Was it a Ford commercial?

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Was it a Ford commercial?

Post by Michael Pajaro » Mon Feb 18, 2008 2:57 am

I know the big fear was that this would wind up being one huge commercial to Ford. And I know some people viewed it that way. But I have to tell you, the movie itself (ignoring commercials) did not scream product placement to me.

The Cobra logo does not bother me from a marketing standpoint. (I still prefer the old KITT, which had no branding whatsoever.) But since I'm not a "car guy", the Cobra doesn't scream out at me. I think the product placement is much worse in Heroes where the camera does pan over the Ford logo. I don't think we saw a single Ford logo, and it seemed to me the word "Mustang" was used about as many times as "Trans Am".

The Momo steering wheel? I don't recall seeing it, but if it was shown it blended in naturally enough for me that I didn't take notice.

Frankly, I was surprised to see Toyota and Honda advertising during the show. I just assumed Ford would strike some sort of exclusivity deal with NBC not to allow other car manufacturers commercial time.
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Re: Was it a Ford commercial?

Post by scottab21 » Mon Feb 18, 2008 3:12 am

I thought it was a well produced, entertaining show. Besides what you already mentioned, I didn't really see a lot of "Ford" placement in the movie. I actually liked the way they used Justin Bruening in the Ford commercials (4 part series), and I hope I win a car! 8)

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Re: Was it a Ford commercial?

Post by poilala » Mon Feb 18, 2008 8:29 am

I think exactly like Michael Pajaro : this is more of a commercial than the original KR (where I'm pretty sure the word "Trans-Am" has never been said at least once, everyone in the show referred to the car as "a black T-top"), but this still isn't as bad as the 24 prequels (which really are Toyota advertisements).

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Re: Was it a Ford commercial?

Post by neps » Mon Feb 18, 2008 8:37 am

Well in the old show, you would occasionally see "Pontiac" through the blackout - or the emblem on the bowling ball hubcaps - so it wasn't that hard.

I don't think I've seen as many car commercials for one event ever. You had Ford, Mazada, Suzzuki, Toyota, Honda, etc all over the place. It was crazy.

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Re: Was it a Ford commercial?

Post by MSFproductionsMAIN » Mon Feb 18, 2008 8:44 am

I Did notice in Las Vegas, They kind of promoted one of there other NBC Shows (las Vegas) by showing the Monticeto Casino & plastering it's name really big as K.I.T.T. drove under it.

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Re: Was it a Ford commercial?

Post by goldbug » Mon Feb 18, 2008 8:49 am

The only time I recall seeing a clear Ford logo was in the beginning where the bad guys chase KITT with the SUV. Other than that, most of the "extra" vehicles in this were pretty non-distinctive. From all the hype over Ford I was half expecting a scene where KITT pulls into the motel parking lot and you see a Focus, Taurus, Expedition and Fusion all parked in a row. :lol: They avoided stuff like that and I'm really glad.
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