The Truth About Cars » Commercial Break

Daewoo! The Lost Art of Macho Korean Car-Commercial Voiceovers

Murilee Martin — Wed, 20 Feb 2013 14:00:08 +0000

Daewoo never had much of a presence in the United States, though I do see the occasional Nubira in the junkyard. That’s too bad, because Korean-market Daewoo ads of the 1970s and 1980s have some of the manliest/cheeziest voiceovers in car-advertising history. Let’s take a look at some examples of the genre.

This LeMans GTE ad features weedly-weee action-movie guitar, a pleather-clad babe executing a pseudo-J-turn, and an attack helicopter. Let’s compare it to the US-market ad for the same car, which was sold as the Pontiac LeMans.

There’s a babe with product-enhanced hair driving to the beach, but the entire feel of this ad is one of diminished expectations. Clearly, GM should have brought over some of Daewoo’s Korean marketing wizards.

Back in South Korea, the ’86 LeMans showed the way to a hard-hitting, testosterone-pumped future. It’s like a kick in the teeth from Syngman Rhee himself!

Not that Daewoo didn’t get a bit touchy-feely with this “sell stuff to the world” ad, but at least they brought in a deep-voiced hired voice and then added serious echo to it.

The Maepsy was a member of the Opel Kadett/Isuzu Gemini family, which means we’re looking at what amounts to the Korean Chevette. At the 1982 Daewoo board meeting depicted in this ad, the suits are flat awed by this car. Imagine if this ad had been adapted to the American marketplace for the 1982 Chevette. Maepsy!

Instead, here’s how Chevettes were sold that year. Hell, it’s enough to make a man want to buy a Fiat Strada!

If we fast-forward to the late 1990s, the US-market Nubira could have benefited from this approach. Note the badass voice of the yokel mechanic, as mandated by the Daewoo Macho Voice Creed.

Commercial Break: How To Bring A Car To Market In 93 Seconds

Derek Kreindler — Mon, 10 Sep 2012 13:00:52 +0000

Click here to view the embedded video.

A hot tip from a few friends in my generational cohort, the ones who don’t drive or have any interest in motoring. They all love this ad for the Dodge Dart and encouraged me to check it out.

At 1:33, it’s a good deal longer than most car commercials, but it seems to be resonating with people beyond the catchy use of a Jay-Z song. As one friend remarked “I have no interest in the process of creating a car, but it held my attention.” I’ve put advertisement critique to the TTAC readership before (here, here and here), and it turned out that we have some marketing professionals in our ranks. The floor is open again.

Commercial Break: A Quick Example Of A Good “Gen Y” Ad

Derek Kreindler — Wed, 25 Apr 2012 20:27:09 +0000

Click here to view the embedded video.

Here’s a quick example of Gen Y marketing done right, but this isn’t so much to do with the product.

It’s an ad for the Hyundai Veloster. Short, effective, just enough of a nod and a wink to the viewer without being risqué. Unlike most male-focused ads, it doesn’t hold promises of threesomes with cute, nubile girls, but if your game is tight enough to get two of them to go with you to a night club, the Veloster won’t let you down.

Click here to view the embedded video.

MINI tried this a few years ago with the above ad. Maybe it’s because of shifting cultural norms or some other nonsense that I didn’t pay attention to in Sociology 101, but the ad generated some controversy without a lot of impact. In any case, it seems too blatant, like a very low-cut top. The Veloster ad, on the other hand, is like that tight dress worn by the girl getting out the back seat. You don’t see too much, but you know what’s being implied.