David Hutz, a 30 year-old computer programmer from Herndon, Virginia, has uncovered a buried Volvo XC90 V8 SUV in the Bahamas after a two-month ‘treasure hunt’ for the vehicle that Volvo hid as part of its sponsorship of the Disney movie sequel Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest.
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Hutz competed in a gruelling, clue-filled search conducted by foot, boat, motor vehicle and helicopter in a competition reminiscent of reality TV shows. After winning, he said he would give the car to his wife. He was joined in the final leg of the search by six other finalists, including two more from the United States and one each from Japan, United Kingdom, Spain and Austria.
Volvo surprised the six runners-up by also giving them a new vehicle.
The widely-publicised (just-auto has been fast-fowarding through the UK ads on our PVRs for weeks) Volvo-sponsored on-line treasure hunt was launched on 12 June, concluded four weeks later and attracted 52,000 participants from the US alone. Finalists arrived in the Bahamas earlier this week unaware of the location of the final leg until their aircraft landed.
The seven competed in a series of mental and physical challenges on the islands that either eliminated them from competition or advanced them to the buried vehicle. After Hutz determined the final location, assistants dug up the $US82,000 SUV and handed him with the keys.
A series of ‘webisodes’ chronicling the hunt will appear on Volvo websites from 25 August.
Anne Belec, president and chief executive officer of Volvo Cars of North America, said the automaker thought the promotion had been “a phenomenal success for Volvo”.
The Ford-owned automaker’s promotion of the Disney movie sequel grew from an earlier partnership with the media company for the worldwide Volvo Ocean Race which ended in Gothenburg, Sweden last 17 June. Volvo’s ship carried the name of the same boat in the first Pirates of the Caribbean movie, “The Black Pearl.”
