$180,000 Porsche Crash by Globe journalist’s son: Best ad in 2010

I love good advertising and I think Porsche just hit the jackpot with this $180,000 Porsche Crash and has just taken the top spot of being my best ad of 2010! Best ad? Well, let me explain.

To me, the best ads are those you don’t pay a dime for the medium and don’t even plan (but you need to handle it well and have a bit of “luck”). The next best ads are those that you don’t pay (or don’t pay much) but plan meticulously (see VW’s Fun Theory ads). The least favourite type of ads for me are those that you pay mega big bucks to get the obvious “best coverage” (front pages in newspapers, TV prime time slots, etc).

If you think about it correctly, the purpose of any ads are to get our attention. The following accidental $180,000 Porsche crash by Globe journalist’s son costed Porsche a tiny $11,000 (initial body shop estimate) and this is a “cost” with profit built-in, so it will cost Porsche likely much less than $11,000.

I am happy that Mr. Rick Bye (manager of the Porsche press fleet) and Porsche made the right decisions. Congrats to Porsche for your injury-free $180,000 crash!

In my chart, your “ad” has just beat Alec Brownstein’s $6 Google reverse job ad for its Canadian and worldwide potential impact and because yours had the added advantage of not being planned at all!

Congrats Porsche, you’ve earned a free link from this blog!

Globe journalist’s son crashes $180,000 Porsche – Take an expensive sports car, a curious teen and a garage door – and mix together to get one very embarrassed automotive writer

[The following is an excerpt, also check out this video report of the crash]

“Some moments are lived backwards. The great ones run through your mind like a favourite movie. Then there are the other kind, where you try to roll back the clock – like the afternoon my teenage son launched a brand new Porsche Turbo through our garage door.

So far, I have not managed to invent a time machine, go back, and snatch the key from his hands (and in case you were wondering, the car goes for $180,000, not including freight, tax or a new garage).

That day began with deceptive perfection. I woke up in a sunlit bedroom next to my beautiful wife. We had celebrated 26 years of marriage just the day before. Our cherry tree was in full blossom, and in the garage, locked away like a crown jewel, was a 2010 Porsche 997 Turbo, the latest (and costliest) in a long series of test cars.

[… And here come the funny bites. …] Will stuck his head into the office and asked me if he could show his buddy the Turbo. I told him to go ahead. He and his friends always checked out my cars. Their main focus seemed to be the interior and stereo systems – details I barely cared about.

I went back to my computer. My car buddies knew I’d been at the track with the Turbo, and they wanted my verdict. I told one it was like a tiger in an Armani suit – killer chassis, unbeatable power, but suave and comfortable, too.

I shut down my computer and prepared to head to the office, smiling at the thought of a few minutes in the Turbo. As I headed out the back door, I saw my son running toward the house. His eyes were the size of dinner plates. He sputtered: “Dad, the Porsche … the Porsche …”

I thought the Turbo had been stolen. Our garage has a full security system, but this is one of the most desirable cars in the world, so you never know. Will tried to speak again. “The Turbo rolled into the door….” I walked past him into the garage.

For nearly a minute, I was too dumbfounded to speak. The Turbo hadn’t rolled into the door – it had launched itself through the entire structure. In a distance of approximately four feet, the Turbo had developed enough kinetic energy to blow the entire door apart. Parts of the roller mechanism were scattered through the alley. Dazed, I picked up a bent metal piece – it looked like a Crazy Bone, a toy Will had collected as a little boy.

When I parked it, the Turbo had been pristine. Now it looked like the car from Dukes of Hazzard after a chase through the southern backwoods. Stunned, I surveyed the damage. The hood was raked with gouges, the top of the right front fender was flattened, and the driver’s door (which is made from aluminum to save weight) had taken a beating. Worst of all was the rear fender, which had hit the concrete door frame as the Turbo launched itself into the alley – it looked like a giant blacksmith had smacked it with a sledge hammer.

[…] Postscript:

My son has agreed to do a minimum of one week’s labour for Mr. Bye

Initial body shop estimate for the 2010 Porsche Turbo – $11,000 plus taxes.

My garage door was replaced last week, along with the door tracks, opener and door frame. I spent seven hours working alongside the installer. Total cost was $2,700. My insurance deductible was $500. I lose my no-claims insurance discount for three years.

Later this summer, based on his schedule, my son will attend Apex driving school, where he will be trained in advanced car control and learn to drive a standard transmission.”