RAM TV ad banned

A TV commercial for the RAM 1500 TRX has been banned in Australia after the Advertising Standard Board’s Community Panel deemed it to be in breach of the FCAI Motor Vehicle Advertising Code by “portraying unsafe driving along with deliberate and significant environmental damage”.

The 30-second TVC has been in circulation for about four months now and depicts a new TRX owner taking his mate for a blast in the 523kW/882Nm super-ute – the most powerful new four-door model available in Australia – after being asked if he really needed a “Hemi V8”.

In the ensuing joy ride, the TRX is shown being punted along a gravel track and through puddles before rooster-tailing its way along the top of Stockton Beach sand dunes with more than 4000rpm showing on the tacho at one point.

The video eventually winds down with the shaken mate acknowledging the owner’s decision to purchase the world’s most powerful pick-up truck.

Ad Standards received an extended complaint from the president of a 4x4 club claiming the TVC promoted “hoon driving” and that they were offended on multiple levels, primarily by the “macho” and risky driving behaviour and its environmental impact.

“The passenger is shown at the end of the advertisement to be frightened by his experience of driving in such an aggressive manner,” the complaint reads.

“The display of driving is aggressive – unnecessarily so. It would probably encourage people to try to drive that way themselves, whether they owned a RAM or not.

“The potential for damage to drivers, passengers, cars and the environment is very real. This is not a safe demonstration of a responsible driver and sets an extremely bad example.

“It is pretty vile, advocates excessive power and aggression in driving.”

Despite RAM Trucks Australia addressing all of the complainant’s concerns, including the fact that speeds never exceeded 80km/h, the ad was ultimately deemed to be in breach of FCAI Motor Vehicle Advertising Code clauses 2a (shall not portray unsafe driving) and 2e (shall not portray deliberate and significant environmental damage), with both breaches revolving around the dune footage.

According to the case report, the panel decreed the vehicle was travelling at “unsafe” speeds on the sand and the final nails in the TVC’s coffin were the rooster tails and sand spray launched high above the TRX’s roofline.

“The Panel considered that it is dangerous to drive across sand quickly, especially on a steep dune, and that it is not uncommon for people to roll their vehicles if they do not drive slowly and with caution in such environments,” the panel said in its conclusion.

“The Panel considered that if a non-professional driver attempted to drive across sand dunes in the same manner as in the advertisement it could lead to an accident resulting in significant injury to the vehicle’s occupants.”