Plot holes in an old car commercial

[Kasumi_Lee]

My husband recently showed me a funny car commercial from about ten years ago, which you can watch here (it's actually two back-to-back ads for the same car), and as an author who likes internally consistent worldbuilding, I have some questions:

1. What was it about the car's design that prompted the engineers to think it might need to survive an angry girlfriend?
2. What prompted the argument in the car at the end of the first advert?
3. Why does being yelled at by a woman make you a "bad boy"? Does being yelled at by a man make you a bad girl?
4. Was the girlfriend enraged because the car broke down in the middle of the date?
5. What made these male engineers think that a woman would try to kick a hard rubber tire with her high-heeled shoe?
6. What made these male engineers think that a woman might smash her handbag against a metal car bonnet, shattering the contents of her bag?
7. Why did Fiat think it would be a good idea to market the 500 S as a car that turns you into the kind of man a woman would want to slap?
8. Why did Fiat think that their cars and being publicly assaulted by your partner should go hand in hand?
9. When that guy at the end of the second advert protests "it's not mine", was he in fact talking about the Fiat 500 S?
10. Thanks to the hard work of those engineers, the Fiat 500 S may well be angry Italian girlfriend proof, but is it Carrie Underwood proof?

 

[NotWise]

I"m sure a lot of marketing brain power was expended making the product sexy.

And I doubt it would survive Carrie Underwood.

 

[Kasumi_Lee]

And I doubt it would survive Carrie Underwood.

Would anything less than a tank survive Carrie Underwood?

 

[NotWise]

Would anything less than a tank survive Carrie Underwood?

She'd just get a bazooka.

 

[Kumquatqueen]

Were those ads actually released?

I can't imagine them leading to any conclusion other than "Fiat. Driven by wankers."

 

[TheLobster]

Not sure about the plot holes, but I gotta say that marketing a Beetle-shaped Fiat as a 'cool car' for 'bad boys' is like trying to make fetch happen.

It's not going to happen.

 

[lovecraft68]

More proof men are morons.

 

[liliput1]

Fiat Automobiles S.p.A., commonly known as Fiat, is an Italian automobile manufacturer

And as we all know, because Hollywood tells us so, Italy is entirely populated with Lotharios and crazy, but beautiful women. And Hollywood would never lie to us.

I must say I am slightly curious what agency did those commercials and what kind of gigs they are doing now. Dogfood? Adult diapers?

 

[Bazzle]

Fiat 500 is a women's car?

No man would walk on to a forecourt and buy one? ( also see vw Beatle with flower on dash)

 

[liliput1]

Fiat 500 is a women's car?

No man would walk on to a forecourt and buy one? ( also see vw Beatle with flower on dash)

Typical business logic:

There are 1.2 billion people in China. If we could get one percent of that market we'd be bajillionaires.

We are ignoring half of the adult population with this product placement. We need to attract more members of the opposite sex to boost sales by 20%.

 

[NotWise]

Were those ads actually released?

I can't imagine them leading to any conclusion other than "Fiat. Driven by wankers."

It's the women who make the car sexy. They guys are all pretty plain, but they have passionate girlfriends. What does the Fiat have to do with it? It's in the same picture.

 

[NotWise]

I must say I am slightly curious what agency did those commercials and what kind of gigs they are doing now. Dogfood? Adult diapers?

Done by Leo Burnett Milan. Most of their other gigs are for domestic products in Italy. Apparently, the approach was used by other agencies in other ad campaigns all over the world.

This is Google's AI summary of the campaign.

Campaign Overview

• The Concept: The commercial opens in a sterile laboratory setting where male engineers conduct unconventional "stress tests" on a Fiat 500S—lightly kicking the bumper, slamming the doors, and hitting the roof with a handbag. [1, 2, 3]
• The Twist: The scene then cuts to a real-world scenario of a furious woman storming out of the passenger seat after an argument. She aggressively replicates those exact actions by violently slamming the door, kicking the car, and throwing her purse against the frame. [1, 2, 3]
• The Punchline: The vehicle sustains no dents or scratches, leading into the campaign tagline: "The New Fiat 500S. Tested for Bad Boys." [1, 2, 3, 4]
• The Strategy: Fiat launched this campaign specifically to shake off the "cute" or overly feminine image of the standard compact Fiat 500. By leaning into aggressive styling, exaggerated dark humor, and a focus on structural durability, they targeted a male demographic. [1, 2, 3]

 

[Kasumi_Lee]

And as we all know, because Hollywood tells us so, Italy is entirely populated with Lotharios and crazy, but beautiful women. And Hollywood would never lie to us.

Apparently, the driving shots were filmed in Madrid...or so someone in the video's comments section claimed.

 

[liliput1]

Apparently, the driving shots were filmed in Madrid...

LIES! AND DECEIT?? How far down does this conspiracy go?

 

[Britva415]

My husband recently showed me a funny car commercial from about ten years ago, which you can watch here (it's actually two back-to-back ads for the same car), and as an author who likes internally consistent worldbuilding, I have some questions:

1. What was it about the car's design that prompted the engineers to think it might need to survive an angry girlfriend?
2. What prompted the argument in the car at the end of the first advert?
3. Why does being yelled at by a woman make you a "bad boy"? Does being yelled at by a man make you a bad girl?
4. Was the girlfriend enraged because the car broke down in the middle of the date?
5. What made these male engineers think that a woman would try to kick a hard rubber tire with her high-heeled shoe?
6. What made these male engineers think that a woman might smash her handbag against a metal car bonnet, shattering the contents of her bag?
7. Why did Fiat think it would be a good idea to market the 500 S as a car that turns you into the kind of man a woman would want to slap?
8. Why did Fiat think that their cars and being publicly assaulted by your partner should go hand in hand?
9. When that guy at the end of the second advert protests "it's not mine", was he in fact talking about the Fiat 500 S?
10. Thanks to the hard work of those engineers, the Fiat 500 S may well be angry Italian girlfriend proof, but is it Carrie Underwood proof?

 

[caleb35]

I miss Joe Isuzu

 

[liliput1]

What in the Werner Herzog did I just watch?

 

[TadOverdon]

Were those ads actually released?

I can't imagine them leading to any conclusion other than "Fiat. Driven by wankers."

This was a recycled campaign intended for the Audi A4.

 

[liliput1]

Why can't I find Jeremy Clarkson bashing Audi drivers when I need him?

 

[Britva415]

What in the Werner Herzog did I just watch?

More importantly,
why were they mad at him?
What were they saying?
Does having a bunch of women mad at you make you an Egoiste?
What made him think putting fragrance on the railing would
etc etc etc

Plot holes out the yang bang

 

[liliput1]

More importantly,
why were they mad at him?
What were they saying?
Does having a bunch of women mad at you make you an Egoiste?
What made him think putting fragrance on the railing would
etc etc etc

Plot holes out the yang bang

If you're an égoïste (fr, egotist) then the odds of a bunch of people being mad at you is pretty high.

But every women in a hotel is just... Did he arrange for them all to be in the same hotel or did a jilted lover arrange this so that they would destroy him? And who warned him to stay away?

 

[Britva415]

IKR!?

 

[Cacatua_Galerita]

> What was it about the car's design that prompted the engineers to think it might need to survive an angry girlfriend?
> What prompted the argument in the car at the end of the first advert?
> Why does being yelled at by a woman make you a "bad boy"? Does being yelled at by a man make you a bad girl?

This leans heavily into the ‘Latin girlfriend’ stereotype – spicy but bad-tempered. Think Salma Hayek in the “Hitman’s Wife’s Bodyguard” movie. (Latin American usually refers to Spanish or Portuguese colonization but the term is derived from Latium; the region of Italy where Rome was established and spread its influence through the Roman Catholic church.)

> Was the girlfriend enraged because the car broke down in the middle of the date?

Breakdowns on a date is a different stereotype (e.g. Michael Jackson’s ‘Thriller’ music video)... but you’re supposed to get stranded on a quiet country back road, not in the middle of the city.

Fiat (fix it again, Tony) already have a reputation for unreliability. The ad agency wouldn’t be drawing attention to this.

> What made these male engineers think that a woman would try to kick a hard rubber tire with her high-heeled shoe?
> What made these male engineers think that a woman might smash her handbag against a metal car bonnet, shattering the contents of her bag?

It’s an Italian car made for Italian ‘conditions’ (again, Latin-girlfriend stereotype).

Also for comedic effect. Despite being a nerdy lab-coat-wearing scientist type, being looked at strangely by his peers, the bearded tester understood the (stereotypical) Italian woman. Proved immediately by the real-life scenes played out next. Every disaster movie needs that one guy who foresaw the earthquake/inferno/meteor, this guy was him.

> Why did Fiat think it would be a good idea to market the 500 S as a car that turns you into the kind of man a woman would want to slap?
> Why did Fiat think that their cars and being publicly assaulted by your partner should go hand in hand?

Oh, I’m so ready to be slapped by Salma Hayek.

The extended stereotype is that Latin women are fiery but the make-up sex is worth it. English women, in comparison, are just starfish in bed, rather than active participants (per the stereotype, not my assessment).

Don’t be misled by the small car, this ad is targeted at Italian men. SUV’s are impractical in Rome. An F-150 doesn’t make you manly in Italy, it’s more a sign you’re compensating for something (Lord Farquaad).

> When that guy at the end of the second advert protests "it's not mine", was he in fact talking about the Fiat 500 S?

Yes.

I first though he was slapped because he’d gone close to the car to admire its beauty, instead of only having eyes for his date. “It’s not mine” implies a variation on that – she thought he had a beautiful car as his “woman on the side”.

The Bad Boys in the first ad were being slapped for having wandering eyes. This was a variation on that but with a beautiful car, instead of a beautiful woman.

> Thanks to the hard work of those engineers, the Fiat 500 S may well be angry Italian girlfriend proof, but is it Carrie Underwood proof?

I think the ad is overselling the durability of a Fiat all round.

 

[Andreas_Kreuz]

Even ads can have irony. The Fiat 500 was very popular with young women, and it is not cheap for its size. A woman driving it sends 2 messages, 1. I am hot, 2: I am well-to-do. So they just flipped the gender, and the message boils down to: If women love the Topolino, get one as a man, and women will love you, and at the same time expect you to be a bad boy.

 

[TadOverdon]

Why can't I find Jeremy Clarkson bashing Audi drivers when I need him?