Toyota is being clever in the way it’s marketing the very limited appeal Mirai fuel cell sedan. It’s (probably) referencing a statement by Tesla boss Elon Musk, when the Silicon Valley CEO was quoted as saying that fuel cell vehicles are “so bullsh*t;” Nissan CEO Carlos Ghosn is also an opponent of the tech.
Now, Toyota has put out a promo video for its proprietary tech, explaining how hydrogen can be extracted out of actual bullsh*t or more technically called manure. It’s not something new, but the resulting gas from the process (mostly methane) is further processed and hydrogen is extracted and then stored ready to fill fuel cell cars’ tanks.
The automaker does not mention what spurred it to ask for this ad to be created, but it’s pretty clear it was sparked by Musk’s statements.
It’s more of an image thing, really, than trying to sell more cars through witty marketing schemes. The Mirai is not going to be a volume seller, but more of a poster vehicle for commercially viable fuel cell vehicles, paving the way for a future model that will also make financial sense to the company, as well as being green and innovative.
In that context, this ad works wonders and builds on a previously negative statement by a strong voice in the world of green mobility and uses it to its advantage; clever, very clever and basically a graphic simplification of another bullsh*t-related ad they published last month.