Before we consider the question posed by the headline, let me ask another: when was the last time you saw a car commercial? Do you remember what car it was for? Did any of the commercial stay with you?
I honestly cannot recall any car commercials more recent than a few years ago, and what has stuck with me is how annoying and/or confusing they were. There was one with a way-too-stylish grandfather(?) who going to a wedding or something? In a Volvo, maybe? Oh, and those “real people” Chevy commercials. All I remember from those is the Zebra Corner parodies (If you haven’t seen these, please, stop what you’re doing and watch all of them immediately).
Now, back in the pre-streaming days of cable when there were only a handful of channels you cared about, or the pre-cable days where you had only three stations that came in clearly, car commercials were a big deal. They mattered. They had high concepts and even higher budgets, and man, they made an impression. And that brings us to the big Q: which car commercial is your all-time favorite? Or your favorite commercials, plural, go nuts. And if you want to tell us about the TV spots you love to hate, by all means, we’d love to hear you loathe.
As for me, my favorite car commercials – and favorite commercials in general – are the groundbreaking spots produced by Robert Able and Associates. Remember the surreal Levi’s Trademark ad? That’s Robert Able. In the 80s, Able and his team refined the high-tech, high-gloss look of the era with wonderful commercials for the Chrysler Laser, Pontiac Firebird, and C4 Corvette (among others). They’re corny now (or cornier, I should say), but they still hold up, especially when James Earl Jones is doing the voiceover. The embed below will take you to the Corvette spot (my fave), and if you want to keep watching, the entire Robert Able And Associates showreel from 1985 is there – lots of fun.
While those Able commercials are my favorite car ads, there are many, many more that I love. I’m a huge fan of Ford’s crazy “torture test” commercials from the 70s and 80s, remember those?
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I’m also a massive fan of any and all “music video style” car commercials, especially the long-form versions. Topping the list: Ride! Pontiac, Ride!
The “My Duster” commercial is another winner, which we’ve written about before – and mashed up with Robocop below:
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Your turn!
The Nissan 300 ZX commercial – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c4HQmuNEZak – starring not-Barbie and not-G.I. Joe. Poor milquetoast not-Ken.
I’m surprised nobody said the best commercial for a Dodge pickup ever.
Twister
Regal Grand National ad
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p1Kw1qW_laA
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I’ve brought this up a few times, but the Swedish Saab 99 commercial is a personal favorite. It’s a 1:00 commercial about how cheap it is to repair when you boop a metal pole. What really stands out, however is the music.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O2m4W8etK0A
Chef’s kiss.
Joe Isuzu, Test Drive.. “Wanna see the air bags?”
My Duster
I know its not THE best, but it has a great story, has good cars, has a BMW crashing into the side of Godzilla, LMP with flames coming out the front wheel well and then redemption.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZepWAE7WYAw
Audi’s “Green Police” to Cheap Trick’s “Dream Police” was probably ahead of its time.
If Miata is always the answer… Zoom Zoom. Love or hate the ad campaign, it sticks in your head.
There’s a wacky 60s Citroen ad with the bongo soundtrack. I think the ad is showing the headlights turning with the steering on a windy road. Unsure if it features the suspension or if that is a different ad.
Triumph TR-7 The Shape of Things to Come in which everything is wedge shaped, including the garage.
2004 Ford GT – The One
The Commander commercial by Audi always brings a tear to my eye.
Grace Jones Citroen CX. It’s kinda like Miata. It is always the answer.
Mitsubishi had some bangers with songs like Start The Commotion in, when, the late 90s, early 00s? The commercials were simple, teens (or “teens”) just dancing in the car as it drives while cool music played, but I got some good music discovery out of those.
But I’m gonna say the Saturn “Chicken Farmer” one that almost everyone at work had to do a school project with. I never got to do that, and as a devotee of the brand, when we got a new hire who’s as much of a digital pack rat as I am, I got the footage from him and played around with it myself.
“Chicken Farmer” – Saturn Editing Tutorial Project (youtube.com)