The Creatives Room

Automotive Advertising

The automotive category has produced some of the greatest advertising in history - and some of the worst. At its best, car advertising has found ways to make metal and engineering feel like freedom, aspiration, or identity. Volkswagen's 'Think Small' reinvented the language of advertising in the early 1960s. Honda's 'Cog' is a two-minute mechanical ballet that says everything about precision without using the word. BMW's 'The Ultimate Driving Machine' is one of advertising's great taglines, earning its place through six decades of supporting work.

The campaigns in this collection

  1. El Conejo que Soñó en Grande - Chery · Norlop VML, Quito, Ecuador

    A tribute to Benito, an artist who became shorthand for Latin self-belief and for daring to want something oversized. Chery frames each step and each detour as the labour behind a dream that looked impossible, celebrating the process of believing and continuing rather than the arrival.

  2. Tiny Bottles - Volkswagen · McCarthy & Co.

    The Volkswagen Tera goes further on less fuel, so the campaign translates efficiency into distance running, where staying hydrated normally means repeated water stops. Subverting the number of bottles a runner needs turns an abstract consumption figure into something physically legible.

  3. Roads Remembered - Subaru · 2020

    Subaru "Roads Remembered". Subaru frames nostalgic road-trip memories and the journeys that stay with us.

  4. Made By Racers - ALPINE · 2023

    To challenge dominant luxury sports car rivals, Alpine needed to establish distinct credibility with driving purists who value genuine track pedigree over superficial performance badging. The campaign centers on the positioning "Made By Racers," directly linking Alpine's road cars to its Formula 1 a

  5. Stories - Mini · Jung von Matt · 2016

    MINI needed to pivot away from spec-driven automotive advertising to reposition the brand within modern urban culture. The campaign rests on the idea that a car is defined by the personal journeys and creative lives of its drivers rather than its technical features. Jung von Matt replaced traditiona

  6. Fearless - Buick

    "Fearless" for Buick: an astronaut floating free in orbit above Earth embodies boldness and adventure - the brand borrowing the ultimate image of daring exploration.

  7. Go Big - Hyundai · 2020

    Hyundai "Go Big". Hyundai frames its vehicles around ambition and going big.

  8. Landtrek - Peugeot

    Peugeot "Landtrek". A Peugeot spot showcasing the Landtrek pickup's rugged capability.

  9. The 8 x Jeff Koons - BMW · 2022

    "The 8 x Jeff Koons" for BMW: the artist's boldly graphic art-car displayed like a sculpture in a white gallery frames the luxury coupe as a genuine work of contemporary art.

  10. Made to Win the Day - Mercedes-Benz · 2020

    Mercedes-Benz "Made to Win the Day". Mercedes frames its cars around everyday triumphs and getting ahead.

  11. Gulf Oil x Manchester - Gulf Oil · 2020

    Gulf Oil "Gulf Oil x Manchester". A sponsorship spot tying Gulf Oil to Manchester sporting and motorsport heritage.

  12. Arrivals - Volkswagen

    Volkswagen "Arrivals". VW frames emotional homecomings and arrivals.

  13. VESPA - The Making Of - Piaggio

    Piaggio "Vespa - The Making Of". A behind-the-scenes film on the craft of building the Vespa.

  14. Different Fuel. Same Soul. - Porsche · 2019

    Porsche "Different Fuel. Same Soul.". Porsche frames its move to electric while keeping the brand's soul intact.

  15. Megane - Renault · 2021

    Renault "Megane". A product spot for the Renault Megane.

  16. The Gymkhana Files - Ford · Hoonigan Media Machine · 2018

    A docu-series pulling back the curtain on Ken Block's viral Gymkhana films, selling the obsessive craft, engineering and risk behind the internet's most-watched precision-driving spectacle. It converts a stunt-video franchise into a character-and-process story, deepening the Ford x Hoonigan performa

  17. We've Tried €verything - Wallonie Securite routiere · Air Brussels · 2022

    Wallonie Securite Routiere "We've Tried Everything". A road-safety spot making an urgent appeal for safer driving.

  18. Spaceman: Journey Beyond - Volkswagen · 2024

    Volkswagen "Spaceman: Journey Beyond". A VW spot framing exploration and journeys beyond the everyday.

  19. Relax - Toyota · 2023

    Toyota "Relax". A Toyota spot framing comfort, calm and ease on the road.

  20. Karoq - Skoda · Fallon · 2017

    Skoda "Karoq". A product spot for the Skoda Karoq SUV.

  21. ORA Loves You - ORA · 2022

    ORA "ORA Loves You". The EV brand frames a warm, friendly relationship with its drivers.

  22. One Last Blast - Mercedes-Benz · 2021

    Mercedes-Benz "One Last Blast". A spot celebrating the pure thrill of the drive.

  23. XT4 - Cadillac · MRM/McCann · 2018

    A launch film for the Cadillac XT4: sophisticated modernist interiors set the tone, positioning the SUV through a world of understated design and luxury.

  24. Autorail - BLG · 2018

    "Autorail" for BLG Logistics: a lone worker amid endless racked vehicles conveys the scale and precision of the company's automotive rail-logistics operation.

Why this collection is worth studying

Automotive advertising is worth studying as a category because the product - a large, expensive, infrequent purchase - demands that advertising work on a longer time horizon than most. Car brands have built their creative platforms over decades, not quarters. That long view of brand building - investing in meaning before investing in conversion - is one of the most valuable lessons the category offers.

See also

Best Automotive Ads & Car Campaigns - The Creatives Room