Wrong message, wrong time: Chinese subway ad suggests riders buy a car

I have never heard of an ad that promotes buying an automobile without also mentioning a company name and, usually, a model as well. If there were such ads, we might expect to see them in car-dependent countries like the U.S. Instead, an anonymous ad that says, "Squeezed in?! Go and buy a car then!" has appeared on Beijing subways, according to Reuters. This message pretty much contradicts official policy in the city - the Beijing government discussed banning cars during this summer's Olympics, after all - and it's peeving riders off. Some experts quoted in a Chinese newspaper (and then Reuters) think that the ad might be designed just to attract eyeballs, not to actually get people into automobiles. If so, an updated version with a brand name is likely to follow.

[Source: Reuters via Winding Road]