Saving the environment, rich folk style.

4 Responses to “Saving the environment, rich folk style.”

1. Taj Tashombe
   Posted from: 192.251.125.40

   June 6th, 2007 at 5:06 pm

   This is not totally new…I worked on campaigns like this while working in Marketing at Toyota. Celebs are provided Toyota Prius,Lexus RX 400h, Lexus 460L Hybrid vehicles for the Oscars –such as Leo, Don Cheadle, Larry David, and many, many more.

   I do agree however, that brand marketing needs to revolve around “real life” activation, these efforts have much more consumer value than seeing it in an ad or commercial or even your basic product placement tie-in.

   The less obvious the better. So pulling up to award shows in new innovative cars is one way. B/c you need a car to get you there in the first place.

   But the million dollar question is what will they think of next?
2. Tiffany
   Posted from: 201.235.147.64

   June 7th, 2007 at 2:01 pm

   I guess that’s the risk with celebrity product placements but people are used to seeing a high turnover of ‘favourite’ items.

   This was Toyota’s strategy with the launch of the Prius a couple of years ago. Let’s just hope that BMW doesn’t suffer the same criticism when the celebs are snapped ducking out to starbucks in their 4WD the day after the premier!
3. Stacey's Auto Parts Resources
   Posted from: 72.9.234.70

   June 7th, 2007 at 9:40 pm

   Brad Pitt Drives A BMW Hydrogen Car

   The demands for fuel efficient cars are overflowing nowadays. We know that Japanese car makers such as Honda and the Toyota Motor Corporation are the leaders in terms of eco-friendliness but US and European cars makers are also hitching up on this ki…
4. John Voelcker
   Posted from: 71.190.73.203

   June 8th, 2007 at 7:36 am

   The BMW example is particularly egregious since the Hydrogen 7 is a looooooong way from ready for primetime. At least the Prius was a production vehicle for sale on showroom floors.

   Sure, it’s cool for celebs to appear in prototypes–Harley Earl let stars drive some of his GM styling exercises in the Forties and Fifties, IIRC–but just consider this:

   - The Hydrogen 7’s liquid H2 storage system boils off so quickly that if it sits for 10 days, most of the fuel evaporates

   - It’s a powerful V12 when running on gasoline; it’s a deeply underpowered V12 (less than 200 hp) on H2

   - Hydrogen is twice as efficient (by energy content) when used to power a fuel cell as when it’s burned in an internal combustion engine

   - And, finally, BMW has to send a hydrogen tanker truck to each star’s home to fill up the car. So what’s the greenhouse-gas impact of THAT, hmmmmm?

Leave a Comment