(Hyundai)
PETA had a problem with Hyundai’s Super Bowl ad for its new purchasing program, but it apparently loves the company’s cars.
The spot tried to paint traditional car shopping in a negative light by comparing it to things like having a root canal, getting called for jury duty and attending a vegan dinner party, all depicted as stops on an elevator going down. At the dinner party floor, a host approaches the elevator to announce they’re having beetloaf, as a woman cheers and a man acts like he’s about to be sick.
After the commercial ran, the animal-rights organization tweeted out:
“The trend of 2019 is taking the elevator UP to vegan dinner parties (& an Earth, heart, & animal-friendly lifestyle). Instead of buying a car from people with outdated ideas, we suggest a vegan Smartcar by Mercedes. Great mileage & acceleration, turns on a dime. #SuperBowl.”
Hyundai didn’t directly apologize to the organization, but within moments did tweet out an infographic with a recipe for the beetloaf depicted in the commercial and the message:
“We actually love vegan food and are glad it's going more mainstream.”
Head over to PETA’s website, however, and along with the Smart, you’ll find a list of seven Hyundais that “can be fully loaded—with compassion,” meaning without the use of any materials derived from animals.
A few of automaker’s newer models, like the Kona and Ioniq, aren’t on the list, which is not dated. However, there aren’t any Hyundais in the section where PETA calls out vehicles for being afoul of its animal-friendly policies, including some Teslas because of their leather steering wheels and the electric BMW i3, which is leather-free, but uses wool.
PETA also suggests its followers call Smart’s sister company Mercedes-Benz to complain about the trim in 22 of its models.
HYUNDAI VELOSTER TEST DRIVE:
