Aussie Amarok ad mocks censorship, gets banned

Published Nov 5, 2018

Share

Sydney - Authorities in certain countries can get quite grumpy, to say the least, about adverts that show cars unleashing their performance potential.

Anything that even remotely encourages spirited driving of any kind must be silenced at all cost, before every member of the public is suddenly and subliminally brainwashed into becoming a reckless driver, ultimately resulting in mayhem on the roads of an apocalyptic scale.

Volkswagen’s Australian division recently sought to poke fun at such modern sensitivities with an ad campaign for its Amarok V6, dubbed “too powerful for TV”.

The ad shows a film crew doing everything it can to try and skirt regulations while still hinting that its six-cylinder TDI double cab is powerful, capable and exciting to drive. They even resort to using a model car for some of the scenes.

However, the chaps at VW clearly didn’t do enough to silence the powers that be. According to 

, the Australian advertising standards board has banned the advert, following numerous complaints from the public. 

Just a hint of irony there perhaps?

And yes, you can watch it below (at your own risk, of course).

This is what the advertising board had to say:

“Although the advertisement had fantastical elements, the depiction of the vehicle starting to overtake the road trains was a realistic scenario that would constitute unsafe and reckless driving.

"Further, the depiction of the driver choosing to leave the road and overtake both trucks on the shoulder of the road depicts driving which is reckless and would breach road rules.”

IOL Motoring

Related Topics: