Car advertising

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Drago

Legendary Member
I heard a radio ad for some Range Rover or other, and the vehicle in question was described as being suitable for off road adventuring in darkest Africa, and suitable for the "school run".

This got me thinking and Googling. Land Rover aren't alone in stating this in their advertising, with several manufacturers also mentioning their models suitability for the "school run". The Guardian fancy themselves as at the thrusting point of the spear of climate awareness and sustainable transport policy, yet that didn't stop their motoring pages from reviewing a Peugeot 3008 SUV late last year and even going as far as recommending the model for the school run in the headline.

In this day and age isn't about time manufacturers were stopped for promoting their congestion causing, danger producing, pollution belching products as being suitable for a "school run", which is surely the last place any right thinking society needs them to be? If we're ever to be safe as pedestrians or cyclists then we need a lot less of this sort of thing, not people using profit motivation to try and cause even more of it.
 

Threevok

Growing old disgracefully
Location
South Wales
The financial help given to buy these monstrosities, has made a mockery of any government green incentives to buy alternatives, like electric. Although the boss has an e-pace, which is something.

In the village where I live, I can name at least three Range Rover, four Shogun and two Nissan Juke owners, who take their kids to school, yet live less than a few streets away.
 
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Drago

Drago

Legendary Member
Yes, that's rife here. A few months back I regaled the forum with a tale of how mid watched a lady load her brood into her Zafira on the driveway of the cul de sac where she lives, drive it 100 metres to the school at the end of the same cul de sac, and drive back. It's bad enough that people do it, but car manufacturers encouraging it is beyond outrageous. If I thought a anyone other than us would care I'd start a number 10 petition.
 

CanucksTraveller

Macho Business Donkey Wrestler
Location
Hertfordshire
Well you're right of course, but, well.... people are people, and they want to buy that dream. Not necessarily the school run dream, but the fact that they could, if they could ever be arsed, go off road adventuring in darkest Africa.

Let's face it, if you're a car manufacturer you have to do something to promote how different or how much better your vehicle is, anything to avoid showing the reality of owning one of their cars... which is of course being sat perpetually in almost stationary traffic on the A40 with everyone else, in their own little dream of motoring nirvana, the constant diet of brake lights and Steve Wright. So instead we get images of plastic 4x4s sweeping across panoramic prairies (Renault Kadjur), driving moodily along empty roads along glens and fjords (Volvo), "dancing all night" in the deserted woods (Audi), or charging energetically around inexplicably empty city streets (Mini, Renault, Toyota and others).

This "school run" thing is just a mystery isn't it. My daughter's school has a catchment area so small, that if I lived one street further away I'd not have got in. Now I'm no eco-warrior, but I walk her to school because it takes 6-8 minutes. It's not worth even thinking about de-icing the car. But as I get there, there they are, the school run crowds in their cars, vying for the closest space to the gate, even if that means abandoning their spawn and endangering everyone else's kids on the yellow zig zags. Yet none of them can live more than about 0.5 to 1 mile from the school. :sad:

We've become an unbelievably lazy and selfish society, sadly. Car manufacturers recognise that.
 

fossyant

Ride It Like You Stole It!
Location
South Manchester
Yes, that's rife here. A few months back I regaled the forum with a tale of how mid watched a lady load her brood into her Zafira on the driveway of the cul de sac where she lives, drive it 100 metres to the school at the end of the same cul de sac, and drive back. It's bad enough that people do it, but car manufacturers encouraging it is beyond outrageous. If I thought a anyone other than us would care I'd start a number 10 petition.

Have you got my neighbour ? Except she's crashed her Zafira into too many objects, so is now demolishing a Toyota Verso (big dent along one side). She wrecked what was a nice car in around 3 years.
 

Electric_Andy

Heavy Metal Fan
Location
Plymouth
Someone in another thread summed it up quite nicely, in that many people want to save the environment and bring about global change...as long as it doesn't mean them forfeiting their luxuries. A new take on "I want things to change for the better, but not in my back yard".
 

Threevok

Growing old disgracefully
Location
South Wales
Greta's got nothing on me. I've never driven, flown on a plane, or even been on a cruise ship and I can't be held responsible for the rolling stock (or lack thereof) of Transport for Wales.

Wife owns a Fiat Panda, but doesn't do many miles and walks the school run. Thinking of switching to an electric replacement soon, although the charging infrastructure locally isn't that good and charging from the house (either from the back or front) would mean running a very very long cable.
 
Location
Loch side.
Car wokeness is such an overdone topic. Same old cliches each time.
One of these days we're gonna find someone on here who claims to be a car virgin, having not done a single mile in a car, ever.
For now unfortunately, we have to contend with the "my car is smaller than yours and I'm sharing it with more people than you" brigade.
Stop it.
 
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Drago

Drago

Legendary Member
My car is enormous. I'm just not stupid enough to drive it to school.

Anyway, you miss the point Mr Saddle. The thread is about car manufacturers promoting their wares for uses that are I appropriate for all sorts of reasons in this modern, supposedly enlightened age.

People mat I deed wish to willy wag about who has the smallest car or uses it the least, or who has never used wheel transport in their life, but that's not what this thread is about.
 
Location
Loch side.
My car is enormous. I'm just not stupid enough to drive it to school.

Anyway, you miss the point Mr Saddle. The thread is about car manufacturers promoting their wares for uses that are I appropriate for all sorts of reasons in this modern, supposedly enlightened age.

People mat I deed wish to willy wag about who has the smallest car or uses it the least, or who has never used wheel transport in their life, but that's not what this thread is about.
I didn't miss the point. I liked your point. I comment on the rapid degeneration into car wokeness.
As you were.
BTW, I love car advert copy. It is hugely emotional and entertaining in so many ways.
 
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