and active people. They might be part right, but that's probably it.
  • fintailfintail Member Posts: 58,517
    This commercial has an interesting claim - I guess a lack of lease dumping + high inflation can do that.

    The last car in the lineup is worth a lot more now, too.
  • ateixeiraateixeira Member Posts: 72,587
    Risky too, since it implies the other is the benchmark.
  • fintailfintail Member Posts: 58,517
    For cheap operation, it probably is the benchmark in the segment, although probably not in other ways.

    Using the old model when the facelift is noticeably changed seems dumb, but I suspect it's simply an old commercial.
  • ateixeiraateixeira Member Posts: 72,587
    Not even, the DI 2.5l V6 is their most problematic engine, with intake built-up issues.

    The 3.5l V6 has DI but also port injection. With both, the intake ports are rinsed clean so no build-up.

    You'd have to be crazy to pass on the bigger V6. The little one is underpowered, no more efficient, and less reliable.
  • xrunner2xrunner2 Member Posts: 3,062
    That was an intelligent commercial. Unlike the one they still run in a Hollywood movie set city setting with dirt/sand/gravel streets of a guy sliding around in a Mercedes. Just how many actual and potential Mercedes drivers get motivated to buy from that dumb commercial?

    All the people I see in suburban settings driving Mercedes, including gray/blue haired ladies, are driving very, very conservatively. Now the exception was. About 1 year ago, saw a Mercedes sedan upside down just after a toll booth on an exit at Illinois I90. Just happened, no police yet, and the driver must have been belted in and was walking around the car. He is the kind of guy in the commercial sliding sideways stupidly on a dirt street in a Hollywood make-believe setting. Rare. Thankfully, not too many actual stupid Mercedes drivers.
  • fintailfintail Member Posts: 58,517
    But would it still be more to maintain than a German? Well maybe not a car with prepaid maintenance, anyway. Frankly, I don't see the attraction to the IS right now at all - it's getting very old, outclassed by all competitors, isn't a bargain anymore, and as you mention, has only one good mainstream engine.
  • fintailfintail Member Posts: 58,517
    Well, not many 12 year old cars can claim to be worth more now than when new, so MB can't use that old line - and this age of lease dumps and intensive maintenance needs, resale values will never be like the old days.

    MB drivers tend to be very conservative compared to BMW and Audi drivers, anyway. You'll rarely see one driving in a road rage manner. Maybe that makes the sideways sliding stuff work better - people just do it in their imagination, and like to pretend that their slushbox C-class can do that :shades:

    You'll like this ad from the same year as the other:

    http://youtu.be/I9hfoIXJOyo

    But just a few years later, the horrible evilness of a car going fast!

    http://youtu.be/pfHvlp9ZEbg
  • ab348ab348 Member Posts: 20,352
    Actually, the driver in that 240D ad was going flat-out. The car just could not travel any faster than what was shown. :)

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  • fintailfintail Member Posts: 58,517
    It was a 4-speed, so acceleration can be measured on a sundial rather than a calendar, anyway ;)
  • ateixeiraateixeira Member Posts: 72,587
    I like this better:

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ce5Vspsht9A

    The funny thing is it starts with what looks a bit like a Ford Escape, underneath it all anyway. Funny because Mazda sold its own version for quite a while.
  • fintailfintail Member Posts: 58,517
    This is funny, just for the old car - which is now from the same organization as the newer car in the ad. A real lemko-mobile, too.

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9CRKrkHGTRM
  • explorerx4explorerx4 Member Posts: 20,806
    is going to love these:

    2013 SHO
    2024 Ford F-150 STX, 2023 Ford Explorer ST, 91 Mustang GT vert
  • xrunner2xrunner2 Member Posts: 3,062
    Next time, provide a link that works.
  • texasestexases Member Posts: 11,135
    Worked for me.
  • steverstever Guest Posts: 52,454
    Me too.
  • tmarttmart Member Posts: 2,403
    edited April 2012
    Me three! Awesome drifting. Something you wouldn't think of when you think of a Taurus!
  • ateixeiraateixeira Member Posts: 72,587
    Much better than the Charlie Sheen ads...
  • ateixeiraateixeira Member Posts: 72,587
    Cool series of videos, cool car.

    Ford tends to get these right. I remember when the F150 came out they had similar videos and they were also good.

    SHO has AWD+DI turbos that run on regular octane, so it's a car after my own heart. I'd like some better visibility, though.

    Or, perhaps apply this tuning to the Fusion, which is probably better sized for such sporting character.

    Nice Scandinavian Flick.
  • ateixeiraateixeira Member Posts: 72,587
    From another thread...

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0FfHxY7rxUY&feature=player_embedded
  • tmarttmart Member Posts: 2,403
    Excellent!!
  • explorerx4explorerx4 Member Posts: 20,806
    How about this one?

    2013 Taurus try #2
    If that doesn't work, you have to disable the 'No Fun Allowed' filter on your computer. :)
    2024 Ford F-150 STX, 2023 Ford Explorer ST, 91 Mustang GT vert
  • xrunner2xrunner2 Member Posts: 3,062
    Forget the dumb commercial some have said that has the Taurus "drifting".

    Saw an excellent commercial last night for the 2013 Ford Mustang. Done on downtown streets of some big city somewhere. Very artful, creative. Did not have to do the "standard" sliding sideways, sliding close to standing car, sliding on gravel or sand, driving fast very close to standing man, etc., and was very powerful and appealing.

    Young, "hip", dare I use old term, people shown, especially the opening scene with a young woman in black dress. All people, including young child, looking at the Mustang driving at ONLY speed limit, cruising(?), and changing colors, Mustang models, finishing with accelerating Mustang with V8 growl. That commercial evokes images, emotion. Got to have it. I, xrunner, former owner of a Mustang GT, would like to have the 2013.

    It took talent, creative ability to do that Mustang commercial. That is in contrast to "little" creative effort to do sliding "standard fare" of sideways on gravel, sand, drifting, driving fast thru vacant big buildings, etc., nonsense.
  • fintailfintail Member Posts: 58,517
    http://youtu.be/u8eoI0HRH9M

    Shouldn't the door on a new car not squeak when closing?

    On a more recent note, the Land Rover LR4 commercial that implies adventure with a scary spider coming out of dropped off laundry is kind of funny - maybe in an ironic way as the wildest ride 99% of those will see is a gravel driveway or a bumpy parking garage. Also amusing that the spot aired here offers something like a $739/month lease, which seems insanely expensive.
  • steverstever Guest Posts: 52,454
    Google removes Toyota ad from YouTube video of Camry crash (LA Times)
  • ab348ab348 Member Posts: 20,352
    Odd - I can recall most Canadian TV ads for new cars that I saw from that era, but I have absolutely no memory of this one.

    2017 Cadillac ATS Performance Premium 3.6

  • loncrayloncray Member Posts: 301
    Oh, yes, I love that commercial (not solely because I have a new Mustang on order). Near the end, a little girl in a pink ballet outfit sees it drive by and the car (having changed paint schemes throughout the commercial as different people see it) turns pink for a moment, before the pink paint explodes off a totally black car. It ends with a closeup of the side of the car; you can see the reflection of the little girl, now wearing a jet black ballet outfit. Genius!
  • ateixeiraateixeira Member Posts: 72,587
    The SHO was actually on a track...
  • fintailfintail Member Posts: 58,517
    Tracks are evil! There's no reason for a car to exceed 65 mph or slide or burn rubber or anything else - ever.
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