US Volkswagen Passat Commercial Wants Us to Turn Vegetarian

You can come here and pollute the air, but you’d better keep your NOx-stained paws off our barbecues, alright? If we want to eat ribs and bacon until we’re sick and the only thing keeping us from throwing up is that we’re too lazy to do it, then that’s exactly what we’ll do. And when the sickness has watered down a little and we feel slightly better, we’ll do it all over again.

We’ve talked about the difficulty of advertising boring safety features, but in an advertising world where “everything has been done before,” isn’t a challenge what those well-paid creatives are supposed to be craving for? Volkswagen US gave them no less than seven different active safety options that were put together in a campaign with animated clips for each of the chosen features.

Volkswagen has ditched the “Das Auto” tagline in its attempt to reposition itself as a more family-oriented brand, and that new direction is made very visible in this series of commercial spots for the Passat as well. There isn’t one that doesn’t feature at least a child, and there’s a light, peaceful tone about all seven of them that does give the viewer a sense of serenity.

But not the one targeting the Blind Spot Monitor, featuring a family of three coming back from a late night dinner that obviously involved large quantities of meat. The Dad is doing the driving, but the brisket he just ate seems to get the better of him, as he begins to accuse a case of meat sweats. Because of this controversial malady, Dad fails to notice a big SUV as he attempts to switch lanes, but the BSM is there to save the day for everybody, so the family can pull into a car park and digest in peace.

The moral of the story? If you like meat (and Volkswagen knows you do), you might want to consider the new Passat. What's next? “Buy this car if you like to breathe?”