After an outpouring of criticism of its Nissan Juke commercial, it looks like someone at the Japanese company has yanked its videos of the motorcycle-eating CUV from the internet. With the videos on YouTube and Vimeo now set to “private” and requiring a password to watch, it would seem that Nissan wisely doesn’t want you to see one of its latest promotions of the Juke, where a computer animated version of the Nissan Juke turns the tables on the “predatory” motorcycles, and hunts them down by running-over the motorcyclists. The pièce de résistance to this motorcyclist massacre is that the Juke’s motorcycle-inspired center console is in fact a trophy from one of the CUV’s many kills from the video. We seriously couldn’t make this up if we tried, and yet that very storyboard somehow made its way through an ad agency pitch.
Getting a proper roasting here at Asphalt & Rubber, we can only imagine that the frustration vented by motorcyclists in our comments showed a glimpse into the emails that Nissan recieved from the advertisement. Luckily one of our readers here at A&R shared with us the response they got from Nissan Canada, the branch responsible for the online Nissan Juke campaign in question. The reply confirms that the videos are in the process of being removed, though we’re not sure the duration of the campaign, nor its “super-natural” fell has much relevancy to the situation, and it certainly does not ease the fact that Nissan is showing an automobile maliciously run-over motorcyclists.
Considering that many of the members of the motorcycle community can share a common story about how a negligent or road-raged driver has nearly run them of the road (or worse, succeeded in that endeavor), we stand behind our position that Nissan probably could have picked a better way to make references to motorcycling-inspired design elements than what the company produced in this “trophy” storyline. A copy Nissan Canada’s response, with redacted names, is after the jump.
Dear ***********:
Thank you for comments regarding the advertising clip for the Nissan JUKE you recently viewed on ‘YouTube’.
The advert you have made reference to in your recent email has been run by Nissan in Canada for the past 12 months as part of a fantasy-inspired promotional campaign.
We at Nissan Canada wish to advise you that the advertising campaign featuring fantasy-inspired digital videos was created exclusively for online audiences, to showcase the unique design and performance of the Nissan Juke, including the motorcycle-inspired design elements of the car.
The clips were purposefully created in a supernatural setting so as not to draw on the reality of reckless driving and its consequences, which Nissan would in no way wish to promote.
Please accept my apologies on behalf of Nissan for any distress that this advertising campaign may have caused you. I can confirm that the advert is being removed by Nissan Canada from its ‘YouTube Channel’ .
We appreciate you taking time to get in touch with us to share your concerns, and would like to assure you of our commitment to road safety for both drivers of our vehicles, and other road users and that Nissan do not condone or promote carless driving under any circumstances.
Sincerely yours,
*****************
Consumer Relations Representative
Nissan Canada Inc.
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