We are always stoked when a JNC appears in an ad for a new car. It shows that the company cares about — or is at least aware of — its heritage. But there’s a rule of thumb in advertising — not sure where we heard it; could’ve been Mad Men — that no one should ever have any negative feelings when thinking about your product, ever. So why does this Mazda spot for the new CX-70 such a downer?
Titled “Memory Lane”, the ad has two middle aged brothers checking out the older one’s new CX-70. The younger one seems surprised that the he’s bought a Mazda, even though bro’s got a first-gen RX-7 GSL-SE right there in the garage. The two go for a spin in the twisties, and the skeptical one finally sees what it’s all about.
Flashback to 1985. The brothers are pretending to drive Dad’s new GSL-SE, the same one that’s now in the garage (Incidentally, it seems to be the one from Mazda North America’s collection). The kid asks dad to teach him how to drive. The father looks on proudly. Everything is sepia toned. Then we’re back in the CX-70 and, it turns out, Dad is dead. Gee, thanks Mazda, for making us think of our parents’ mortality.
Look, we can confirm that the CX-70 is an SUV with phenomenal handling and worthy of the same Mazda badge that graces the RX-7 and Miata. We get what Mazda is trying to say by drawing a link to the undeniably cool first-gen RX-7. Normally if a company was trying to connect some random SUV to a storied sports car from its past we’d roll our eyes, but the CX-70’s driving dynamics are so good that we don’t take issue with that part of the ad at all.
It’s the fact that the ad plays like a Lifetime movie, with saccharine directing, bad acting, and the whole dead parent thing. It’s reminiscent of a famously bad McDonald’s commercial about a kid and his dearly departed father. The ad was eventually pulled.
If you want something more uplifting yet still Mazda-related, here are two other Mazda videos released at nearly the exact same moment, from the company’s UK and French arms. The latter is somewhat amusing, because the title says MX-5 when the car driving around Japan’s legendary Hakone region is clearly a CX-5.
Again, we have no problem with Mazda SUVs shown as fun driver’s cars, as they are one of maybe three companies that can legitimately get away with it. It’s a good ad, and there are no expired family members anywhere to be seen.
I don’t think it is as bad as you make it out to be. The guys in the ad are obviously over the age of 40 (maybe 50) when most people have already lost a parent. The ad is not meant to appeal to the under 40 crowd. I do like how when they start it up he does a quick shift like it is a manual. It implies driver control, when in reality all a driver today can do is steer and brake (and maybe not even that with stability control and emergency braking systems).
I think this ad is for men my age, so I don’t find it a downer. My dad is still alive, and we talk about the cars we drove together when we were younger, so thinking back to good memories is relatable. What’s a downer for me is Mazda having the car they’re trying to sell be an automatic crossover SUV, which are mostly bought by women. This ad would make sense if it was a new manual Miata/roadster since it’s similar to that SA-22 RX-7.
Maybe they should have used a 626? A mint condition one is probably harder to find than an RX-7.