New Zealanders will be once again be able to view a Toyota RAV 4 television advertisement that was taken off air following complaints it was too extreme.
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The commercial shows a couple preparing to leave the house before a series of accidents occur, including electrocution in the shower, getting trapped in the window, hair being set alight, and a fall down the stairs. In a final scene, the woman is blown out of the house onto the roof of the SUV as it is driven away by her male partner.
According to local radio station NewsTalk ZB, the country’s advertising standards complaints appeal board has allowed an appeal by Toyota and the advertising agency behind the ad, Saatchi and Saatchi, on condition that the adt receives an AO [adults only] rating and is shown only during adult viewing hours.
Toyota NZ has a history of innovative and controversial ads. Over 20 years ago, a Hilux pickup truck commercial depicting a high-speed drive through the capital city, Wellington, including a dash through a tunnel normally restricted to trams, provoked complaints from the local police traffic chief and subsequent withdrawal of the ad.
More recently, another series of ads, again for the Hilux, included a colloquial swear word in common use, drawing a number of viewer complaints. As with this latest ad, the standards board allowed screenings to continue.
