>>so i was at the gym working out today when I noticed these Pontiac advertisements all over the gym, near the locker room and in the locker room. At first i walked by, but then, i wanted to see what the GTO looked like....
>>
>>then i read the Advertisement...
>>
>>i had to read it over to believe what it said...
>>
>>Here is what it said...
>>
>>"Go Ahead,
>>Tell the guys in the locker room you have a mini."
>>
>>WHAT THE HECK!!! WHAT IS GOING ON HERE!!! WHAT AN OFFENSIVE AD!!
>>
>>i snapped a pic with my phone and here it is:
>>
>>

_________________
"You don't need a weatherman to know which way the wind blows." rz

 

what if you have a MINI & a GTO (a real GTO not an 04)

_________________

 

KM, the old GTOs from the '60s were/are classics. Whole differenet story. Back then also, a lot of folks had VW Bugs/Karmon Kias, MGBs/Midgets, Triumpth Spitfires, etc. etc. and no advertiser ever pulled this kind of crap. Tells you that GM is feeling the crunch AND are going after the "legion of insecure" (of whom there are many). Who would wait 4-6 months for a new GTO? Huh? I bet the ad executive who came up with that ad has a small weeny too.

_________________
"You don't need a weatherman to know which way the wind blows." rz

 

My own GM vs. MINI story;

In 1998 I paid $54,000 for a new Corvette Convertible. 4 years later, I sold it on eBay soon after I got my MINI.

I can't tell you the number of "small *****" jokes I endured driving the Vette. Rarely did I ever get a compliment on the car and when I did, let's just say it came from people you probably wouldn't find yourself hanging out with too often. Often the car would invite criticism. And in the end, I had to agree with them. While it handled well and had tons of power, that car was a real snooze to drive, lacking in anything even remotely resembling a personality.

Fast forward to the MINI. Got mine in July of '02. Compliments? I felt like a celebrity. People just loved it. And what a blast to drive. And "small ***** joke free" so far.

It is interesting that GM choose to perpetuate a stereotype that they themselves inadvertently invented! And it is no mystery that they choose the MINI to pick on in their ad. The MINI has arrived. And they know it.

 

Blimeyy!

BTW, the " 'Vette Lady", as she spun on around that giant turntable with her mic, was the most nicely dressed announcer at the Chicago Auto Show... The "visible chassis" part of the display was a cool idea too, I thought.

 

>>Fixed it
>>
>>Jack


done it, THANX!!!! (Feel much better now, even though its weird)

 

All ads suck equally.

 

Honestly, who here is really offended. Did anyone that bought a MINI settle? "I can't afford a Pontiac, so I guess I'll wait 4 - 6 months for a lesser MINI" I didn't think so. I work with several car enthusiasts for an automotive supplier. Everyone of them thought the MINI really cool and wanted a test drive in mine, well except the Pontiac GrandPrix driver. Do we really care if some advertising company for Pontiac doesn't understand MINI? Anyone who understands and loves MINIs is not interested in the 04 GTO.

I say let them buy Pontiac, we'll buy MINI

 

>>...and it's not a GTO. This, and only this, is a GTO...
>>
>>
>>
>>

here, here!! i second this motion!!!!!!!!!

 

I really do not think you all should under-estimate the beauty of pontiacs vehicles:

 

Many thanks for the 250 GTO pictures XAlfa! I have been looking for a couple like them for a friend!
JCIP

 

>>I really do not think you all should under-estimate the beauty of pontiacs vehicles:
>>

ugliest... vehicle.... ever.

I don't know though, and I may be the only one who thinks so, but the Plymouth Prowler was pretty ugly as well. Another GM "design" :smile:

 

>>I really do not think you all should under-estimate the beauty of pontiacs vehicles:
>>
>>

 

>>what if you have a MINI & a GTO (a real GTO not an 04)
>>
>>_________________
>>

Koolmini. Howdy! I was wondering when you were gonna raise your head in here. I've been biting my tongue waiting. So which ride are you taking to Dragon?

 

>>ugliest... vehicle.... ever.
>>
>>I don't know though, and I may be the only one who thinks so, but the Plymouth Prowler was pretty ugly as well. Another GM "design" :smile:

Here's a previous ugliest car thread!

_________________
"The dude minds! This aggression will not stand, man."

 

>>so i was at the gym working out today when I noticed these Pontiac advertisements all over the gym, near the locker room and in the locker room. At first i walked by, but then, i wanted to see what the GTO looked like....
>>
>>then i read the Advertisement...
>>
>>i had to read it over to believe what it said...
>>
>>Here is what it said...
>>
>>"Go Ahead,
>>Tell the guys in the locker room you have a mini."
>>


It's more like "Go ahead and SHOW the guys in the locker room you need a GTO to compensate for IBD*."

*Itty Bitty Dicky.

-Jim

 

>>Anyone who understands and loves MINIs is not interested in the 04 GTO.

How do you know for sure? Got the stats to back that up? Didnt think so...

Some people here really do have a complex, the mini isnt gods gift to cars people! If someone likes the gto then cool, if they like the mini then thats cool too...in the end its still just a car. People buy what they like I dont think its right to look down on them for what they drive.

Before I got my mini and was planning on getting one many of my friends and relatives said the mini was too small or that it looked girly. When I did get it they all wanted a test drive and loved the mini. In highschool lots of my friends with their hondas made fun of me because I drove a 67 mustang, but when they saw those tail lights pull away from them and the roar from my V8 they changed their minds

 

Gotta agree with rfibanez here....I'm interested in a whole lot of cars besides the MINI. Do I think Pontiac blew the styling? Yes - but from what I've read, the performance is not lagging, even in the twisties.

 

>>>>I really do not think you all should under-estimate the beauty of pontiacs vehicles:
>>>>
>>
>>ugliest... vehicle.... ever.
>>
>>I don't know though, and I may be the only one who thinks so, but the Plymouth Prowler was pretty ugly as well. Another GM "design" :smile:


Pancho, I hate to differ. Ugliest car ever is a little beast called an "Andino" made in South America (the country shalll remain anonymous to protect the innocent), also a GM design (Vauxhall of England) actually, that looked like the Aztec but executed by a drunken monkey. running gear was Made in the UK old Vauxhall stuff from the 60's.

 

>>...and don't they have a rule about camera phones in locker rooms?


this exact ad was not the one in the locker room

anyways, i take the ad as a compliment to the MINI and im sure there will be a lawsuit real soon...

 

Pontiac will just say it was a reference to "mini" van. As "mini" is not capitalized, it cannot be a reference to a competitors vehicle, can it?

 

Went down to my Pontiac dealer today and checked out the GTO. The one they had was a very manly color, purple. I didn't drive it but it looked good to me, especially on the inside. The outside is to "generic car" looking to be a GTO. Still, if I was considering a $40,000+ V-8 powered BMW I'd take this Corvette powered GTO for a spin before I plunked over my bucks......GTO list is $31,000.

I didn't see anything that I thought should prompt the "POS" description from anyone............other than it's not a MINI.



R.E.

 

>>Still, if I was considering a $40,000+ V-8 powered BMW I'd take this Corvette powered GTO for a spin before I plunked over my bucks......GTO list is $31,000.

I'd check out the new Mustang GT also

 

>>>>Still, if I was considering a $40,000+ V-8 powered BMW I'd take this Corvette powered GTO for a spin before I plunked over my bucks......GTO list is $31,000.
>>
>>I'd check out the new Mustang GT also :smile:

 

My message of yesterday to Pontiac read:

"Your current GTO ad making a reference to the "mini" is beneath
your image as a brand and insulting to some of us. I will certainly
remember this ad next time I am in the new car market."

Here is what they had to say:

"Thank you for contacting the Pontiac Customer Assistance Center. We appreciate you taking the time to write us in regards to your reaction to our recent ad campaign for the 2004 Pontiac GTO.

We appreciate your comments and opinions regarding advertising at Pontiac. We apologize if our ad wasn't appeasing to you. We do a number of different advertising themes; unfortunately one ad cannot effectively encompass our entire customer base. It is never our intention to offend any of our current or potential customers and if we have done so in your case, please accept our apologies. Again, we appreciate your feedback and have documented your comments.

We have created a computer file, 1-194272002, to document your comments. Please be assured that our files are audited frequently and your comments will not go unnoticed.

If you should need to contact us in the future, simply reply to this message or call our Pontiac Customer Assistance Center at 1-800-762-2737. Customer Relationship Managers are available Monday through Friday from 8:00 a.m. to 11:00 p.m., Eastern Time.

Again, thank you for contacting Pontiac.

Sincerely,


Richard Peterson
Customer Relationship Manager
Pontiac Customer Assistance Center

Good enough for me.......