Audi Ad In China Compares Women To Preowned Cars, Sparks Backlash

Commercials, such as Pepsi’s ad featuring Kendall Jenner, aren’t always received the way advertisers intend for them to be. In the case of a recent Audi advertisement, though, we don’t understand how the makers of the commercial could’ve expected consumers to view it in a positive light.

Audi is receiving backlash online after it recently aired an advertisement in China that essentially compared women to secondhand vehicles, according to The Washington Post.

The ad showed a man and a woman preparing to say their vows before the groom’s mother interrupts the ceremony and begins “inspecting” the bride. Afterward she gave her son a thumbs-up, but then the mother-in-law stared at the bride’s chest, which she quickly covered, before the commercial cut to a clip of an Audi.

While the car is still on screen a male voice reportedly said in Mandarin, “an important decision must be made carefully.”

Audi reportedly said it’s looking into the commercial, but hasn’t yet released a statement about whether it will continue to air the spot. Either way, though, the damage is done.

https://twitter.com/c35films/status/887314516689727488

There has been so much backlash to the commercial in China that a page has been dedicated to it on the Chinese microblogging site Weibo.

Thumbnail photo via Audi