This month, almost all of us in Florida saw (and many even went to experience in person) a car being launched into outer space with the test flight of SpaceX's Falcon Heavy rocket. What exactly did they launch into orbit? A Tesla Roadster with a dummy spaceman sitting in it, blasting David Bowie into the vacuum of space.
Yes.
A luxury car.
In outer space.
So, even though this was the product of an eccentric billionaire getting creative with the testing of its space freighter company's most powerful rocket, for some more automotive-minded people, it could be considered as a publicity stunt for Tesla Motors, the likes of which haven't ever been done before.
To mark this great event in both space exploration, human achievement, and awesome car tricks, let us go on some other occasions in which cars and motor companies have been advertised in outrageous ways. Starting with...
A Bungee-Jumping Chevy Sonic
When provided with the necessary economic resources, a little creativity, and the task to promote a car through an attention-grabbing stunt, just think about what you would do if you were a kid playing with toys. If you’ve ever seen toddlers play with toy cars, the instinct is usually crash first, ask questions later. The difference here is that cars are real and the potential wreckage would be much, much cooler.
It was in this mindset that the people at General Motors summoned their social media wizards with the purpose of launching a campaign through the website www.LetsDoThis.com. This website featured a button that, once clicked by enough participants, would result in a Chevrolet Sonic being nudged ever so slightly off the edge of a 100 foot structure of cargo containers.
Once the quota was reach and the car would go over the edge, it would fall and splash down into a swimming pool and be immediately pulled by a bungee cable attached to its back. People clicked on the website until the car model was -literally- launched.
However, it wasn't the craziest thing done to promote the Chevrolet Sonic, that was later that same year.
The Chevy Sonic Kickflip
Sometimes, crazy things can happen when companies like Chevrolet want to market their cars to millennials and start watching trick skateboarding videos that make them go "Sure, we can risk a driver with a tricked up car that flips around the air at high speed. Kids would love that, right?"
And you know what? The kids did love it.
Not only was it quite the stunt in all the sense of the word, it was a cross-media event that turned up on social media sites all over the globe. You can mark this one down as a mission accomplished for Chevy and the Sonic.
Are you interested in more car stunts? Check out next week's blog for more!
