The World of Funny Car Ads

Car adverts come in different forms but essentially they are either aspirational – you know, the SUV that will take you into the wilderness but in reality will just commute you to work. Or the Luxury Euro GT that will have you driving like a boss on the sweeping back roads of the Scottish Highlands but in reality will just commute you to work.

Then there’s the urban lifestyle car ad that depicts you wafting to work on quiet streets whilst taking advantage of all the car’s gadgets and leaving every other commuter in your wake.

And, of course, the Ute ad where it is shown pulling tree stumps or conquering mountains so its occupants can go skiing but in reality will mostly just commute you to work.

But best of all are the funny ads that spend less time selling you a dream and more time getting a laugh, often with a refreshing, if small, dose of honesty. Here are five of the best.

Chevy Happy Grad Super Bowl Ad

The Super Bowl is a big deal for advertisers. Many millions of Americans are glued to their screens and the ad breaks often provide more entertainment than the game. As a result large sums of money are spent making ads that will wow the audience. Or, if you were General Motors in 2012, you run a competition and hope for the best. In this case the winner, a 26 year old filmmaker from New York with a 4 hour weather window, no budget and a skeleton crew knocked it out of the park (whoops, wrong sport) with this graduation gift gone wrong scenario. It’s very funny and it only cost GM 25k in prize money. Watch it here.

Citroen C3 Gadget Ad

This clever advert was designed to highlight the standard features in a 2011 Citroen C3. However, I can’t help but feel it highlights how much stuff we DON’T need in our cars. It’s pretty funny though. Watch it here.

VW Golf – Not all little old Ladies are Reliable

Using the assumption that the best car to buy is one from a little old lady who has probably only used it for gentle outings, Volkswagen turned that idea on its head in this Golf commercial. The result is comedy gold, but for anyone who has owned a Golf that’s had a hard life the tagline might be a bit hard to swallow. Watch it here.

VW Jetta – Just Married

This one is for the over-protective car owner in us all. Awkward wedding moments have long been a rich source of comedy and this scene plays out gloriously, right down to the rice confetti. Watch it here.

Peugeot 206 – the Sculptor

This ad for the Peugeot 206 for the Indian market is now considered a classic. Whilst it falls into the ‘aspirational’ category it does it very creatively using a story that hooks you in with a nice reveal. Somewhat ironically, the car the sculptor uses, the iconic Indian Hindustan Ambassador, stayed in production long after the Peugeot 206 was superseded and was actually sold to Peugeot in 2017. There’s even talk of it making a return to Indian roads very soon. Watch the ad here.