- Ram 1500 REV: Premature Electrification – Winner
- Volkswagen ID.4: Ant-Man and The Wasp: Quantumania – Loser
- Kia Telluride: Binky Dad – Winner
- General Motors Goes Electric With Netflix – Winner
- Jeep 4xe: Electric Boogie – Loser
- Fast X Film Trailer – Loser
This year wasn't a bumper year for car-themed Super Bowl content, but we've got them all in one place.
Super Bowl LVII has not gone down in history the way many fans wanted it to, but as is the case every year, several automakers chose the world's biggest American football match as the perfect stage to throw their full marketing budget behind epic TV adverts.
There weren't quite as many automotive ads at this year's Super Bowl as there have been in years gone by, but that doesn't make them any less epic.
So, here they all are the winners and losers of 2023's Super Bowl automotive advertising game.
Ram 1500 REV: Premature Electrification – Winner
Ram chose Super Bowl LVII to reveal the production version of its new electric pickup truck, the 1500 REV.
Ram is considered by many as being late to the party with its electric truck, as the Ford F-150 Lightning and Chevrolet Silverado 1500 are already on the scene, but Ram decided to poke fun at the concept of… arriving too soon with an ad spot called 'Premature Electrification.'
We don't need to spell out what Ram was making fun of, but the pharmaceutical-style ad pulls no punches in attacking the poor range of some electric pickups, right down to couples interviews in which a husband's premature electrification has caused more than a few issues.
Ram's wit on this one makes it a winner.
Volkswagen ID.4: Ant-Man and The Wasp: Quantumania – Loser
Cinematic tie-ins with our favorite MCU superhero films are not at all uncommon, and the latest to grace our screens comes from VW in a bid to punt its first mass-market EV, the ID.4.
Partnering with marvel for this month's release of Ant-Man and The Wasp: Quantumania, the 30-second spot features Cassie Lang's Stinger trying to escape from home by sneaking out the window in shrunken form before climbing into an ID.4, only to be foiled by Ant-Man catching her in the act. The twist? Stinger shrinks not only herself but the ID.4, too, and makes a sneaky getaway.
While we love a good movie tie-in, this one's just cheesy and forgettable. Put this one down in the 'L' column.
Kia Telluride: Binky Dad – Winner
Kia proves that you don't need to be overly witty or get big-name film stars to feature in your ads to have a winner on hand. Nope, all you need is a sound, relatable experience and a way to make the audience feel invested, which is precisely what Binky Dad does.
When a couple and their baby head on holiday, they realize they forgot one thing – baby's binky. But dad, in his Kia Telluride X-Pro AWD, daringly rushes back home across the snow, ice, and road, while becoming an internet sensation. Not all heroes wear capes, but in this case, dad's efforts to rush back are thwarted by an unlikely villain – the wrong binky. In all of Kia's 14 Super Bowl ads, this is the first one to end elsewhere aside from the big game, with viewers able to go to TikTok to see three alternate endings.
It might seem cheesy, but anyone who's experienced what it feels like trying to be the hero to stop a baby from crying will know this is a winner.
General Motors Goes Electric With Netflix – Winner
General Motors went all in this year, showcasing not just one car, but five electric ones.
Partnering with Netflix, who will include more EVs in future shows, GM stuck Will Ferrell into a whole host of Netflix shows, including Army of the Dead, where he drives a GMC Sierra EV until he gets bitten by a zombie, Bridgerton, where the Cadillac Lyriq features until it's established that it's not the right show for an EV, and even Stranger Things, where Ferrell drives a Chevrolet Silverado 1500 EV. The Blazer EV features in a few short ads centered around Squid Game, while the GMC Hummer EV features in a Queer Eye spot featuring a runaway bride situation.
You can watch all the ads in their various cuts on GM's YouTube channel, but the supercut below gives you a good idea of what it's all about. Ferrell's comedy and the way the shows get ripped on is light-hearted, but brilliant. So we'll call this one a win.
Jeep 4xe: Electric Boogie – Loser
Considering Ram's ad was so brilliant, Jeep's is just cheesy.
It hinges on the electric driving mode of various 4xe products like the Wrangler 4xe and how it lets you get closer to nature, but while we can appreciate an upbeat soundtrack and a wide variety of animals jamming along happily, something is missing. It's happy, and it's got those feel-good vibes, but at the end of the day, is it memorable?
Not really. That's why Jeep's 'Electric Boogie' is a loser for us. Not even the vocals of Shaggy can redeem it.
Fast X Film Trailer – Loser
This one's not an OEM advert, but the car world still cares about the Fast Saga franchise of films… somehow.
Fast X will be the second-last film in the Fast & Furious series that started 22 years ago when Brian O’Conner owed Dominic Toretto a 10-second car. As we’ve become accustomed to in the last few installments, there are insane action sequences and automotive stunts, and a ton of cars.
But unlike the recent films, there's street racing too. We're hoping there's a strong return to the original themes, but we suspect this will all just be a ploy to loosely tie the film back to where it all began – which is why this one is a loser in our books.
Either way, there's an all-star cast of both actors and cars to look forward to when it hits cinemas later this year.
Keyword: All The Automotive Winners And Losers From 2023's Super Bowl LVII