OK, maybe I'm just easily impressed, but that Australian ad linked above in comments just convinced me to knock off 2-5 miles when driving in residential areas.

If it convinces even one person to buy a Jetta or another car that size rather than another SUV so large it blocks out the sun because it's so much "safer", then I say amen.

yeff:

Pilot episode of Six Feet Under, 2001.

This VW ad seems to be part of a recent genre of "sudden car crash from the point of view of the occupants of the car" scenes.

There's the examples mentioned by the previous posters.

Another example is the "Alias" scene where Michael Vartan's character says "My name isn't Michael Vaughn" right before the car is broadsided (seen in the recent ads).

The earliest example I can think of is the scene in "Adaptation" where John Laroche (played by Chris Cooper) is in a car crash with his family.

Anybody have any earlier examples? (ie, where did this particular meme start).

yeff

Here in Australia, the Transport Accident Commision runs some very graphic ads to try to educate the public.

They do seem to work.

Here's a link to the most recent (it's not particularly graphic, but does make you think).

http://www.tacsafety.com.au/index.html

I don't CARE if it sells cars. I think it may make at least a few people buckle up more often.

Kudos to Volkwagen, and when they're done running the series, the NTSB should fund running them again every few years.

There's also the Jetta commercial featuring four adults talking about a movie before they're broadsided in an intersection. Both commercials cut off the passengers saying "holy shit," which to me is even weirder, because what could be a sobering reminder about accidents ends on a quasi-comedic note.

That's a really nice ad. It's a see-it-once ad, but the impact [heh] is undeniable. Plus, it reminds me of that scene in Office Space...

It definitely raises VW's cool factor.

I have been in two car accidents that involved airbags. Just some scrapes the first time. The second one involved broken bones and surgery. I don't care to be in another. And I don't care to ever see that commercial again.

I do wonder if this ad will sell any cars. I find it disturbing and jarring.