The Super Bowl is upon us and in between the parts where large men give each other concussions we get something to enjoy: car ads. Jalopnik readers have put together the ten best from over the years.
Welcome back to Answers of the Day — our daily Jalopnik feature where we take the best ten responses from the previous day's Question of the Day and shine it up to show off. It's by you and for you, the Jalopnik readers. Enjoy!
We put together a similar list back in 2009, but a lot of spots have changed since then. In the past few years we've had tons of amazingly slick car ads. Every year there are new big-budget features from Chevy, Audi, and Mercedes that stand up to the best ads of the past.
Which ads did we miss? Let us know your oft-overlooked favorites in Kinja below.
10.) Ford GT, "The One"
Unless you had been watching late-night episodes of Fifth Gear or Victory By Design before 2004, this was the first time you saw real, hardcore, Top Gear-style car porn. Our own $kaycog fell off her chair when she saw this spot and has been hooked on the car ever since.
Suggested By: $kaycog
9.) "Halftime In America"
Though it left the door wide open for parodies, Clint Eastwood's spot was pretty touching. Even if you hated it at first, you watched it once or twice more.
Suggested By: MooseKnuckles
8.) Fiat 500 Abarth, "Seduction"
Breasts sell cars. That's simple, but Fiat's spot used sex appeal in a way few would find unappealing. This ad is at least 90% of the reason why any male cares about the 500 Abarth.
Suggested By: Corrnaus
7.) Audi, "Godfather"
If there was one of Audi's many awesome Super Bowl ads of late, only this Godfather tribute nailed the kind of crass, very enviable image the brand wants to cultivate.
Suggested By: KSUENGINEERING
6.) "Hi"
Chrysler Co. flooded the airwaves around 1994's Super Bowl XXVIII with this ad. It was a comically large buildup for such a small car, but it got everone excited for the Neon. At least until they drove one.
Suggested By: Annathie
5.) Imported From Detroit
Though it was for a lame car, the Chrysler 200, there's no way to be cynical about this spot. In the Recession, with shrinking Detroit in the news every day, the ad pulled every heartstring in America.
Suggested By: SS427
4.) Nissan 300ZX, "Turbocharged Dream"
1991's Super Bowl XXIV saw one of the most cinematic car ads ever made. After watching it, you didn't just want a turbocharged sports car, you needed one.
Suggested By: Ravey Mayvey Slurpee Surprise
3.) VW, "Force"
Even through it had no smoking tires or hardly any moving cars at all, this ad made everyone like VW again.
Suggested By: Jackie
2.) Nissan, "Pigeons"
It's amazing how a bunch of creepy Top Gun pigeons shitting on everything can make the '97 Maxima look so good.
Suggested By: TheCrudMan
1.) Nissan, "Toys"
Nissan's versions of GI Joe and Barbie in 1995's Super Bowl XXIX were so good that Mattel sued to get the ad taken off the air.
They couldn't fight the effectiveness of the spot, surely one of the best car ads ever made.
Suggested By: zeos382sx