At St. Gregory Group, we’re genuinely into cars. While much of our work centers around marketing that helps dealers sell cars, we can often be found on our own time, debating the pros and cons of redesigns, pitting favorite makes and models against each other, and above all, geeking out over great car marketing.
We asked our staff to name the coolest, most technically impressive, or just plain weirdest car commercials that came to mind. Here are our top picks:
Honda’s “The Cog,” 2003
It took 600 takes! This classic commercial was so technically impressive—and so expensive to make—that it inspired a “making of” show:
Volkswagen’s “The Force,” 2012
That kid. The music. So timely, and weirdly sweet. Everybody loves this one.
Chrysler’s “Imported from Detroit,” 2011
USA! USA! This gritty commercial inspires a sense of patriotism and pride that a typically peppy, flag-waving spot couldn’t come close to.
Audi’s “Old Luxury,” 2011
This one made us laugh out loud, although we’re not sure how that super-cool guy got locked up with all the snobs. We demand a prequel.
Volkswagen’s “Pink Moon,” 2006
This commercial captures such a delicate sense of place and time: youth, friendship and longing on a warm summer night. And it introduced many of us to the music of the amazing Nick Drake.
Honda’s “Dream Run,” 2015
Although this spot is Australian, we felt we had to include it because it is such a perfectly formed short story—not to mention a true feat of CGI mastery.
And finally, sweeping the categories of “Weirdest” and “Best Use of a Badger,” we present these commercials for Johnson Automotive out of Raleigh/Durham, North Carolina:
Johnson Automotive, 2007