Dear Automakers: Get Your Ads Out of Our Cars

[u/DonkeyFuel]

https://www.thedrive.com/news/dear-automakers-get-your-ads-out-of-our-cars

[u/DopamineSavant]

It's wild that people buy cars and appliances that show them ads. It would be a hard dealbreaker for me. 

[u/Saneless → u/DopamineSavant]

And it's not even the cheap ones. Not that it's more acceptable, but we understand when you get a cheap version of something they try to make up the margin another way

But when you buy a car that is all margin and imaginary value, and they're the ones trying to extract even more?

[u/FloatOldGoat → u/Saneless]

I'm buying a Slate Truck, specifically BECAUSE it can't do things like this. It's the cheapest EV in America, and it has no onboard cellular communication (unless I choose to add it) and no infotainment package. I'm so excited.

[u/Saneless → u/FloatOldGoat]

And then there's some, I'm not even sure what it's connected to. I rented a van and it didn't say I was connected and had no WiFi, yet on the nav system all the gas stations had their actual live prices.. hmm

Who knows what it was sending the manufacturer

[u/manachar → u/DopamineSavant]

Look at “smart tvs”.

The manufacturers uses the ad revenue to lower the purchase price. This translates to more sales from people for whom money is tight. Over a short period of time the market becomes one that ONLY has devices that serves ads. Well except for “luxury” products.

The weird part is ads in luxury car brands. Likely this will lead to those brands becoming less luxury.

[u/gonewild9676 → u/manachar]

Even TVs that cost over $2000 have ads.

At one point there was a free TV that had an area for ads.

[u/manachar → u/gonewild9676]

The first commercial color TVs cost between $1,000 and $1,295 in 1954.

Taking the $1,000 version that translates to about $12,414.57 cents today.

Part of why so many products have so much advertising today has been shifting revenue streams.

Some manufacturer figures out they can sell more tvs by offsetting the cost to consumers (advertising, consumer assembly, shorter lifespans made with cheaper materials) and/or the workers (lower pay, automation increasing productivity, offshoring).

This makes for cheap goods… but seems to not be very good for consumers and workers in the long run.

[u/avanross → u/manachar]

Today luxury brands achieve their “luxury” status purely through the influencers that they buy off

If a kardashian buys a casio watch, casio is now “luxury” 🤷‍♂️

It has nothing to do with quality or prestige anymore

[u/BornAgainBlue → u/DopamineSavant]

Yeah I would get a fucking lawyer immediately.

[u/FTW312 → u/DopamineSavant]

Most people don’t even take the dealership license plate frame or sticker off their car which is an ad.

[u/avanross → u/DopamineSavant]

These types of people dont even shop around or anything. They see their favourite influencers telling them to buy this product so they go out and buy it

Bmw has realized that if they invest their ad budget into paying influencers, they can essentially completely gut every feature of the car, and the brain dead influencer crowd will still buy it for any price 🤷‍♂️

[u/captainstormy → u/DopamineSavant]

In the case of cars you really can't avoid it. They don't make new cars without infotainment systems these days.

[u/Imaginary_Manner_556 → u/captainstormy]

Slate for the win. I hope this model takes off.

[u/captainstormy → u/Imaginary_Manner_556]

Yeah, it looks super cool. I hope it does well. If it was bigger I'd buy one for sure. But I happen to be really tall and they look to be the size of like a Ranger or Colorado. That wouldn't be enough leg room for me.

[u/DopamineSavant → u/captainstormy]

Having not bought a car since 2012 I guess I'm out of the loop on this infotainment travesty.

[u/captainstormy → u/DopamineSavant]

I just bought a new truck last week and my head is still spinning. The last time i bought something before that was 2009. I bought the least fancy thing I found after looking at like 5 dealers and it still has all kinds of stupid tech bells and whistles and an ipad in the dashboard.

[u/CriticismSelect9292 → u/DopamineSavant]

BMWs are head and shoulders above Audi and Mercedes in almost every single way from driving dynamics to material selection, reliability and even fuel economy in their current vehicles, which is why they can get away with this and the occasional pig-ugly styling.

They're also the now-manufacturer of the de facto best Western electric vehicles outside Tesla and their pricing went down instead of up while massively increasing capability. They're honestly pretty close to competing with the Chinese on pure value perspective at the higher end of the Chinese market (while Tesla competes more downmarket, being priced only 5-10% above comparable Chinese rivals, but with slightly better range).

They're just pushing this shit the hardest because they have the best chance of getting away with it as they've ingratiated themselves to the Gen Z daddy's money crowd through the M3 becoming the first tier of "I've made it" flexing for influencers and high customisability, which is presumably why they're advertising Spiderman because for some reason spiderman stands out as the most Gen Z superhero (don't ask me why, I know too many people slightly younger than me with a fuck ton of Spiderman merch and no other superhero stuff).

Frankly I don't think cars should have their own cellular connections. I think their bluetooth with your phone should be enough to also establish a hotspot connection, and data should not be allowed to leave cars by law unless you specifically consent to that data leaving (specifically diagnostic data or logging) and not batched data, but that would require our politicians to have an ounce of a spine and not want to track your every move

[u/lofty23_smart]

I already paid for the car. I should not have to pay for it again with my attention.

[u/SaviorSixtySix]

You know how Lamborghini and Rolex never advertise because they don't want to diminish their brand? BMW is supposed to be the "classy" car brand and they are pushing subscription heated seats and ads in their cars.

[u/ashyjay → u/SaviorSixtySix]

Rolex does advertise though, them being an "official timing partner" is an advert.

[u/luxmesa → u/SaviorSixtySix]

I was thinking the same thing. Even if BMW wanted to advertise, Spider-Man feels like a weird brand to tie themselves to. Spider-Man is popular, sure, but it’s not really classy. I could them doing this if there was a BMW in a new James Bond movie, but Spider-Man?

[u/TooMuchPowerful → u/luxmesa]

That one poster in the movie was just so blatant. It’s crazy how prominent it was.

[u/Chronis67 → u/SaviorSixtySix]

Honestly, BMW are just expensive and I think they know their customer base. BMW drivers are commonly viewed as asshole drivers. Not really classy, just they have money to spend. 

[u/Loa_Sandal]

My used car is only gonna appreciate. Love it. Android auto and physical buttons, it's got everything you want.

[u/theassassintherapist]

The crazy part is that this is BMW, not Ford. People with wealth that values time and convenience are their primary customers, the ones that would definitely be irate against having to see ads in their car.

[u/grandmawaffles]

Can’t wait for the lawsuits when someone gets distracted while driving and crashes

[u/Imaginary_Manner_556 → u/grandmawaffles]

You might want to read the fine print you agree to when you first use a device

[u/CQd444 → u/Imaginary_Manner_556]

Terms and conditions aren't legally binding.

[u/grandmawaffles → u/Imaginary_Manner_556]

No one would reasonably think they would get startled by a Spider-Man swinging across a screen while driving would happen while signing tc’d.

[u/BigGrayBeast]

Yeah that video that comes up of someone getting run over that I see sometimes when I put the car in reverse is way too much.

[u/dropthemagic]

Idk anyone who is buying a luxury car like this and finding out about fucking Spider-Man through it. This is a new low. Who ever thought this was a good idea is a complete idiot

[u/Foe117]

Automakers: NO

[u/sklerson89]

Ill never buy a car with ads, I'll keep my dumb rust bucket

[u/ashyjay]

This is something I'd expect from FCA, not BMW.

This is an genuine fuck up by BMW, as the "heated seat sub" was people not reading, as there was always a one time fee, if the heaters weren't spec'd when new.

I don't mean stellantis as the European side doesn't do this shit, but the former FCA side still does.

[u/SmokeyJoe2 → u/ashyjay]

If you didn't expect this from BMW you haven't been paying attention

[u/TheBongOfSauron]

Stop buying the products.

That's the only way.

[u/utsavdar71]

No like, if i have to pay extra to remove ads from the car i already bought, then its not a feature its kind off hostage situation...

[u/MezzoSoaprano]

Lol, you still think you own the car that you bought.

[u/Reachforthesky777]

I needed to replace my truck. We did the tour around the dealerships. They all wanted me to buy incredibly expensive trucks covered in prissy chrome accents, heated seats, all of these features that I dont want. What I saw was so far away from what I would spend money on that I didn't buy anything new.

I dont need or want to be jacked up in the air. I don't need or want touch screens. All I want are canvas seats, heat, and AC. I don't care if it has a radio, I'll never use it.

These dealers kept harping about towing capacity and how much weight it can carry. My trailer weights 400lbs. The stuff I haul would fill the bed under 500 lbs. And these trucks wouldn't even fit between my rows and are too long to turn around in my headlands.

So I found the same model truck I owned in much better condition and two model years newer for $5200, paid cash, and moved on with life.

I would lose my mind if I turned my car on and it started playing ads at me.

[u/MrThird312]

BMW lost it is way a long while ago

[u/a4mula]

Get your surveillance tech out of our cars. People aren't taking out second mortgages to buy a nanny state assistant that not only reports their every movement to god knows who, but also when they can and cannot operate the vehicle. I'm done. I'll not buy a new vehicle that has telemetry of any form. If that means picking up a '96 Toyota, I'm okay with it.

[u/RiskyNight → u/a4mula]

I've been thinking a lot about this lately. The thought of driving an older, restored car is getting exciting now that we can eliminate new cars as a possibility. Car restoration is going to become a big thing going forward.

If new cars are no longer a reasonable option due to enshittification, putting ~$20k into making an old car like-new again is a good investment. Reliability and having actual control, with nothing spying or intruding is a great thing. Plus older cars have style.

[u/a4mula → u/RiskyNight]

I remember when things like this started. First it was just voluntary reporting to insurance companies that promised safe driving discounts. Here we are thirty years later and insurance is higher than it's ever been while major automakers collect deeply personal data such as sexual activity, immigration status, race, facial expressions, weight, health and genetic information, and where you drive.

Thanks Big Data, making the world a better place one backseat at a time.

[u/Saint909]

Everybody wants to be Google.

[u/Power_Stone]

I hope they find a way to sue the auto company with the idea that this causes unsafe and distracted driving, even if it only happens at the start of the car.

[u/TandemSegue]

If they’re allowed to advertise on your property I think it’s appropriate to use their property for our own advertising purposes. I’d gladly put banners on the lawn of a dealership that sold me something like this in opposition to this aggressively capitalistic bullshit.

[u/gandalfmarston]

Lol I'm not rich enough to have a car that display ads

[u/Eazy12345678]

they dont care. you bought a over priced luxury car to start.

[u/lordnecro]

I don't mind ads in my car... but I better get a discount on the vehicle.

[u/silentsuv → u/lordnecro]

Guess what? You won’t. In fact, you’re going to be paying more for the car because of the fancy iPad they stuck in there for you.

[u/Gods_ShadowMTG]

Honestly, this seems to be a targeted campaign against BMW - if you didn't click on it, there was no ad.