# Subaru, am I stupid?



## Puscas (Mar 16, 2008)

Ok, I'm lost here. Just watched the Subaru Big Tent Event ad for the 15th time. It's the one where a guy is dressed in a gorilla-suit and someone sais 'no not that kind of tent' and he points at a small tent with deer in the middle of the showroom. I DON'T GET IT!!???

I googled it and all I found was people asking the same questions. But there are so many smart people on TPF, so someone can solve this, right? 
(besides the fact that I'm falling for the whole 'we confuse you, so you talk about it and you'll remember our ad' tactic)


I thought this was off topic enough...:mrgreen: 





pascal


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## Corry (Mar 16, 2008)

Link me to the ad, silly boy.


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## Puscas (Mar 16, 2008)

Corry said:


> Link me to the ad, silly boy.



getting lazy?  


hold on...


here it is: LINK



pascal


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## JimmyO (Mar 16, 2008)

wow, thats pretty funny


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## Corry (Mar 16, 2008)

Just looks like they are trying to emphasize the outdoorsy aspect of it.


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## Trenton Romulox (Mar 16, 2008)

It's a new marketing tactic. It's the 'Gorilla man drives this, so should you' tactic. It's been popular in Kenya for a while, and I'm glad to see it's finally making its way to the States. 'Bout time.


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## asherexplore (Mar 16, 2008)

Big tent = crazy eye grabbing tactics like a guy in a gorilla suit. ( a big fancy show just to bring ppl in and sell any old product)

Small tent = camping tent/real outdoor environment. which is what they think you will really use your subaru for.

does that make sense? im not describing it very well but...


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## Puscas (Mar 16, 2008)

you guys make even less sense...

it's the whole 'it's not that kind of tent' that I don't understand. 






pascal


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## Puscas (Mar 16, 2008)

asherexplore said:


> Big tent = crazy eye grabbing tactics like a guy in a gorilla suit. ( a big fancy show just to bring ppl in and sell any old product)
> 
> Small tent = camping tent/real outdoor environment. which is what they think you will really use your subaru for.
> 
> does that make sense? im not describing it very well but...




ah yes. Big tent as in 'a great show' to attract people, right?
Thanks, thát makes sense.







pascal


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## asherexplore (Mar 16, 2008)

Puscas said:


> it's the whole 'it's not that kind of tent' that I don't understand.



They are saying its not a huge eye catching big tent event that you would normaly associate with a car sale..

its a small camping tent.. buy a subaru and you can use it to enjoy the outdoors in places you couldn't before-type of thing.


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## Trenton Romulox (Mar 16, 2008)

asherexplore said:


> They are saying its not a huge eye catching big tent event that you would normaly associate with a car sale..
> 
> its a small camping tent.. buy a subaru and you can use it to enjoy the outdoors in places you couldn't before-type of thing.



Haha. Maybe in some places.

I'm in Maine, I could walk a hundred feet behind my house and get the outdoors experience. Everyone 'round here has a Subaru. Or a pickup truck. Ridiculous.


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## That One Guy (Mar 16, 2008)

Trenton Romulox said:


> It's a new marketing tactic. It's the 'Gorilla man drives this, so should you' tactic. It's been popular in Kenya for a while, and I'm glad to see it's finally making its way to the States. 'Bout time.


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## Phranquey (Mar 16, 2008)

Around here if you say "Big Tent", most guys are probably looking down...


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## Hertz van Rental (Mar 17, 2008)

It's an Ad man's idea of a joke so don't expect it to be funny or contain any kind of logic.
I can vouch that a lot of ideas like this get generated in the small hours after a lot of alcohol and putting things up your nose. At that point _everything_ becomes funny and brilliant - but no-one else will realise it.
It's a case of 'you had to be there'.

It never ceases to amaze me that they manage to sell the idea to the client


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## Puscas (Mar 17, 2008)

Phranquey said:


> Around here if you say "Big Tent", most guys are probably looking down...






:er:


lol




Hertz van Rental said:


> It's an Ad man's idea of a joke so don't expect it to be funny or contain any kind of logic. I can vouch that a lot of ideas like this get generated in the small hours after a lot of alcohol and putting things up your nose. At that point _everything_ becomes funny and brilliant.



you're right, but somehow I'm glad it's just a language gap on my part in this case. I hate it when ad makers try to be funny and brilliant, but not really succeed...



> It never ceases to amaze me that they manage to sell the idea to the client



thát's a skill I would love to have...;-)




pascal


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## Hertz van Rental (Mar 17, 2008)

Thinking about it, it may well be:

Big tent = big top = circus

It's the only connection I can figure, but as to why they associate gorillas and monkeys with the circus...

What is always fun is to look beyond what the Ad man _thinks_ he's saying and read the sub-text, that is the alternative message thet they have missed.
In this case it's 'car salesmen are dumb'. Which leads to 'would you buy this car if an idiot tried to sell it to you?'
I don't think that was what they were trying to say at all


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## Andrea K (Mar 18, 2008)

Hertz van Rental said:


> Thinking about it, it may well be:
> 
> Big tent = big top = circus
> 
> ...



I do that all the time!


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## Rhys (Mar 18, 2008)

I looked and said "it's advertised on TV along with those can't-be-found-in-stores $19.95 contricks so whatever they're advertising has to be crap". I drive an Xterra!


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## YisaLi (Mar 18, 2008)

okay - in the commercial, the tent and outdoor scene belongs to the gorilla. the other sales rep is saying that it is not THAT kind of tent sale but rather a large white tent sale that car dealerships are known to have. That's my interpretation and I am sticking to it.


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## Puscas (Mar 18, 2008)

YisaLi said:


> okay - in the commercial, the tent and outdoor scene belongs to the gorilla. the other sales rep is saying that it is not THAT kind of tent sale but rather a large white tent sale that car dealerships are known to have. That's my interpretation and I am sticking to it.



but why would he be wearing an ape costume if he just wanted to set up a small tent? Doesn't it make more sense that a guy dressed in gorilla suit thinks he's part of a big autoshow (hence the balloons he's holding) instead of the small tent? 

But what do I know, I didn't get this ad at all before I posted this thread...







pascal


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## eterrisinCYQX (Mar 19, 2008)

No idea.

What I do know is that Subaru rules.


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## Battou (Mar 20, 2008)

Hertz van Rental said:


> Thinking about it, it may well be:
> 
> Big tent = big top = circus
> 
> ...



I can't find one either, I viewed this thread and the ad before anyone else replied and then went out and started researching to see if I could find any thing that would connect the word tent to primates. Total failure.


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## Rhys (Mar 20, 2008)

eterrisinCYQX said:


> No idea.
> 
> What I do know is that Subaru rules.



When your Subaru lies quietly in a pile of iron oxide flakes, my Xterra will still be going strong


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## eterrisinCYQX (Mar 21, 2008)

Rhys said:


> When your Subaru lies quietly in a pile of iron oxide flakes, my Xterra will still be going strong


 
Highly doubt it.





That car has been in the air so many times the local ATC's know the license plates.

(Excuse the crappy pic. That was my ancient point and shoot.)​


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