Chevrolet has agreed to stop airing its most recent “Real People, Not Actors” TV ad that claims the brand has better reliability than Toyota, Ford and Honda, among other brands. Earlier, each brand featured in the spot — Toyota, Ford and Honda — challenged the claim.
In the ad, a group of car owners is shocked to hear that Chevrolet cars are more dependable than similar models of its competitors. Chevy is more reliable than Toyota?! And Honda?! Who knew?
According to a person familiar with the matter, one brand had sent an email to GM’s legal counsel demanding that the automaker stop airing the ad, which was posted to YouTube on Jan. 1 and began airing earlier this month. Commonwealth/McCann is the agency for Chevrolet.
“It’s understandable that the ‘real people’ in the commercial would be surprised with Chevrolet’s claim of being the most reliable car brand,” Ford spokesman Mike Levine said in a statement. “Because it’s not the case. They have agreed to take these false and misleading ads down and we’d like to see that happen immediately.”
Chevrolet said it pulled the ad to launch a new television campaign. A Chevrolet spokesperson declined to comment on discussions with any other brands.
“Chevrolet stands by the reliability claim and the ad remains in the brand’s toolbox but we have decided to take it out of the regular rotation at this time to launch new Silverado creative,” Chevrolet said in a statement. “We have not altered our marketing campaign because of any concerns with the accuracy of our ad content.”
