Audi’s Boost Mode ad is a burst of inspiration

A new campaign by Audi from BBH London is a simple, amusing and effective way to highlight its new model’s speedy feature.

During a university summer job in the early 2000s I found myself working for a cafe owner who claimed he coined the slogan ‘the car in front is a Toyota’ in his previous career. I remain sceptical, but it gave me pause to reflect on what an effective line that was in the automotive advertising canon.

Now, Audi is in some ways providing an illustrative encapsulation of that phrase, by depicting its Audi RS e-tron GT, the fastest car it has ever built, so far into the distance it is hard to see.

The campaign is designed to promote its Boost Mode, which helps the car achieve a 0-62mph speed in 2.8 seconds and comes as standard.

We can’t help but think the Boost feature was at least in part inspired by its electric rival, Tesla, which features an ‘Insane’ mode on some models, equipping the cars for 0-60 speeds of under 2 seconds in some cases. Regardless, Audi is certainly positioning itself in a line of manufacturers keen to tout electric cars in ways that go beyond their environmental and efficiency savings.

The advert also opts to make use of Audi’s distinctive four ring logo in place of its brand name, in keeping with a spate of brands this year, including Tesco and Coca-Cola. 

Is this a creative gear shift for Audi?

Audi’s advertising style has always shot for sophistication, understatement, wry humour and the promotion of its technological superiority, through its “Vorsprung durch Technik” (Advancement through Technology) slogan.

This latest ad veers little from this ethos, emphasising Audi’s engineering prowess, while sticking to a minimalist, yet sleek and polished aesthetic that heroes the car.

It’s worth remembering though, that Audi’s rule book isn’t rigid enough not to be broken every once in a while. We were recently reminded of its 2016 ‘Duel’ campaign, which embraced cinematic excess.