All the Super Bowl car commercials
Tuesday, 4 February 2020
Even if you don't care in the slightest about the Super Bowl, every year America's biggest sporting extravaganza holds something for car enthusiasts - the ads from car makers that have almost become as big an event as the Super Bowl itself.
This year's game has been and gone, so let's take a look at the car ads, and while we're at it, rank them from best to worst!
Audi - Let it Go
Not sure what exactly is going on in this weird mess from Audi pushing its e-tron Sportback EV - Game of Thrones star Maisie Williams gets annoyed in heavy traffic so sings a song from 2012, for some reason. It's like someone at Audi's ad agency took a bunch of pop culture references from about five years ago and proclaimed 'that's what the kids like' and ran with it.
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Still, there are highlights, like that brilliantly weird stretched SUV right at the start, the black skull-badged 1968 Dodge Charger and the fact that the e-tron Sportback is actually quite a good looking thing!
Kia - Tough Never Quits
Kia went for a serious approach this year, with rookie running back Josh Jacobs from the Oakland Raiders talking about what advice he would give to his younger self about growing up homeless.
Very heartfelt and earnest, but it's for… the Kia Seltos?! A small SUV with funky styling that would be far better suited to something bright, funny and wild. You should've bought back the hamsters, Kia…
Genesis - Going Away Party
Genesis wanted to associate its first SUV - the GV80 - with fun, exciting 'young luxury', rather than old, stodgy traditional luxury, so went with an ad heavy on old, clunky cliches.
Social media power couple (and seriously funny people on Twitter) Chrissy Teigen and John Legend run through some tired old tropes about 'old luxury' before riffing on Legend's current 'Sexiest Man Alive' status before driving off in the actually remarkably sexy-looking (well, for an SUV) GV80.
They should have just let Teigen read out some of her tweets, it would have been funnier than this at least.
GMC - Quiet Revolution
GM resurrects a name better left in the past with an ad straight from 1990s. Seems appropriate.
Using basketball legend LeBron James to introduce a 'silent revolution' with the forthcoming all-electric Hummer, the ad flashes through a bunch of cliches overlaid with some deeply impressive claims for the new EV. If the numbers thrown around are even close to be final production figures, then Tesla's fantastically wedgy Cybertruck is going to have some serious competition.
Toyota - The Big Game Commercial
Toyota shows of its new Highlander with a fun play on the 'There's no room - you escape and I'll hold them off' movie trope with Marvel blockbuster star Cobie Smulders running through a number of dramatic situations, picking the heroic ones left behind up because, of course there's plenty of room in the Highlander.
It's fast, loud, funny and has some decent special effects too.
Hyundai - Smaht Pahk
Hyundai pokes gentle fun at the distinctive Boston dialect to promote its 'Smart Park' remote parking feature in the new Sonata. Or should that be 'Smaht Pahk'?
Using famous Bostonites Chris Evans, Rachel Dratch and John Kransinski, the ad winds the accent up to 11 to great effect.
Porsche - The Heist
Porsche isn't messing around with this year's Super Bowl ad - its a full blown action movie chase featuring some of the company's most iconic cars from its past.
Museum security staff have some fun with the exhibits in an ad the highlights the new Taycan EV's stealthy electric silence and searing performance in a beautifully-shot, action packed sequence fit for a James Bond movie.
Jeep - Groundhog Day
Hands down the clear winner for the car makers ads in this year's Super Bowl is Jeep, with its brilliant revival of the 1993 comedy Groudhog Day.
Weatherman Phil Connors is stuck in his never-ending same day loop, but this time spots a new Jeep Gladiator. Grabbing Punxsutawney Phil, he makes for the Jeep and has a blast, leaping out of bed joyfully each new/old day to enjoy the Jeep pickup over and over again.
The best part is, not only did the legendary Bill Murray reprise his role as Phil Connors (apparently the Groudhog Day theme was even his idea!), his brother Brian Doyle Murray and Stephen Tobolowski also came back as Buster Green (Punxsutawney Phil's minder) and 'Needlenose' Ned Ryerson respectively.