The marketing mavens at GM commissioned a Youtube video of two “bumblebee boys” washing a Camaro for Chevrolet’s “Gay Days At The Movies” promotion. The bankrupt automaker pulled the ad after a single day for being “tasteless.” (As the Chinese market ad in the post below proves, using sex to sell fast cars is never OK.) Only yesterday, GM’s Dave Barthmuss told USA Today that the video might surprise some “because you don’t see it in the mainstream.” But the ad would “make sense for this particular audience.” Today, Barthmuss tells USA Today that “the video was not appropriate and not in good taste.” The only problem was that (apparently) nobody at GM had actually seen the video. The spot has been yanked from YouTube; it’s internet MIA. So why spend (taxpayer) money on ads like this if you aren’t even going to use them? And what about the video makes it any more tasteless than, say, a Camaro in Harvest Gold or It’s A Girl Pink?
Not-so-subtle sex advertising for not-so-subtle, erm, “masculinity-enhancement” vehicles cannot suffer any affront to immaculate machismo, even though we all know the freudian analysis of underlying insecurities.
I mean, Broback Mountain was provocative because it was about cow-boys. There’s nothing more macho than a cow-boy…or a muscle car. Or Top Gun -hint-
Perhapse they are afraid of alienating their mullet demographic. In reality, who is more likley to buy a new car, a dual income gay male couple with no kids or some mullet paying child support?
I really fail to see what the problem with this is. Car companies (and every other industry on the planet) have been using hot chicks to sell their products for years. (See import magazines, or every auto show ever) What’s wrong with throwing a hot guy or two into the mix?
But, was the Camaro in the ad a stick shift?
It was probably not half as offensive as the movie Bruno will be… I’d love to see the video if anyone can find it. And on a side note, I’ll take my SS with Flow masters and a rainbow sticker on the rear window.
I thought Barney Frank would approve…
I think the other issue is that if goes to show how out of touch GM is with the buying public. Or, at least, the buying public that has the means to buy a new car.
Let me know when GM grows a pair.
Reminds me of the old George Hamilton movie, “Zorro, the Gay Blade”.
Perhapse they are afraid of alienating their mullet demographic.
They did that when they stopped making the Transcamaro.
They drove the final nail in the coffin when they decided to kill Pontiac.
On a totally unrelated note, does anyone know how tight the new Camaro’s trunk is? I would have a lot of stuff to pack back there, and am just wondering how much gear and tackle and other stuff I could fit in there without damaging anything.
BTW, this gay stuff is *gross*.
When does Government Motors put out a Camawow Bawney Fwank Special Edition? (BF-SE)
It would have to include a pre-pubescent male-ometer and alert system, for the intended market.
On a related note, did you hear that Wacko Jacko was going to leave his body to science, but they discovered he was made up of way too much plastic, so they decided to recycle him into lego so children could play with him instead of the other way around.
(badump-bump-ching!)
And that’s why I won’t buy anything from GM!
The Camaro may end up creating a whole new demographic – gays with mullets.
JellyMunchkin:
I lol’d.
I really fail to see what the problem with this is. Car companies (and every other industry on the planet) have been using hot chicks to sell their products for years. (See import magazines, or every auto show ever) What’s wrong with throwing a hot guy or two into the mix?
You can alienate your heterosexual male prospective buyers. That´s what is wrong.
Most heterosexual men are reluctant to buy a “chick´s car” or a “gay´s car”.
20 years ago SEAT launched a “SEAT Ibiza Amigo” (“Amigo” means “Male friend” in Spanish) with open male homosexual imaginery. I would not be caught dead in one of those cars.
I have nothing against homosexuals, but I do not want to be mistaken as one of them.
Some of those colours are not very appealing, but some of them are kind of awesome. Especially the Moulin Rouge colour they stole from Chryco.
.I have nothing against homosexuals, but I do not want to be mistaken as one of them.
I’m willing to bet a strait guy driving a SEAT Ibiza Amigo is going to get more pu**y than a guy in a Camero. Fast cars for guys are like high heels for woman. A man doesn’t buy a fast car to impress women* he does it to impress other men. A woman doesn’t buy expensive high heels to impress men, she does it to impress other women.
* He may buy an expensive car to impress women but fast /= expensive.
jmo is completely right, gay men have a ton of money. There is probably a pretty strong correlation between the determination that it takes to “come out” and the determination that it takes to be a high achiever. Plus, no kids, I would trade the risk of getting someone pregnant for a higher risk of AIDS seven days out of the week.
The white trash market that people associate with the old F-body cannot afford a $23-35K car, particularly now that lenders are doing proper underwriting.
The conservatives that have money don’t boycott over childish things like being upset at a company marketing to gays. If they boycott it will be because their tax money was wasted on an ad that didn’t even air.
A is A:
I don’t want to be seen in a “homo” car either. I was considering the 300 HP 6-speed V6 version of the Camaro, but because of this I’m probably going to be sticking with my Miata.
I’m growing tired of this type of marketing to gay men, as though our product needs are all that much different from anyone else’s…or worse yet, that we’re not intelligent enough to see through the pandering.
But then again, I’m one of the conservative, suburb-dwelling, degreed-professional ones, so maybe my opinion is drowned out by the outrageously dressed, flamboyant ones.
I’m one of the conservative, suburb-dwelling, degreed-professional ones, so maybe my opinion is drowned out by the outrageously dressed, flamboyant ones.
Sorry, there bud. We don’t care about your intellectual abilities, your interestes, or your accomplishments. Nope. Just as women used to be completely defined by their sexuality, gays are now pigeonholed.
Too bad for you, but that’s the way it is. The current social meme is that, if you’re gay, you have to buy the flaming pink Camaro. Can’t have a black one. Sorry.
“the video was not appropriate and not in good taste.”
So what about all the tasteless cars that GM has been attempting to sell for thirty years or so? It would have been nice if they’d have responded with surgical precision regarding their terrible designs all that time, then they wouldn’t be in such a mess right now. I didn’t see the video, but I’m sure it’s no worse than a wet t-shirt contest. IMHO, the best target markets for this kind of car are “the gays”, DINKS, and empty nesters. Of those three demgoraphic groups, only the first one would be considered a marketing “influencer.”
However I’m sure that this move by GM will appeal to the Camaro’s natural demographic… a thirty-five year old male that’s never been on an airplane, doesn’t own a necktie, lives in a rented basement and has a credit score of 600.
I say, let the guys-who-like-guys have their way with the Camaro. They have the cash. It’s amazing what someone can afford when they live in a double income home with no kids, stay-at-home moms, or ex-wives to support.
Duplicate post
BuzzDog:
This advertizing is saying that your product needs are not different. Same Camaro (not a pink special edition), but instead of the marketing people putting women on the hood they used men.
I’m the kind of person that likes to keep cars and sex separate, and hates when a woman is blocking the picture of the car, so I empathize with you.
But with this ad the marketers were treating gay guys exactly the same as they have always treated straight guys “here is a scantily clad version of the sex you like on the hood, now come buy the car.”
Moreover, because of the “white dude with a mullet” stigma attached to the Camaro it is an important car to advertize the car to gays, women (they might like hot guys on the hood also), minorities, etc.
The new Camaro might be a great car, but people aren’t going to buy it if they think it will make them look like a homophobic, sexist, racist guy that lives in a trailer. Advertizing to gays is one way to dispel that stigma and possibly make the Camaro look like a progressive car to all customers.
Too bad for you, but that’s the way it is. The current social meme is that, if you’re gay, you have to buy the flaming pink Camaro. Can’t have a black one. Sorry.
Lokkii, I want to really thank you for making me laugh today. Too bad I was drinking coffee (plain brewed, black, no foamy milk or flavors) at the same time!
Overall I think the “white trash” stigma is GM’s biggest problem, much larger than quality perception.
If people cared about quality then no European brand except for maybe Volvo (pre-FWD) and Mercedes (pre-1990s) would have ever had any success in the US. Certainly not Saab, VW or anything from Britain or Italy.
But what people aren’t willing to do is drive a low quality car that makes them look like white trash.
A lot of this has to do with styling and interior materials, but overtly advertising to gay people, perhaps in a more tasteful way, is one way that GM can overcome this stigma and sell more cars to everyone.
while i didn’t see the ad, the fact it was produced for GM’s gay days at the movies promotion says to me that it was appropriate. Not that it matters much, as probably only 10% of my friends are “car guys” like me.
“The new Camaro might be a great car, but people aren’t going to buy it if they think it will make them look like a homophobic, sexist, racist guy that lives in a trailer. Advertizing to gays is one way to dispel that stigma and possibly make the Camaro look like a progressive car to all customers.”
Yeah, right. You’re seriously delusional. What GM CORRECTLY understands is that for every gay guy they might sell on the Camaro with this style of advertising, they will lose 100 sales… not very bright marketing.
no_slushbox – I also think that the demographics of the new car buyer has changed more than GM was/is able to deal with.
The market used to be the white mullet who got a union job making $28/hr working the line. Those days are over. Now, it’s the 23yo Asian kid with an engineering degree who’s making 55k and shopping new WRX, GTI, Civic Si etc. Or the 32yo gay marketing director who’s out looking for a fun car because he doesn’t have to save for his kids college.
GM – it seems to me – is still stuck in its mid 60
s heyday.
You’re seriously delusional. What GM CORRECTLY understands is that for every gay guy they might sell on the Camaro with this style of advertising, they will lose 100 sales… not very bright marketing.
Yes, a gay camaro ad during sports center might be a problem. But a gay ad in Out or manhunt.com or on Logo isn’t going to be seen by your average strait guy.
Wolven:
If you’re talking about the scantily clad guys washing a car part you might be right, regarless of the effect on straight customers that would turn off some gay customers, like BuzzDog.
But if you’re talking about simply associating the Camaro with gay people then you’re dead wrong. Put a Camaro ad on network tv with a gay couple driving the car (not flaming, but obviously a couple), and it will only help the Camaro’s sales and image.
It will piss some people off, but that doesn’t matter because they can’t afford the car. Even if they have the money for a new car they need to get SUVs or minivans for their wives.
“But a gay ad in Out or manhunt.com or on Logo isn’t going to be seen by your average strait guy.”
Begs the question; Perhaps it’s not the real “straight” guys that are having such a problem with this. It’s the ones who feel they are right on the edge of turning gay that are concerned! Y’know, the straight guys that just glance at the Logo channel a couple extra seconds or happen upon a gay site by accident, and then bookmark it.
Perhaps GM is just continuing to go after the same market they had previously targeted with the commercial for the soon-to-be-extinct Hummer H2 SUT.
FWIW, I had always heard that gay men preferred 3-series BMWs while lesbians like Subarus. If true, I can’t imagine either group cross-dressing shopping a Camaro.
In any case, it got GM some buzz being both edgy and moral.
What people have failed to mention is the fact that the new Camaro’s styling already panders to the mullet crowd. Like the stereotypical trailer trash the Camaro has traditionally reeled in, the car is overweight, bloated, tacky and stylistically overwrought. It looks more like a Hot Wheels toy designed by a high-schooler rather than a serious driving machine. The Mustang, by comparison, has always been a classier and less overtly adolescent car. Unfortunately, marketing to gays isn’t the answer. To the average urbanite, the Camaro is pure kitsch, a campy bit of ludicrous Americana, and the newest styling does little to dispel its fraught heritage. My guess is that GM realizes that the Camaro’s traditional audience is economically strained and – in typical GM fashion – the powers-that-be are panicking and making desperate marketing moves. The time and place to design a truly sophisticated and international Camaro has come and gone, and once the car ceases to be a novelty, I expect sales to crater. If GM truly cared about reaching upscale customers with this car, they would’ve designed something more along the lines of the Corvette rather than unleash the current bulbous monstrosity.
@uglyamerican:
The Mustang, by comparison, has always been a classier and less overtly adolescent car.
I disagree 100%. The Mustang’s history is filled with “tacky stylistically overwrought” vehicles complete with T-tops, decal packages, hood pins, and nonfuntional scoops. They deserve the “Mullet-mobile” rep (which I personally disagree with) just as much as the GM pony cars.
_
My evidence:
Mustang Mach 1
Mustang King Cobra. (Tell me how a ’78 Trans Am is tackier)
GT500 Super Snake
Shelby GT
If GM truly cared about reaching upscale customers with this car, they would’ve designed something more along the lines of the Corvette rather than unleash the current bulbous monstrosity.
What I don’t think GM really understands is, the American new car buying public is a much more educated, sophisticated and upscale group than it was back in the 1960’s. For example, in 1965 only 45% of the +25yo population had even graduated from high school, let alone college. The % over 25 with a bachelors degree has quadrupled from 1960 to 2006. GM is still trying to sell to the ignorant masses(aka the mullets), a group that is much smaller and much poorer than it used to be.
“GM is still trying to sell to the ignorant masses(aka the mullets), a group that is much smaller and much poorer than it used to be.”
I think we’re getting off topic a bit. But I will say that I happen to like the new Camaro design. I’m an educated, 39 y/o VP level guy living in Manhattan, and I find the style to be one of the most exciting, artfully designed vehicles launched in a long time. The last gen Camaro was permitted to become a hillybilly car because it was crude and never grew up. The new one looks really sharp and has the R&D to back it up. If being more educated means that everyone has to drive a Camry or a 3-series, then well, yuck.
Just sayin
@jmo Does a degree really make you want to buy a Prius?
I would say that it’s mostly the economy that hinders the sale of Camaro type-o-cars. It wasn’t mullets who made Mustangs and Camaro a success. It was working family men, with and without a degree. They just had money to spare.
I’m an educated, 39 y/o VP level guy living in Manhattan, and I find the style to be one of the most exciting, artfully designed vehicles launched in a long time.
When are you picking yours up? It’s one thing to say you like it – it’s a much bigger leap to say you’ve actually bought one.
It was working family men, with and without a degree. They just had money to spare.
There are far fewer of those guys than before. The financial burden of raising children is much higher, the wages of those marginally educated are much lower. Thus, the number of working family men in the market for a new two door sports car is significantly lower.
@jmo Does a degree really make you want to buy a Prius?
Maybe not a Prius. But, it does tend to make one more likely to buy something practical and reliable. The median father in 1969 wasn’t as concerned with spending the equivalent of $1200 on soccer camp for little Jonnny or making sure he was putting $250 a month in the 529 plan. The median father in 1969 might have been more willing to indulge in a new GTO.
jmo Exactly, but my point was that education hasn’t really got much to do with it. Degrees don’t make men more car realists.
Alas I do agree that GM hasn’t got any idea about who they are trying to sell to (or what they are selling).
@jmo Does a degree really make you want to buy a Prius?
Maybe not a Prius. But, it does tend to make one more likely to buy something practical and reliable.
True. However, there are dozens upon dozens of practical and reliable vehicles to choose from. You can buy a Malibu and not have your neighbor think you are white trash…well anywhere but maybe DC.
my point was that education hasn’t really got much to do with it.
What about education in the larger sense as in exposure to new concepts and ideas. For example, in 1965 only 10% of those from 20-25 years old had a bachelors degree it is now over 30%. The average new car buyer is far more likely to have go away to school and been exposed to people with different tastes than he/she might have grown up with. You might come from a town where everyone drives Ford or GM pickups but you go to school with kids who drive BMW, VW, Honda, Toyota and your peer group can certainly influences your vehicle preferences.
However, there are dozens upon dozens of practical and reliable vehicles to choose from. You can buy a Malibu and not have your neighbor think you are white trash…
Perceptions change slowly – if you pulled into any office park from Ft. Lauderdale to Tacoma in Malibu people would think – “Good looking car, but… a Chevy? I bet he got it because it had a few thousand on the hood and 72 months of 0% financing.”
I have nothing against homosexuals, but I do not want to be mistaken as one of them.
I would be willing to bet pretty much every car today is advertised in gay media. Short of the famous stereotypes, i.e. triple white VW Cabriolet, not much out there is considered a “gay car”. In this particular instance, very few heterosexual men would have ever found out about it because they’re not going to “Gay Days at the Movies”.
But if you really want to never be mistaken for being gay, follow this advice. Whenever you’re in a store, purchase some tampons or some other feminine hygiene product. You’re obviously not buying it for yourself.
Perceptions change slowly – if you pulled into any office park from Ft. Lauderdale to Tacoma in Malibu people would think – “Good looking car, but… a Chevy? I bet he got it because it had a few thousand on the hood and 72 months of 0% financing.”
Good point, and one we’ve discussed before on TTAC.
It’s an unfortunate perception – and one I pray that the U.S. automakers can shake – but there is some truth to the fact that the purchase of a domestic car (NOT an SUV, pickup or CUV) tends to make some people wonder about the owner’s monetary resources and/or credit.
This hit home when I saw such a comment on TTAC for the first time, and then remembered a colleague saying that a financially struggling relative bought an Avenger because “she really wanted a Toyota or Honda, but couldn’t qualify for financing at the dealer.”
@jmo Well yes some of the exposed wouldn’t dream about a new Camaro but still, a large portion of the populations (including Swedens) are proxy-nostalgic farts.
@BuzzDog That’s interesting. Does the regular car buyer in the states go for a cheaper new car rather than a used car of the brand they initially wanted?
@ddrone: It depends.
If the buyer is afraid of repair costs, the benefits of a new car warranty can make a less capable model more attractive than a well-engineered, but expensive to repair used one.
Then too, new cars are more likely to be eligible for 60- and 72-month financing, whereas the maximum term allowed on a used car decreases as the vehicle gets older. So on a four-year-old vehicle, a lender may only be willing to finance for up to 36- or 48-months. So the payments will naturally be lower on a 60-month loan, even though the overall cost of borrowing may be markedly higher.
ddrone,
As buzzdog said a buyer in extremis financially might be able to afford the $300 a month for a 10 year 100,000 mile warrantied Kia Rio or a lifetime powertrain warrantied Dodge. But, if they finace a $5,000 Honda and it dumps its transmission they are, as we say, f*cked.
When does GM actually understand inappropriate and in good taste after releasing the Pontiac Aztek on the public?
Advertising to gays and in gay venues isn’t any different than advertising in heterosexual venues. The results are the same unless a personal identifier can be triggered.
The video seemed like it was a short intro to another movie or as an event promotion. It was 15 seconds of an awkward guy wearing a speedo washing the Camaro with a voice-over. It was not suggestive, lewd or even gay. The men weren’t intimate or even comfortable with each other.
I wish it was truly gay–I might have better identified with the message and the product. Instead it didn’t resonate with me because both the message and product seemed equally undesirable and unattainable.
Subaru isn’t afraid of the gay and look, their sales are up.
is 72 month financing a industry standard maximum?
In any case, it got GM some buzz being both edgy and moral.…
What is that supposed to mean? Homosexuality is “immoral”? Man, the crap being posted on this topic…Mullets, automatic entry into the white trash club, car must be poor quality…Gosh, where to begin to counter this narrow minded garbage? I guess a “moral” man can beat his wife, kick dogs, be rude and selfish, but, hey he hits the pews on Sunday and pumps out a houseful of kids, so all is ok. A real all American he-man. Ugh. Subaru for years marketed their cars to the gay market in the mainstream media, but the self righteous bible thumper crowd was too stupid to notice the equal signs, rainbow stickers, and “XNENALVR” novelty plates.
They run Subaru ads on Logo all the time so would that lead people to to think only gays drive them? oh, wait… that’s just lesbians.
jmo and manhunt will rot your brain
“…so would that lead people to to think only gays drive them? oh, wait… that’s just lesbians.”
Well, if the sensible shoe fits…
@golden2husky It’s supposed to mean that they made a instant poodle to get the selfconfessed vanguards of the 50’s off their backs.
Not hard to find if you want to see it
http://www.bing.com/videos/search?q=%22camaro+car+wash+june+2009%22&qs=n&docid=1060112761588&mid=211957C2C1ACE52590B2211957C2C1ACE52590B2&FORM=VIVR
Put your mouse over the little picture in the bottom right corner. Low quality but you get the idea what it is all about.
Almost as stupid as any other GM commercial that I have ever seen.
“When are you picking yours up? It’s one thing to say you like it – it’s a much bigger leap to say you’ve actually bought one.”
Well yeah, of course. I’m not Seinfeld and I don’t buy every car that I come across that I like. I love the new Camaro. The reality is that the Camaro name has earned a reputation of being a CAMARO. Brand association matters to me and to everyone. As for being Chevy’s ideal customer, I’m exactly one rat-tail, one trailer and one Ed Hardy t-shirt shy of that title. If Chevy wants to lure customers like me into their showrooms, they need to figure this out.
It’s not about sex selling or not selling, it’s not about tastelessness…it’s about the gayness, that’s all. The Camaro is a macho man’s car, and macho men don’t want to see salad tossers frolicking around a car they see as manly enough for them to buy.
Freudian analysis of “underlying insecurities” is nonsense and always has been. That’s just something that sissy boys who can’t get laid say about macho men because they are the ones with the insecurities.
Alexcassidy: “What’s wrong with throwing a hot guy or two into the mix?”
It’s not about hot guys, wake up! It’s about straight men not wanting to see gay men acting like gay men.
It’s the same reason why Brokeback Mountain was such a great movie — except no straight men went to see it, at least not any that weren’t henpecked then dragged their by their bitchy wives anyway.
JonnyZX:
The Camaro is a Macho Man’s car, but the Macho Men that like other men tend to have more money than the heterosexual ones, and lifesyles that are more suited to a two door coupe.
Straight Macho men need to get SUVs and minivans because of their “bitchy wives”.
Here’s a clue – promiscuous women like gays, and they don’t like homophobic guys.
If GM runs a ton of gay market oriented ads for the Camaro it’s just going to make the Camaro more of a pussy magnet.
Since I like pussy, along with RWD manual transmission sports cars, that’s just going to make me more likely to buy a Camaro.
Given your anger about gays I’m also going to be careful about using airport stalls next to yours. The anti-gay rhetoric is always loudest before the accidental outing.
JonnyZX,
Surely you do realize that not all gay men are sissy hairdressers, and that most straight men aren’t very macho, right? It’s surprising how many manly men are gay. Guys that you would otherwise aspire to be like. Honestly, admit it, it won’t mean that you want to go down on them.
And since when did the mechanics of sexual intercourse factor into buying a car? I’ve known a few women who “toss salad.” Are they allowed to frolic around the Camaro? What does that have to do with it anyway?
Also, in all seriousness, who uses the word “macho” ? Thats sort of a douchebag word.
CamaroKid, thanks for the link. For some reason I’m only able to see a still image from the video, so I still don’t know what all the uproar is over. I wonder if your browser has the video cached on your hard drive from an earlier viewing, which is why you can view it?
By the way, it’s a good thing that we have urbandictionary.com, otherwise I’d never be able to understand some of these new (to me) terms such as “poodle” and “tossed salad.”
But hey, what do I know? Up until a year ago, I thought a “teabag” was a beverage-making pouch made by Lipton.
As a GWM I thought the ad was funny and the car is HOT. Funny as in “no go-go boys were harmed in the making of this ad.”
Did you know that many go-go boys who dance on tables in gay bars are straight? And that the straight guys make the most $$$.
In related news . . .
I had a gay cousin from the East coast visit here in the Colorado mountains where Subaru Outbacks are ubiquitous. His comment concerning them left me a bit stunned. “those are lesbian cars” .
I was a bit amazed at that notion, until good ol’ Google turned up advertising by Subaru in the past that was quite obviously aimed at lesbians. As I recall they even featured Martina Navratilova.
BTW, even more off topic, I’d consider Microsoft’s ad on the net this week depicting a woman vomiting on her boyfriend/husband three times to be far more embarrassing. It got promptly pulled too.
Another BTW. Said cousin drives a v-10 Dodge Ram, which is something of a confirmation of certain stereotypes I (most certainly unfairly) have about drivers of big tough masculine pickup trucks.
If your gaydar was highly refined, you’d see advertising oriented to the GLBT communitee everwhere. And I do mean EVERWHERE. Most are just more subtle than others.
How many of you missed this one for example:
http://www.akawilliam.com/gay-progressive-insurance-commercial/
Well, the Progressive ad was so subtle that it laid an egg if it was targeted at gays. I’ve seen it way too many times, and its “hidden agenda/message” flew right over my head.
BTW, am I the only one who wonders why the transgendered (the “T” in “GLBT”) get lumped into this supposed “market segment?” As I said earlier, my product needs are not that much different from other middle-aged suburban males, and I absolutely don’t identify with the needs of gender identity issues (hell, I have such an aversion to sharp objects in certain places that I won’t even carry a penknife in my pocket)…
Well, if any of you have insecurities over your sexuality left (and I think it’s clear people do), let me tell you what the “real” gay cars are. Since about 1/3 of my neighborhood is gay and my hood is next to SF’s Castro, I’ve been able to compile a pretty good list:
For the rich:
1) Mercedes AMG anything
2) BMW M anything
For the sporty:
1) 3-series
2) A4
For the eco:
1) Prius
2) Mini
For the quirky:
1) Beetle
2) Smart
For the practical (this list is longer):
1) Civic
2) Jetta/Golf
3) Escape
4) Liberty
For the adventurer:
1) 4Runner
2) Explorer
For the family:
1) Subaru Outback
2) Jetta Wagon
So, there you have it. The gay cars. I suggest you not find yourself in any of them lest you be branded “homosexual” or happen to find your car mysteriously driving closer to bumper of the gu/ay in front of you… funny how that happens.
Robert,
You forgot the gayest of all gay cars – the Jeep Wrangler.
re:blue adidas:
“Also, in all seriousness, who uses the word “macho”?
In all fairness, I think hearing this song in his youth is what made JonnyZX feel like he’s got to be a macho man:
Guys…please, my post was NOT meant to be taken that seriously. Whew, talk about insecurity!
We live in a sad, sad world when all traces of this video seem to have “evaporated” from the Internet, and yet we have plenty of opportunities to see photos of Nikki Catsouras’ mangled body following the accident in her Dad’s Porsche.
Well, the Progressive ad was so subtle that it laid an egg if it was targeted at gays. I’ve seen it way too many times, and its “hidden agenda/message” flew right over my head.…
No, it didn’t…your “gaydar” needn’t be keen to see the pride bars on the guy’s shirt, in case the men themselves didn’t do it. That’s the purpose of this type of advertising. They get their message across to gays and straights, and the homophobes are treated to a pair of F-15’s doing flybys. My wife loves to watch “Queer as Folk”, ok, so do I. Entertaining, and good tool to sharpen your “gaydar” even if it overplays the promiscuous side of gay life. But, coming full circle, sex sells.
Good for GM for trying. They need to get the word out that its not the same GM as before, and that the products that they offer, the Camaro in particular, are much more sophisticated than the products of the past. They need to go after different markets, in a more targeted way. I think going after the gay is a great idea. The Camaro certainly is not a stereotypical ‘gay’ car, and there will definately be gay folks that are looking to stand out from all the other gay folks in typically gay cars – which on the Wet Coast seem to be MINI, BMW 3 series, Acuras – anything not domestic.
As a gay car guy, I think its great that they are marketing to us. Its always an interesting study to see what their marketing departments think us gays will respond to.
And its nice to see hunky men washing cars rather than scantly clad women doing the same – ‘spot the fake breasts’ gets really boring, really fast.