GM Super Bowl ad brings electric vehicles to the masses
Will Ferrell starred in GM’s Super Bowl commercial (Photo credit: GM)
Super Bowl Commercial Calls Out American EV Potential
“Meet me in Norway.”
It’s not the tagline you’d imagine for an ad promoting electric vehicles, least of all one with hundreds of millions of eyes consuming it on the biggest television event in the U.S every year.
Yet at this year’s Super Bowl, a heavily bearded and curly-haired Will Ferrell starred in what was, admittedly, an effective commercial for the shortcomings — and potential — of America’s EV industry.
The premise of the 90 second clip is that Norway sells more EVs per capita than the United States (it does, at an alarming and commendable rate.) And, in truly obnoxiously American style, the only man to save the States from their shortcomings is Ron Burgundy himself. He boldly rounds up comedians Awkwafina and Kenan Thompson, demanding that the trio travel to Norway to show off GM’s new electric battery.
Patriotism aside, the ad acknowledges an uncomfortable truth for the United States: they’re falling behind in the EV world. Indeed, in 2020, Europe overtook China as the world’s largest EV market, with a slew of SUVs trumping the popularity of Teslas and hatchbacks.
That trend, though, has been met with a series of ambitious assertions across the pond. Ford asserted its intent to increase EV funding. GM pledged that it will be all-electric by 2035 — with a revival of the Hummer brand leading the electrified charge. Chevy has teased numerous new electric models — or gas-free iterations of existing ones.
And there is some good news, especially for Southern California EVs. According to Veloz, electrics sold incredibly well across the Golden State last year, despite the financial impact brought about by the COVID-19 pandemic. Sales took a hit in Q2, but spiked in Q3 and Q4, with 40,000 units shifted in the last 3 months of the year.
That spike represented a significant 20 percent increase from the same period a year beforehand. California also accounted for 45 percent of all EV sales in America during Q4. All of this is to say one thing: California is the place to be for electric vehicles.
It’s clear that the U.S. has some catching up to do on the global stage — Ferrel proved as much in Sunday’s ad. But as awareness increases, and automakers continue to release more models and further innovate, it might not take a trip to Norway to see the benefits of EVs.
By: Tom Hindle
Borrow is an electric vehicle subscription company with one goal: to make driving an EV as simple and accessible as possible. Borrow is the only electric vehicle subscription service of its kind with a goal of reducing greenhouse gas emissions and decarbonizing the everyday drive.