VW then vs. now

Then

1962 DDB New York

This commercial reminds me of the simplistic ads done by Bernbach for VW like "Think Small" and "Lemon". This ad is not complicated and says exactly what it means... I like this straight to the point style.

"An Honest 25 mpg" 1973 DDB New York

"La Grande Bug" 1975  DDB New York

Quite a contrast from the first two ads, this ad is much more kitschy and in my opinion, is trying to hard. I think I read that this ad aired during the superbowl which might be a reason why they were trying so hard. Nonetheless, I think the first 2 ads are much more effective than this ad. 

"Changes" 1987 BMP DDB Needham (London)

So 80's, so fabulous. Again, DDB uses a celebrity(sorta).. although, I like this ad much more than the Zsa Zsa ad from the 70's. This commercial was what this model was most famous for, so I don't know if you can really call her a celebrity. 

Now

 "Sunday Afternoon" 1997 Arnold Worldwide

VW goes to Arnold. The ads done by Arnold have a completely different feel. They flow nicely and are always accompanied by really cool and chill music. This ad also reminds me of the ad by Arnold for VW "synchronicity". 

"Big Day" 2001 Arnold Worldwide

Another ad by Arnold with cool music and great flow. These ads are beautiful to watch and this one in particular is like a movie trailer. 

"Machos" 2004 DDB Germany

In Europe, the account was still held by DDB. This ad might have been a little too sexual to air in the states. In the states at this time, Arnold lost the VW account and went to Crispin because sales were down majorly. 

2006 Crispin Porter & Bogusky

In an effort to raise sales for "V-dub" they offered free guitars as incentive to buy a VW. In 2006, Cripsin launched the "German Engineer" and "Safety Happens" campaigns.