If You Want To Sell A Car, Just Ask Ron Burgundy

25.49K

Beejoli Shah

11/06/13 11:25AM

Filed to: Anchorman

Ron Burgundy may have lost his job to Veronica Corningstone in the upcoming Anchorman 2, but hot damn if he can't sell some crappy cars.

A report from AdAge shows that last month's release of a slew of Dodge Durango commercials starring Will Ferrell as the blustering news anchor trying to hawk Dodge's revamped SUVs actually worked. Dodge rolled out nine of the 70 (yes, 70) Funny or Die-produced commercials over the last month—with multiple racking up well over a million views. Sales quickly rose, showing a 59% increase in October alone, selling 5,129 Durangos in the moth, and 50% for the entire year.

While it may not help him save his new job at the Global News Network, it's good to know that San Diego's favorite accidental misogynist has a good fallback career when it comes time to shoot the public access station commercials for Anchorman 3: The Ron Burgundy Used Car Dealerships.

The following replies are approved. To see additional replies that are pending approval, click Show Pending. Warning: These may contain graphic material.

KinglyCitrus Beejoli Shah 11/06/13 12:21PM

I would like to challenge your assertion that the new Durango is crappy, and ask that you provide a citation.

he7788 KinglyCitrus 11/06/13 12:36PM

Could you give me a citation of any consumer group reporting or data that showed ANY Dodge as worth buying?

Fluorescent Black he7788 11/06/13 12:56PM

Edmonds, Car and Driver, Autoweek, The Car Connection have all given the Durango great reviews.

You realize this isn't 1987 anymore, right?

jaxong KinglyCitrus 11/06/13 02:57PM

The Dodge Durango is essentially a Jeep Grand Cherokee with an extra row of seats. I can think of a lot of other crappier cars.

Eyaare KinglyCitrus 11/06/13 03:07PM

I mean, first it's a Dodge. Not a company known for making cars that last forever.

More importantly it's a crossover. This is a company that, while Ford and Chevy went to shitty, curvy FWD rental-loving commuters, put out a badass RWD monster of a car with a style that's distinctly American. A company that still challenges pint-sized Explorer wannabes with the "American value" Grand Caravan that started minivans. A company that looked at Cadillac making slimmer, more sporty cars and went "fuck that, let's make a classic American landbarge." And do I even need to say anything about Wrangler?

Put aside how many stereotypes name Ford pickup trucks, or how many Chevy nameplates come to mind when you think about old American sedans. Look at Dodge's lineup and you'll see some of the baddest, most American cars around. In an age where even other American companies are pretending that's a bad thing.

And yet, their idea of a "full-size SUV," a category occupied by Expedition and Tahoe, is a fucking crossover.

StopFistingMe Beejoli Shah 11/06/13 12:22PM

Funny or Die and Will Ferrell boost sales more than Dodge's AOR, Wieden+Kennedy. If I'm Dodge, WK is freaking fired.

TheDamnPaterfamilias StopFistingMe 11/06/13 12:32PM

It was WK who hired and collaborated with FoD. I seriously doubt they're freaking out.

Matt StopFistingMe 11/06/13 12:41PM

I think W+K was involved in the making of these...so...no.

neopatriot StopFistingMe 11/06/13 12:47PM

Well, they can't sell them on quality, so maybe comedy misdirection is just the thing... I mean, if a fictional character can influence your purchasing decision that much, maybe you should be driving a Dodge...

McGarnagle Matt 11/06/13 12:49PM

From what I've heard, Ferrell + McKay and their team were basically given a ton of money, a couple scripts and talking points then went off and came back with 70 of the fucking things. I refuse to believe that there was no agency people on set, but I think W+K had little to do with the magic of these.