Oliver Maisey: Korean carmaker goes the extra mile

Hyundai Santa Fe television commercial by Assignment.

Campaign: Hyundai - Santa Fe
Agency: Assignment Group
Creative team: Kim Thorp and Howard Greive.
Reviewer: Oliver Maisey of M&C Saatchi

In the shallow world I inhabit, cars are the ultimate badge, more so than the beer we drink or the watches we wear.

Cars, superficially at least, say a lot about us. Depending on what you drive you can be everything from rugged and outdoorsy to cool and Europeanish. And by this measure, one badge I would go out of my way to avoid is, until recently, Hyundai, because the Hyundai badge is perceived as cheap and boring.

I'm guessing here but it seems that over the past couple of years Hyundai has gone out of its way to produce sensible, mistake-free advertising, and along the way they've come out boring, hollow and instantly forgettable.

A car has to stand for something, and Hyundai has got a lot of ground to make up. And they're making it up.

Did you know Hyundais hold their value better than any other car? Or that they've won awards in Australia?

Nor did I, but in a recent commercial I'm assured this is the case.

Other ads in the series tell me more different and surprising facts about the Korean giant, all of which go a long way towards convincing me that these are well-built vehicles of substance.

The ads are confident and sophisticated - both words I'd never associated with Hyundai before.

And the way they're shot makes the cars look really, well, stylish.

But it's going to take more than that to convince me - and they've got more than that.

Running in tandem with these studio spots is an old-fashioned brand ad. A tale of rebellion, young love and a trip to the beach to take on the surf. It's big, confident, and a bit cheesy, but it's cheesy in a good way, and warm and entertaining, with a great soundtrack.

I can't help but like it. And I'm betting that lots of Toyota drivers like it too. Now I'm an intelligent bloke and I can see straight through the marketing strategy here - but ... I like the advertising.

I've got a new-found respect for Hyundai, and I now believe they build quality cars that aren't just for old people. So would I be ashamed to be seen in a Hyundai? No more so than in a Rav 4.

And will I be driving one soon?

You must be joking.