RE: New Vectra New Rules
Monday 24th June 2002
New Vectra New Rules
Vectra - good new car to be tarnished by the hollywood style hype?
Discussion
It strikes me that this as is likely to be as successful as the famous one involving Griff Rhys Jones in his scrabbies.
Associating your car with "going to court" instantly brings to mind ad campaigns as successful as "You're never alone with a Strand".
What are Vauxhall on? (And can I have some...)
And besides. If you're buying a McCar - who cares if its "new" or not.
Associating your car with "going to court" instantly brings to mind ad campaigns as successful as "You're never alone with a Strand".
What are Vauxhall on? (And can I have some...)
And besides. If you're buying a McCar - who cares if its "new" or not.
GM has a problem like every big car maker, Daimler or Ford or whatever. They try to sell mass cars like Vauxhalls or Opels (both GM) as they are called here which bear an old style (nostalgic or better pre historic) image. On the other hand, they win Le Mans in GTS in an GM... aaannd, they completely fail to bring that message to the customer. What do their propaganda managers do for a living ? I'm sure I could do it better. A bit more sex appeal please... and I don't mean that low tone voice on RLM. That was crap.
Ted I take umbrage to the line
'The car's UK customers -a curious amalgam of fleet buyers, Griffin worshippers and die-hard Pringle wearers'
my every day hack is a 'griffin' but my misses won't let me wear the pringle sweaters 
.
Haven't driven the 'new' vectra but the old one wasn't bad for a FWD. Conversely the Omegod is probably one of the most underrated cars around at the moment (like the senator before it) drops its value like nothing known to man, for no reason except the 'market' doesn't like it, even though dynamically it's not that far behind the '5' class leader. Hopefully the values will harden so I'll get a good trade-in.
Harry
'The car's UK customers -a curious amalgam of fleet buyers, Griffin worshippers and die-hard Pringle wearers'
my every day hack is a 'griffin' but my misses won't let me wear the pringle sweaters . Haven't driven the 'new' vectra but the old one wasn't bad for a FWD. Conversely the Omegod is probably one of the most underrated cars around at the moment (like the senator before it) drops its value like nothing known to man, for no reason except the 'market' doesn't like it, even though dynamically it's not that far behind the '5' class leader. Hopefully the values will harden so I'll get a good trade-in.
Harry
As in the other thread I find the courtroom advert really funny. Its just so cr@p, louder indicators are not going to sell the car. If its got good handling, chasis etc why not show it? showing people in a room going "gosh the idicators get louder" just says "this car is SO boring this is the best we could come up with"
Vauxhaul should a) Sack all of their PR executives b) try again by asking customers what an advert should show.
They've had Griff Rhys Jones ruin the VX220 (cracking car but no-one would buy because everyone thinks its driven by a pr@t with y-fronts and is anally retentive)
and now this... millions spent of developing something new and they talk about indicators as revolutionary.
the PR dept.
Vauxhaul should a) Sack all of their PR executives b) try again by asking customers what an advert should show.
They've had Griff Rhys Jones ruin the VX220 (cracking car but no-one would buy because everyone thinks its driven by a pr@t with y-fronts and is anally retentive)
and now this... millions spent of developing something new and they talk about indicators as revolutionary.
the PR dept.quote:
And can anyone explain the line 'it features an Intelligent Drivers system that optimizes every component within the chassis'
yeah, it says something like "every chassis component is synchronised". This can only mean that the car has no independent suspension and all four corners of the car are doing exactly the same....
I have to agree Ladies and Gentlemen, I also stood incredulous as I was told -'think about it - indicators that get louder the faster you go'
Will Vauxhall waste a good German product as a result of this campaign? - Again for Vauxhall expect to see more public debate about the crappy advert than the product.
Will Vauxhall waste a good German product as a result of this campaign? - Again for Vauxhall expect to see more public debate about the crappy advert than the product.
Stop for a moment and think about the target market for the Vectra - it's no PHers, it's the guy who lives in motorway service station, you've seen them, jacket on a hook, fake Rolex, mobile phone clamped to ear talking to no-one but trying to sound important....
These men have no life, they work 18 hours a day, 14 of which are spent driving up and down the motorway. Why do they care if the thing can go round corners (the last one couldn't and look how many they sold of them...). Their car is a tool (so, I could argue, are they...) and the only thing that differentiates them from the next be-suited motorway schmuck is what gadgets the fleet manager lets them have on their VecMonFocus.
You or I see the ad and snort - "what about the driving experience!", "Who cares about rain-sensitive wipers?"..... He does. Because Gavin Flipchart in the next company car-park space has 6 months left on the lease of his car and he doesn't have them. Or louder indicator thingies. Or 8 way adjustable seats. And they all come as standard, so I'm better than him.
The giveaway is one of the last lines he says, something about which one of your neighbours or friends have louder indicators, it's all about making Nigel from Sales feel just that little bit special in his normally bland life......
These men have no life, they work 18 hours a day, 14 of which are spent driving up and down the motorway. Why do they care if the thing can go round corners (the last one couldn't and look how many they sold of them...). Their car is a tool (so, I could argue, are they...) and the only thing that differentiates them from the next be-suited motorway schmuck is what gadgets the fleet manager lets them have on their VecMonFocus.
You or I see the ad and snort - "what about the driving experience!", "Who cares about rain-sensitive wipers?"..... He does. Because Gavin Flipchart in the next company car-park space has 6 months left on the lease of his car and he doesn't have them. Or louder indicator thingies. Or 8 way adjustable seats. And they all come as standard, so I'm better than him.
The giveaway is one of the last lines he says, something about which one of your neighbours or friends have louder indicators, it's all about making Nigel from Sales feel just that little bit special in his normally bland life......
Mark you're right on one front however, Vauxhaul are now renoun for cr@p adverts. The VX220 was aimed at me, so why use an anal retantive pr@t in y-fronts? thats not the image you are tying to sell. Gavin flipcahrt (cracking name ) would sooner have "my is fantsaic handling, performance AND the gadgets" It seems to me that the advert should have concetrated on the advancements the car has made shown the wonderful toys as part of it but the superb chasis etc. not this court case farse in which we hardly see the car at all.
) would sooner have "my is fantsaic handling, performance AND the gadgets" It seems to me that the advert should have concetrated on the advancements the car has made shown the wonderful toys as part of it but the superb chasis etc. not this court case farse in which we hardly see the car at all.quote:
Isn't it about time GM bit the bullet and dropped the Vauxhall badge?
I don't think that the apostle Bob of Lutzness has cast his eye on this particular branch of the GM family as of yet (no doubt too busy taking rides in Holdens in Oz right now). However, if/when he does and see what a mess they are making, I think you will see, if nothing else, a rebadge effort (would sir perhaps care for a Pontiac Solstice?)
ErnestM
PS: I like Bob, if for nothing else he is actually considering the Cien (imagine that in Vauxhall livery?)
quote:
Isn't it about time GM bit the bullet and dropped the Vauxhall badge?
I think that would be sad Ted, Vauxhall have a very long and distinguished motor sport history and before that made some very nice steam launches.
Pom would turn in his grave.
I currently sleep very soundly in a bed made in the old Vauxhall factory at, would you guess Vauxhall.
I wasn't all that keen on their fruits and they've changed their name so why not drop the Opel.
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