As if we really need help to build our automotive wish lists, yet automakers are all too happy to stoke the fires by pouring millions into television commercials. Sometimes they even overshoot the mark and wind up with TV spots that are better engineered than the cars themselves ... Which happens a lot, come to think of it.
So with another year over, let's look at the world's best 2007 car commercials. By that, we mean the commercials have aired sometime in 2007, even if they debuted the year before. They don't have to be cool cars, and most of them aren't. Bottom line, we rounded up our 10 because they're simply great ads based on humor, imagination, special effects or desirability -- and we didn't want to change the channel every time they came on.
10 - Dodge
Binky
Just to be sure they didn't have another "cute" car on their hands after euthanizing the Neon, Dodge put the Caliber in front of a focus group. Nothing unusual with that -- only this time, the panel consisted of cartoon creatures who were collectively disturbed by the "menacing" appearance of the new car. But, Binky sheepishly says it best: "It scares the [bleep] outta me."
9 - Lexus
Gravity
Lexus has been around for nearly 20 years and among the leaders in luxury since day one. But performance-wise? Well, not so much. The first-generation IS-350 sedan reversed some of that perception and the gen-two car aims to bury it further in a drag race of acceleration versus gravity in this 2007 car commercial. One IS-350 races for the 4,000-foot mark on the tarmac while another is dropped from a helicopter, aiming for the same spot. The land-based car wins by a split second, of course, but not without conjuring memories of The Blues Brothers and the Illinois Nazis' woodgrain Pinto wagon plummeting over Chicago.
8 - Ford
Rock On
Admit it: You have some tracks on your MP3 player that are best left undiscovered by others. Maybe some Shania Twain? Or REO Speedwagon? Or even worse, Coldplay? It's not a question of if you'll get busted, only when. Ford has given fair warning as they introduce their voice-activated Microsoft Sync feature in the Focus. While the owner demonstrates the ability of his entertainment system, his buddy throws a curveball by unsuccessfully trying to elicit a Tiffany song. The owner seems relieved until his buddy reconsiders and summons a Michael Bolton cut, quickly masked by the owner dropping in Korn. The real shame may be driving a 2008 Focus to begin with, but it's a great ad anyway.
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