BMW ordered to change TV advert after complaints it condoned dangerous driving

BMW has been ordered to change a TV advertisement, after the advertising watchdog ruled that it implied driving at speed could be daring and exciting.

The ad for the BMW 3 Series showed a car approaching a coastal road, before a voice-over said: “Curves invite you in”. The driver then changed gear and the tachometer – the instrument tracking a vehicle’s revs – bounced up.

Created by agency Inferno, it later cut to a woman riding a rollercoaster, with the voiced line “curves help you escape”. A man in swimming trunks standing on top of a cliff, facing the sea was then seen.

It’s final line, “Curves inspire you, and definitely dare you. And the new BMW 3 Series was made for every one of them” was spoken as the final shots showed the car being driven along the coastal road.

It attracted three complaints over claims it condoned dangerous driving.

BMW argued that the ad did not “contain any references to driving at speed or aggressive driving” and customers were simply being dared to enjoy their journey.

“The message of the ad was to dare the driver to take a route that they might not normally consider, not for speed, but for comfort,” it said in response.

The ASA found that excessive speed was not explicitly indicated in the ad, but said the clip “gave the impression that the car depicted was being driven along the winding coastal road at considerable speed”.