Have y'all seen this totally vomitous Lexus "December to Remember" ad yet? The ad that's basically like, "Hey -- remember how the reason of the season is to make other people seethe with jealousy over your wretched material excess? Now go buy a Lexus and relive those good times!"
Compare and contrast that with Subaru, which is blanketing the primetime airwaves with ads touting its Share the Love Event: if you buy a Subaru before January 2, 2009, the company will make a donation to one of five charities: the ASPCA, the Boys and Girls Club of America, Habitat for Humanity, Meals on Wheels or National Wildlife Foundation. See? You can purchase a new car and share the love with your fellow man!
It's a genius campaign, because it makes the would-be buyer feel good about their purchase. So there's a recession on? You're giving to the needy even while you drive away in a new car!
Both Lexus and Subaru have rolled out commercials that are designed to appeal to very precise consumer segments. And this makes me wonder: do we really catch the pitches from these companies? When you choose the cars you drive, do you take the brands' public profiles into account? Do you feel some auto brands better reflect your values?
I'm sure some brands do better reflect my values, but I chose my car based on cost, reliability, gas milage, etc. instead of brand/image. Which is why I drive a Chevy Prizm. Same car as a Corolla, significantly cheaper just because they slapped a different decal on the back. I also bought it 2 years used so someone else could take the biggest depreciation hit. My little car is 10 years old now and still going strong. Well, aside from the fact that it is powered by hamsters on exercise wheels. But that is why it gets good milage...
Posted by: Stephanie | 2008.12.05 at 15:41
Yesterday I saw a bumper sticker that said, "$3...$4...$5... Who killed the electric car?"
It was on a Lexus SUV. That's weird, right?
Posted by: Lauren | 2008.12.05 at 16:46
The only car company who ran an ad that compelled me was VW with this one. Because I'm a sap. And I also really like paper lanterns and starry skies.
Posted by: amanda | 2008.12.05 at 16:51
I drive a Subaru because I wanted a station wagon. Although, Stephen Colbert would seem to think it is because I am a lesbian. Before the Subaru, I had a Honda and a Chrysler. The type of car that speaks to me is a reliable yet not overly expensive car. Buying a car over $30k seems absurd no matter your income. Branding is not a factor in my decision.
My husband has an Audi, which I am constantly telling him to get rid of since an oil change tends to run me close to $600. I just want to burst into flames when they give me the bill. The Subaru dealer has much better customer service too!
My dream car is a tricked out low-rider. I have agreed to wait until I get a covered garage to buy one. But all this is from a girl whose first car was an AMC Pacer.
Posted by: molly | 2008.12.05 at 17:45
We own a Lexus. We also don't have a television, so we're a bit in the dark about the way the company is branding itself to the public.
We bought the Lexus LS430 with an eye toward safety. At the time we bought it in 2004, it was the safest car on the market -- the same car the director of the NTSB drove. I was amused to discover that by buying the car we also got subscriptions to several hilarious magazines with titles like POSH and JETSET, full of shopping opportunities like that make Neiman Marcus look like a yard sale. That makes sense now that I've seen the television ad -- they think we wanted the car as an accessory to our acquisitive yuppieness! I think corporate might be misunderstanding who actually buys their product in my area. Pretty much every other LS430 I've seen around here has been driven by a senior citizen in a sweater from 1972 or similar. It's the vehicular style equivalent of a quad cane.
The Lexus SUVs (like the one in the ad) are less expensive than the upper-level sedans, but oddly, seem to have more appeal to people looking to solidify their identities as top-level consumers.
Posted by: kip | 2008.12.06 at 08:18
I am another Non-Sapphic Subaru Owner. Maybe we should start a club?
I also buy off-lease (2-3 years old) and drive into the ground. Then repeat. Not only does somebody else take the depreciation, it usually happens that since those folks are *just* leasing, they tend to be: "Options! Why the hell not? Add 'em all!"
Which is why I now own a Forester with a six-CD changer, roof rack, ABS, sunroof, and heated leather seats.
Posted by: Shotrock | 2008.12.06 at 09:50
My family's car-buying pattern is:
1. buy/lease car from dealer closest to house
2. drive car until it dies
3. repeat step 1.
Posted by: Kate | 2008.12.06 at 13:31
Wow, that Lexus ad is vile. Every time I think they can't get any worse, they do. Thank god for the DVR.
When you choose the cars you drive, do you take the brands' public profiles into account?
I'm a bit thrown by the question here, because I've never had much choice in the cars I drive. In the past, I got hand-me-down cars from my parents (which had been purchased used in the first place). And my husband bought our current car before we were together.
The type of car that speaks to me is a reliable yet not overly expensive car. Buying a car over $30k seems absurd no matter your income.
Yes, exactly. We'll be replacing our current car in the next couple of years, and all we want is something that has four doors and good mileage. I'm sure if we had to drive to work every day, we'd care more, but we're just not car people.
Posted by: Becky | 2008.12.06 at 18:02
I avoid watching car ads whenever possible, but I would love to buy a (used) Lexus. Not because of the "brand image," but because 1) they tend to need very little service beyond oil changes et al and 2) they offer a super-quiet, super-smooth ride. I'm waiting until 1) I save up quite a bit more and 2) the Lexus hybrids have been around for a few years and are thus available on the used car market. I love reliable cars that don't require a lot of complicated maintenance.
That having been said...I need a car with a fair amount of pick-up. Because I am not the world's greatest driver, and the ability to speed up and out of potentially tricky situations on the highway is rather vital. I don't need a V6 the way I need food and clothing, but...
I actually considered buying a Hyundai Genesis for a short time recently while I was waiting to find out if my current car needed super-expensive repairs or just expensive repairs. I think I was sold on that by the WSJ review I saw that described it as a luxury car with a substantially lower price tag than similar "name brand" cars, but then added something along the lines of, "But people who tend to buy luxury cars usually aren't looking to save money, which could be a problem for Hyundai." Well, *I'm* looking to save money. I'll be interested in seeing how the Genesis does now that a fair number of would-be luxury car drivers are going to be tightening their belts. Hyundai is offering a long warranty on it, which may also be appealing to people in belt-tightening times who want a "reasonable" splurge. It could become the equivalent of flatscreen TVs at Wal*Mart (sales of which are supposedly up.) We shall see...
Posted by: marion | 2008.12.08 at 20:57
Dude, "vomitous" is exactly what I thought about that horrible Lexus ad! It's atrocious!
Meanwhile, I can't tell if the older man in the car part of the commercial is her Dad or Sugar Daddy.
Posted by: Stephanie | 2008.12.16 at 13:15