Fahrvergnugen 2.0 - VW's new ad campaign
Volkswagen's new American ad campaign is reviving the faux-German that gave us its unique (and unpronounceable) 'Fahrvergnugen' slogan.
The first TV commercials for the new campaign are already out - the GTI commercials urging drivers to "Make friends with your fast."
Next up is a print ad campaign that emphasizes the brand's German heritage. Not only will we get fractured German phrases like "Straight outta da Autobahn," "Fast as schnell," and "Unpimp Mein Auto," but we also get a hot spokesmodel! Yes, in a move that must have been inspired by that B-movie classic, "Helga, the she-wolf of the SS," the ad agency has created VW's very own Helga, a leggy blonde in a skintight dress with white go-go boots and a German accent. (What, no whip?) Ja, vee haf vays of making you buy zis car...
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 3)
Ted K 12:12PM (2/18/2006)
Wow. How tasteless, tacky, and pathetic.
Kind of like their latest cars. What's with the wannabe bently grill on the freakin JETTA?
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matt 12:15PM (2/18/2006)
there's nothing funny about bringing your car into the car merchanic every week is there? they're slogan should be as follows:
Ahg ist broken!
On the road of life there are passengers and there are hitch hikers.
I use to have a A4 before my Legacy gt.. i know all too well about the problems
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Ed Kapuscinski 12:32PM (2/18/2006)
I went on a test drive with a friend yesterday.
He was interested in the new GTI, he really liked the car, it was taught, fast, all those important things...
And the important part?
MADE IN GERMANY
If VW wants to push their German-ness, they need to start making more models available that are actually made there.
Sure it'll be more expensive than Mexico, but I wonder how much of that savings they lose in warranty repairs.
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RossL 12:32PM (2/18/2006)
The ad campaign seemed like a good idea to me - until I actually watched the three spots (follow the links to the NYTimes). Hmmm. Two of the three portray women as dumb clucks whose boyfriends treat them like imbeciles. OK, so maybe I don't have a sense of humor. OK, so maybe it doesn't matter if no women ever purchase this car. But I'm still curious: how many potential purchasers of a GTi will watch these ads and wish they were those guys? Has it really come to this? Do young men really aspire to be misogynist assholes?
Ah forget it. I think I already know the answer. Ain't it depressing.
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Justin 12:36PM (2/18/2006)
Unline the Mk IV the new GTI and regular golf is MADE IN MEXICO along side the new Jetta.
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Ed Kapuscinski 12:51PM (2/18/2006)
The GTIs we were in yesterday definitely came from Germany.
I checked the stickers to make sure.
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Ted 1:05PM (2/18/2006)
Actually, the new GTI is being shipped over from the fatherland. The U.S. Mk IV GTI was built in Brazil of all places.
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todd 1:25PM (2/18/2006)
2 words for you RossL.
Tom Lykis
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todd 1:27PM (2/18/2006)
again 2 words..this time correcly spelled.
Tom Leykis
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lex 1:39PM (2/18/2006)
Could someone post a link to the ads?
I'm from Germany and I'm interested to see the Campaign.
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td 2:12PM (2/18/2006)
No.9, just go to google video and search for GTI FAST. Personally, I think the commercials are kind of silly.
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Dennis 2:42PM (2/18/2006)
As someone old enough to remember the original GTI, I find the new ad campaign offensive. The GTI is a car with the goods; it does not need scantly clad dumb blondes and cheap shots at women to sell. As Peter Drucker has said, "The right product will sell itself." And that "fast" creature is just plain evil. If VW is going after the market that denegrades women, I for one will not be part of their audience. It is a shame because the new GTI appears to be a nice vehicle. VW shows it lacks class with this ad campaign.
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Fred S 3:29PM (2/18/2006)
Just another example of VW not knowing what the buying public want. If they truly want to increase their sales here in NA they would add customer support. The current one is no support. I just supports their stealerships.
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Megatron 4:40PM (2/18/2006)
Those ads are very offensive. Are they targeting the college frat boy market now? Sure, its a GTI ad, but, the brand is still VW .. you cant get away from that. It taints the entire VW/Audi brand i think.
And they want to compete with MB and Lexus? This is pathetic, can you imagine Lexus doing an ad like that for their IS250, or how about Toyota for their last gen. Celica TRD. Even their Scion brand ads dont sink to this level. Truly sad VW.
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Chunks 5:25PM (2/18/2006)
as a former owner of a 98 VW Passat GLX and a former VW fan, (and now the current and very pleased owner of a 05 Subaru Outback 2.5i Limited) I find this ad campaign a little sad. VW doesn't need to concentrate on flashy cool ads- they always had pretty good advertisements. They need to be concentrating on improving reliability/resale value. These are the things that have had hordes of former VW owners jumping ship. I hope that things get better for VW- they really had a good thing going a couple years back.
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tbyron 5:28PM (2/18/2006)
I think they are actually kind of funny, particularly in light of this 16 min gem, that you can also find at video.google.com. To the degree that the 30 sec spots are either offensive, confusing, silly, strange, or whatever...they all make a bit more sense after watching this "backgrounder".
http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=817525163202229924&q=VW+Fast
The whole thing is pretty interesting. It seems to presume a higher level of interest on teh part of the target market...the more interest, the more work they'll be willing to do in researching the car and buying into its story. Anyway, seems to be pretty novel marketing.
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Adam Singer 5:57PM (2/18/2006)
Those ads on Google Video are hilarious!
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Zoe Marvin 6:33PM (2/18/2006)
As a 40+ female with a GTI on order I find the commercials amusing and not the least bit offensive. So many Americans are prudish pseudo-snobs. Either get the sticks un-implanted from your backside orifices or go mainsteam boring and buy 4 door sedans.
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Rick M. 8:03PM (2/18/2006)
Slightly off topic: So now, just days after Ford announces Lincoln'd new "MK"+"?" or "Mark X" naming strategy, we see new VW commercials selling the GTI "Mark V" ... How's that for confusion in the marketplace?
I love the VW ads, by the way, but was struck my the naming conflict/coincedence immediately.
And here are the commercials individually...
http://www.leftlanenews.com/2006/02/17/videos-volkswagens-bizarre-gti-fast-commercials/
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Greg Falco 8:26PM (2/18/2006)
The local VW dealer here in Columbia, SC is running a print ad for the GTI with the tag line: "It's the scheisse."(sic)
I guess you can get around the Bible Belt's puritanical attitudes by cursing in a foreign language.
Quirky ads have always been synonymous with VW advertising in the US (Starting with "Think small" from the original Beetle.) I certainly agree with #17.
As for the car itself, it is made in Germany.
Finally, as a long-time VW driver and current Mk 4 GTI VR6 owner, I am disappointed by VW's spotty reliability, but for me the driving experience is more important than bullet-proof reliability. It would be great to have both, but everyone has different priorities.
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