Based on the full-size Holden/Chevrolet Caprice, the Chinese-market Buick Park Avenue is the Tri Shield brand’s flagship in the Land of the Red Dragon. Using current exchange rates, the Zeta-based park Avenue has a starting price of $60,000 (or 370,000 Chinese Yuan) and is simply Buick — at its finest. This commercial underscores this notion oh-so-perfectly.
The three minute-long ad features opera music with modern undertones while a black Park Ave drives on a contemporary modern bridge (the Sutong Bridge in Nantong City, Jiangsu Province — hat tip to Rocky). The commercial cuts to an oriental businessman and draws metaphors between physical business-related items (sky scrapers, eye glasses, metal creation) and the car’s features (wheel studs, head lamps, engine explosions — respectively). Meanwhile, the vehicle’s features are listed — including exterior dimensions, GPS, power rear seat adjustments, flip-down screens with harman/kardon logic 7 audio, etc.). The ad is imposing:
The GM Authority Take
In a word, this commercial is awesome. Up until the very end, there isn’t a single word being said — as the clip’s stirring music and real-world-to-feature showdown are enough to create emotion. So even if we knew nothing about Buick, the Park Avenue, or China, we would come away knowing that the product for which we just watched an ad exudes power, success, and class. Heaps of each, in fact.
Contrast that with Buick’s marketing approach in North America… and why in the heck is the Park Ave only available in China? We hope the reason is the upcoming Omega platform that would underpin a global replacement for such a vehicle.
Comments
shoulda seen this one…. http://www.tudou.com/programs/view/Gkz1pCRUGJw/
But come to think of it…. that park avenue would make a good Equus competitor IMO
Does the Equus need competing with? 😉
Or should I say Genesis?
Lolz vic — what I’m saying is that neither of Hyundai’s “luxury” offerings needs a competitor. They’re not successful, and no one needs to follow them into that market. Keep the luxury stuff in a luxury brand — where it belongs 😉
Well regularly these cars in China are gonna be driven by a chauffeur with owners on the backseat
The video doesn’t follow the music. Dramatic point in music, gear shifter is shown slowly. Imagine the Imperial March being replaced by Yackety Sax. The video just wasn’t exciting, bold, or powerful enough for the track.
Few automotive commercials, or any commercial, can come close to packing the same dramatic and meaningful punch that Imported from Detroit did.. then Half Time in America came along. It might have been payed for by ChryCo and featured the 200C, but it was unifying a broken country, and a broken industry.
Then Halftime in America did the same, but also reiterated that other than the people who’ve walked on the moon, Clint Eastwood is the next most badass mofo.
The best GM ‘commercials’ of late is the ATS vs the World series. Not really a conventional commercial, but a very interesting marketing strategy.
Pagani has had some visually amazing commercials, the one for the Zonda R) is amazing… Though it needed a moment of silence in the sound track to hear that engine note that isn’t even track legal.
The one for the Huayra is good too, has a Ridley Scott feel to it. Runimation did both, and other work for Pagani (the Huayra documentary is a good 20min watch), and has done some amazing work outside the automotive world too.
amazing car, too bad its not very loyal as in with the brand and us Americans cant enjoy these
i read some time ago buick were offered the caprice but said no, it did not fit their lineup, they would not want an imported flagship, the top car must be us made and now with chev using it as a cop car, no way in hell will buick touch it.
even holden admits the buick version is the best of all the variations, too bad nobody outside china can buy one,
Great ad!!! But GM’s best is still the Holden Ute “evolution” tvc.
This one:
http://gmauthority.com/blog/2011/09/ad-break-holden-transforms-the-ute/
Yep, thats the one 🙂
Opel also has some great commercial ads
Opel Astra GTC:
http://gmauthority.com/blog/2012/12/ad-break-opel-astra-gtc-induces-dreams-about-driving-with-video/
Opel Insignia ST:
Opel Insignia:
The Astra GTC ad is the best.
Have you seen the Holden Ute “Evolution” ad? Best ever. Hands down.
A few thoughts:
1: The bridge is the Sutong Bridge in Nantong City, Jiangsu Province. Won the ASCE 2010 award for outstanding civil engineering.
2: Holden built in China looks good
3: Odd that the steel forge pictures are towards the end of the video. US adverts usually have that touch at the start and build up.
4: Would have thought that Choral music would sound odd to Chinese ears. I’ve been educated!
I bet we will see something like this in a few years…..
…all I thought while watching this was a theme:
“The Rise of the Chinese Empire…”
Don’t you mean “The RETURN of the Chinese Empire”?
Whoops, this thing has a 2 cylinder?
Errr…this is a 2010 model. I was expecting a 2013, perhaps.
Eventually, the verano and regal should meet in the middle of their price overlap, and the regal and lacrosse as well. This would leave room above the lacrosse and below the Cadillac xts price wise. Right now, Buick has too much overlap going from the verano to the regal and then to the lacrosse. GM has certainly indicated the verano’s upward sales momentum is in good part responsible for the regal’s sales slide.
Very nice luxury automobile, except for the Impala tail lights.
Sad to say that the Buick Park Avenue will soon be discontinued, It is a great car and better than its donor Holden Caprice but it sold less than 500 units in China in 2013.
No replacement has been announced for the Buick Park Avenue, all a GM secret due to the decision to close Holden’s manufacturing in Australia. But at least the US gets to keep some of the platforms DNA in their current Chevy Camaro and enjoy the real thing in the Chevy Caprice cop car and the shorter wheelbase Chevy SS.
I hate that one of our best luxury cars is in CHINA and not here in America. Bring this car back home and it will sell, BIG TIME. I want one.