(EXPANDED FROM 6/8/2022) A few years ago Karl Ludvigsen (2022) wondered whether some cars that were renamed should not have been. For example, he noted that Ford might have benefitted by keeping the Cortina name […]
As Pontiac prepared for the 1967 model year it struggled with what to do about a problem. Although overall sales were so good that the brand had carved out a solid third place in total […]
Harry Waltz knew that, as the lowest guy on the totem poll, he would get stuck having to write the 1982 Cadillac Cimarron ads. He tried every trick in the book to avoid the inevitable, […]
The January 1975 issue of Popular Mechanics offered a breathless peek at a new generation of smaller cars that would supposedly be “big on the inside but small outside.” Although the story included sketches of […]
(EXPANDED FROM 3/16/2022) Art Fitzpatrick and Van Kaufman’s artwork in Pontiac’s advertising played an important role in the brand’s popularity during the 1960s. Others have done a thorough job of showcasing the team’s most iconic […]
A recent drive through a particularly lovely rural area in Oregon reminded me of a Volkswagen Cabrio commercial from decades ago. The spot did a good job of showing the sensuousness of driving. Here I’m […]
The recent death of ad pioneer Mary Wells Lawrence got me wondering how long her fledgling ad agency Wells Rich and Greene worked with American Motors. The short answer: from 1967 to 1972. This ad […]
Roger Sizemore had the feeling that Chrysler was going in the wrong direction. The product planners talked excitedly about selling at least 200,000 Plymouth Barracudas and Dodge Challengers annually. Yet the all-new 1970 pony cars […]
Volkswagen has received a good response to the ad it ran during the Superbowl last weekend. Titled “An American Love Story,” the 60-second ad and an extended version attempt to cultivate nostalgia for the brand’s […]
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