It’s always interesting to see the cars chosen for ads made by those large companies that sell used cars, because it gives a bit of insight into what their advertising people think are cars people want to get rid of, and what cars people want to own. I rarely think these advertising people know Jaqueline Squat about what is actually cool or what people want, but it’s still interesting to see what they come up with.
Also, these ads tend to have a lot of de-badged cars, which is always fun, too.
The ad I’m talking about today is one that seems to be popping up every damn time I watch some video on the internetwork-computer; it’s an ad for Cars.com, and I think the cars chosen to feature are interesting, even if the message is misguided. At least, to me. Here’s the commercial:
I’m not crazy about putting commercials in here, because screw Cars.com, if they want an ad, they can damn well pay us, but I need to give you the context, so let’s all just promise not to use Cars.com based on this ad. If they show it to you another time and it convinces you, great, but this time? No way.
Okay, back to the ad; the premise is red there has gotten some kind of promotion, and wants to upgrade her car. This is her current car:
A Ford Festiva! Looks like a 1990 to 1992 one, based on the grille, which is the post-facelift version. It’s actually in remarkably good shape, and has a delightfully ’90s teal color scheme and scribble-stripe kit. Really, for people into ’90s nostalgia – a non-trivial-sized group – this thing is lit.
Also, it seems to be quite rust-free, which is surprising, because it also seems to be sporting a block heater plug:
…which suggests it’s from a cold climate, which further suggests snow and road salt, which is why I’m surprised how rust-free it looks.
For some reason, though, our protagonist feels she needs an upgrade, so she finds an “Italian Compact” for about $27,000:
It’s a Fiat 500, as we can see, but it’s also been de-badged:
These look strange without the little Fiat badge that reads like a nose on the real-world car. I think she’s made a mistake here, though.
Now, I like the Fiat 500; my mom has one, even, and I think they’re fun, stylish little cars. But is it a $27,000 upgrade from that Festiva? I mean, okay, sure, it’s absolutely safer, but I think it’s more cramped inside than the surprisingly airy Festiva, and that Festiva has character. It’s just more fun.
Sure, it has 63 horsepower, but it also weighs as much as a daydream, and you know what? It could be a manual! Those things were actually fun to throw around! And that unashamedly ’90s look? Imagine if, instead of dropping $27,000 on a car (one with a pretty mixed reliability rating) she put, say $10,000 into that Festiva – she’d have the best Festiva around! You could upgrade the interior, freshen the paint, get a fantastic sound system, and it would be way more fun than some modern Fiat.
The commercial does suggest the change in cars affects her boyfriend as well:
…that’s him in the Festiva. Here he is in the Fiat:
I mean, she can keep the Festiva and just tell the dude to lose the fucking hat, already.
There are more nicely de-badged cars here, all still obvious BMWs, Mercedes, and what I think is a Dodge over there on the left? Is that what that is?
Anyway, I think this woman is making a mistake. Keep the Festiva, put a little money into it to get it up to where you want it, and screw Cars.com and their pressure to make needless “upgrades.”
Don’t be fooled! I won’t stand for this Festiva erasure!
All images: Cars.com
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