The shock factor, strange qualities, and unusual presentation that some companies have turned to in order to show you a vehicle and market it toward you in ways that we’ve not seen before are something to behold. Over the years of this industry, we’ve seen a variety of commercials and presentations that make us wonder what’s being sold until the very last frame when the item finally makes its appearance on the screen. With that in mind, here are several of the strange automotive marketing campaigns we’ve seen over the years.

Audi e-tron Escape Room –There is an escape room in Barcelona, Spain that’s the result of a collaboration between this German brand and DDB Spain, which is a marketing company. This particular escape room has puzzles to solve with a variety of high-tech features for you to experience and enjoy including robotic arms and holograms for the fun.

Chevrolet Orlando Play-Doh –The Chevrolet Orlando was an SUV that the brand chose to offer to the European market and one way to do this was to build one out of Play-Doh. The reason for this toy choice over the Legos that have been popular was the fact that Play-Doh was the most popular toy that year. This replica of the SUV weighted in at 1.5 tons and was presented in downtown London.

Dodge Ram Cattle Herd –During the 2008 Detroit Auto Show the Ram team asked cowboys and cowgirls to herd 120 cattle down Washington Boulevard in Detroit. They also brought in Dodge-branded beef jerky to the event and a pair of trucks drove the herd down the city streets to make a scene that some admired and others loathed; either way, it was an interesting presentation.

Honda and Pompous Albert –As a finicky cat character that was used in some of the Honda campaigns you can see Pompous Albert in the social media videos that have been used and presented to make it fun to see what this cat likes and doesn’t like when he chooses the vehicle he feels comfortable riding in on the roads.

Jaguar E-Pace Barrel Roll –Not only was this one of the most impressive ways to show off this new SUV and let us see what it can be, the team at Jaguar earned a spot in the Guinness Book of World Records with this event. While you may never need to perform a barrel roll in your E-Pace, its still extremely cool to see and enjoy.

Jaguar XJ –Game of Drones –Jaguar set up an arena that had drones flying through 13 gates that are the same size and shape as the rear of the XJL door. This seems to be a bit of an odd way to show off what this vehicle has for the drive, but it shows you how roomy the flagship sedan can be when you want to have the drive and the fun of what Jaguar has to offer

Kia Hamsters –We’ve all seen them and admired the Kia Soul they drive as one of the most fun and funky vehicles offered on the market. Using dancing hamsters that seem to be cool and a lot of fun wherever they go is a bit strange, but its been part of what we’ve come to love and admire about how this car is offered to us for the drive.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xwTF5qQr_SI

Mini “Cooper” Cold Front –To bring more attention to the brand, Mini sponsored a cold front that was going to march across Europe and named it Cooper. This happened in 2012 and those that remember can tell you this was a bit of a disaster because the resulting weather ended up being a tragic event that killed at least 100 people in Europe, causing BMW to apologize.

Lincoln and Matthew McConaughey –He has become the face of Lincoln over the past few years and most of the commercials show him relaxed and laid back while enjoying a smooth and luxurious drive in whatever Lincoln model is being presented. This campaign has been successful enough to reach meme status and let is admire what this brand has to offer.

https://youtu.be/WVmBEaeXw14

Smart Car Bicycle Lock–The Smart car brand is one we admire for how small and efficient the cars are that can make their way around the cities we drive. A campaign that showed off with creativity was one that showed the Smart Car being locked to a pole with a typical bicycle lock that would keep this car from being able to be stolen by a would be thief.