Edward Cullen, the vampire in The Twilight Saga: New Moon, apparently fits the description of a perfect Volvo owner. Cullen, who is played by Robert Pattinson, will be driving a brand new Savile Grey XC60R in the sequel to the movie that hits theaters on Nov. 20.

“The brand DNA matched to [Cullen's] character couldn’t be more right,” Linda Gangeri, Volvo Cars of North America manager of national advertising said in an interview with Inside Line.” His character is a nurturer and he has to be understated, because he’s living in a human world and is in love with a human. At the same time, he wants something that is good-looking and fast.”

Volvo said that the placement of its vehicles in the Twilight series is helping attract female car shoppers. Gangeri said that Twilight fans consist of “90 percent female, ranging in age from 10 and up.”

Right. Either way, before you run out and try to be Edward, we’d just like to let you know that the XC60R is not available through Volvo Cars of North America right now.

- By: Kap Shah

Source: Inside Line

“Now finance or lease any new Hyundai, and if you lose your income in the next year, you can return it with no impact on your credit.”- That was the voice over for Hyundai’s commercial during last year’s Superbowl. The company also ran nine ads during the Academy Awards to launch the Genesis. Ads like these during a time when every big advertiser was trying to avert the minds of consumers away from the recession, are the reason that Hyundai was named AdAge’s 2009 Marketer of the Year.

“Engaging with both the broken dreams and the intact ones through high-profile ad buys that garnered plenty of positive press was in sharp contrast to the tail-between-the-legs mode of Hyundai’s rivals, many of whom had slashed budgets and retreated into retail-focused advertising.” wrote AdAge’s Jean Halliday.

Hyundai is definitely going through a re-imaging phase, as they managed to post a 27% increase in new car sales after cash-for-clunkers ended while the industry as a whole saw a decrease of 22%. “these same people [that] never would have been caught dead in a Hyundai” might have worried about what their neighbors would think, Scott Fink, chairman of Hyundai’s national dealer council told AdAge. “Now people are very comfortable because the brand has been elevated. We used to be a price player, but now we’re a mainstream player.”

Hyundai executives attribute much of their success amidst the recession to their ‘Hyundai Assurance’ program; the program mentioned in last year’s Superbowl voice-over, and its progeny, ‘Assurance Gas Lock’, which guaranteed summer buyers a fixed gas rate of $1.49 for an entire year. These tactics are definitely effective. Market Researching Analyst Art Spinella lends mention in the AdAge article to the fact that 60% of Americans today are aware of Hyundai as a brand compared to 40% two years ago.

- By: Stephen Calogera

BBC’s Top Gear, known for attracting controversy, is being criticized by television watchdog Ofcom for showing scenes of a man committing suicide before 9 p.m. watershed. Ofcom said that Top Gear had breached broadcasting regulations that aim at protecting children from violence by airing a spoof of a Volkswagen advert in which man shoots himself in the head.

Ofcom said that Top Gear had breached rile 1.11 of Broadcasting Code. It said: “This edition, the final show of the programme’s thirteenth series, featured a spoof remake of an advertisement for a Volkswagen car which showed a man committing suicide with a gunshot to the head, followed by blood splattering out after the impact. “The scene also included a depiction of the dead man lying in a pool of blood. Fifty viewers contacted Ofcom to complain about this scene, which they felt was too graphic and unsuitable for the time of broadcast (8pm) because children were watching.”

You can watch the ad in the video posted after the jump.

- By: Kap Shah

Source: Times Online

Porsche has released its first 2010 Porsche Panamera TV commercial.

The Stuttgart automaker says that the new Panamera is “ 60 years of uncompromising beliefs” – so watch as Porsche family gathers to welcome its newest four-door sibling.

Click here for more news on the Porsche Panamera.

Refresher: The $89,800 Porsche Panamera S is powered by a 400-hp V8 allowing for a 0-60 mph time of 5.2 seconds with a top speed of 175 mph. $93,800 Panamera 4S is powered by the same 400-hp V8. The $132,600 Porsche Panamera Turbo is powered by a turbocharged V8 making 500-hp allowing for a 0-60 mph time of 4.0 seconds with a top speed of 188 mph.

Follow the jump for the video.

2010 Porsche Panamera:

2010 Porsche Panamera:

- By: Omar Rana

According to the folks over at AdAge, Chrysler and advertising company BBDO are set to part ways by 2010. Sources say that BBDO, which managed to survive a turnover of owners and CEOs at Chrysler during its bankruptcy process, will part ways with the Auburn Hills automaker at the end of January.

BBDO denied the reports and said that it is negotiating a new contract with Chrysler since it exited Chapter 11 bankruptcy in June. On the table are cutting back the broad scope of services BBDO provides, including dealer training, call centers, point-of-sale materials and database management.

On a side note, Chrysler today released a new ad spot with BBDO featuring the Chrysler 300 and its “Connect” technology. To be honest we can hardly make the “connection” between a Chrysler 300 with a youth-themed nightlife.

Follow the jump to see the video.

- By: Omar Rana

Last week, we brought you a new BMW commercial called “Jump for Joy.” Apparently, there is a Part 2 to the commercial, or an extended version, that features a little comical shot at BMW’s German rival Audi.

Whatever you do, BMW warns you to not try this stunt at home or if you own an Audi.

Click through for the video.

- By: Omar Rana

BMW has just released a new commercial called Jump for Joy, which features its latest new model – the BMW 5-Series Gran Turismo.

“Looking at a BMW, your heart starts jumping for Joy,” says BMW. “But sometimes it’s not just the heart. Watch some amazing ways to take a seat in a BMW, but don’t try this at home.”

Seriously – don’t try this at home.

Click through for the video.

- By: Kap Shah

It’s Wolfsburg’s two hottest hatchbacks going head to head in the latest Volkswagen commercial. Check out the fairly cheesy video of the new 2010 Volkswagen Golf R racing with the 2009 Volkswagen Scirocco R.

Refresher: Both are powered by a 2.0L TSI 4-cylinder engine making 265-hp with a maximum torque of 258 lb-ft. That allows for a 0 to 62 mph time in less than 6.4 seconds.

2010 Volkswagen Golf R:

2010 Volkswagen Golf R:

2009 Volkswagen Scirocco R:

- By: Omar Rana

Toyota has announced that it will invest $1 billion into a major U.S. marketing campaign during the fourth-quarter. Toyota’s spokesman, Irv Miller, said that while the sum is more than the company has spent before, the Japanese automaker bets on a recovery in the ailing U.S. auto market.

As usual, Toyota will roll out its “Toyotathon” marketing and sales blitz in November.

“We see the economy is starting to strengthen a bit,” Miller said. “We’ve stopped playing defense. It’s time to go on the offense.”

Either way, we doubt we’ll see Chairman Fujio Cho or Akio Toyoda walking through Toyota’s design studios talking about how much better their vehicles are compared to the their competitors. We’ll leave that up to GM’s Whitacre.

- By: Omar Rana

Source: MSNBC

Buick will be dropping its current tag line, “Take a look at me now,” for a new advertising tag line called “The new class of world class.” The tag line will launch with a new advertising campaign on Monday.

General Motors Company’s vice chairman of marketing, Bob Lutz, told Automotive News that the tag line will launch in the new advertising for the 2010 Buick LaCrosse sedan.

Lutz is looking to push GM’s advertising to more properly project the design and features of the brand’s new products. He said that viewers can expect to see some “aggressive stuff.”

The Detroit automaker has launched a new billboard campaign in LA for the new LaCrosse, which pokes fun at Lexus. The ad reads: “Another thing for Lexus to relentlessly pursue,” “EX your Lexus” and “Goodbye, road rage. Hello, road envy.”

2010 Buick LaCrosse:

- By: Stephen Calogera

About two days ago, we brought you a teaser for the Mini Coupe Concept and the upcoming Mini Roadster Concept, both of which will make their world debut at the 2009 Frankfurt Motor Show next week. If you though teaser no.1 was awkward and freakish, wait until you see teaser no.2 called ‘Same.’ The series will end with teaser no.3 – coming very soon.

So far Mini has taken the covers off the Mini Coupe Concept. We’ll see the Roadster Concept next week in Frankfurt. Stay tuned.

Click through for the video.

Mini Coupe Concept:

Mini Untamed Two – Same:

Mini Coupe Concept:

- By: Stephen Calogera

2011 Buick Enclave Clay Model in the May the Best Car Win Commercial

There is a huge change coming to General Motors Company, and we feel its one we can believe in – and no that’s not General Motors talking that’s us here at egmCarTech that have driven the new 2010 Chevrolet Equinox and spent a couple of minutes behind the new 2010 Cadillac SRX.

Leading the change is new Chairman Edward Whitacre, who has been in the spotlight quite a lot this week. Whitacre joined GM during its bankruptcy process and remained fairly quite until this month. It was reported earlier this month that Whitacre is being “frighteningly direct” with the top-level executives and is asking to see improvement in sales, market share and profitability. He said that if those changes don’t happen soon, there will be significant consequences.

Whitacre is also leading GM’s new advertising campaign along with Bob Lutz called “May the Best Car Win.” I first came across the campaign on an ad I clicked that took me to this website http://www.thebestcarwins.com/. It was basically a website asking you which vehicle you think ranks at the top in terms of fuel-efficiency, safety, quality, performance and overall. The survey ends with saying that “on September 13th, one car company is putting it all on the table. The cars will speak for themselves. And the facts just might change some opinions.” Later on in the day I figured out that the site was a part of GM’s new ‘May the Best Car Win’ campaign (you can follow the campaign on Twitter here http://twitter.com/thebestcarwins).

Chevrolet Spark and the Cadillac ATS seen in the May the Best Car Win commercial

The campaign will kick off with a new TV spot featuring new Chairman Whitacre, walking through GM’s design studios (you can check it out after the jump). The 60 second ad shows off some feature upcoming GM products including the Cadillac Converj, a GMC Scion competitor, the next-generation Buick Enclave, the Cadillac ATS (hidden under the covers), the Chevrolet Spark and the Chevrolet Volt. Whitacre also speaks about GM’s new incentive where buyers of a new Buick, Cadillac, Chevrolet or GMC will be able to return their vehicle within 60 days if they are not happy with it.

“Every ad is going to give the consumer a reason to consider our vehicles,” said Bob Lutz in article over at GM FastLane Blog. “We will be highlighting our quality, design, performance, road manners, fuel efficiency, 100,000-mile/5-year warranty, and our new 60-day satisfaction guarantee. We will directly compare our attributes to the competition and “may the best car win.”

“In short, we’re going to take away every last excuse not to consider a vehicle from Cadillac, Chevrolet, Buick and GMC. We have confidence in our products, he said. “This campaign is designed to encourage the consumer to share in that confidence.”

Personally, we feel Bob Lutz should be in these commercials, but that’s just our opinion.

You can check out the 60-second ad spot after the jump along with two other viral spots. Make sure you drop by http://www.thebestcarwins.com/ and cast your vote.

GM Ad w/ Ed Whitacre Offering 60 Day Guarantee: May the Best Car Win

May The Best Car Win

Which one will you choose?

- By: Omar Rana

When Bob Lutz returned from retirement to head up GM’s marketing in July, he said that GM would focus more on its brands rather the corporation. Well, new Chairman Ed Whitacre has something else in mind. According to sources familiar with the plan, GM will launch a broad post-bankruptcy advertising campaign next week with an introductory commercial featuring Whitacre.

The ad will be a 60 second spot showing Whitacre urging consumers to take a look at the what GM has to offer, reports Automotive News.

The ads will lead up to a wider campaign featuring commercials about Chevrolet, Buick, GMC and Cadillac.

Chairman Whitacre has known to be “frighteningly direct” with GM’s top-level executives. He said that if progress and profits don’t come rapidly, there will be significant consequences.

- By: Stephen Calogera

Yes, we know that this our first Miscellaneous Thoughts post for the week and it’s already Wednesday. We were taking a bit easy on Monday during Labor Day and were recouping most of Tuesday. Either way, we’re all back here and are working our butts off to bring you the latest automotive news updates (and a lot of its pouring out with the Frankfurt Motor Show just days away). Either way, it’s that time of the day for us to gather up some random findings from around the Internet. So here we go…

Lexus IS 350 gets fuzzy or the U.S. Open: Lexus is known for creating sports-themed cars – and we mean literally. Earlier this year at the U.S. Open of golf, Lexus revealed golf-ball dimpled Lexus LS. During the U.S. Open for tennis going on these days, Lexus is displaying a Lexus IS with a fuzzy tennis-ball exterior. Imagine getting that car dirty. – KickingTires

Women drunken driving arrests on the rise: According to a report by the NHTSA, the number of women arrested for driving drunk has increased nearly 30% from 1998 to 2007. At the same time, the number of men arrested during the same 10-year period fell by 7.5%. – KickingTires

Eli Manning’s Toyota Commercials: If you’ve been keeping up with watching Football you’ve probably seen Eli Manning’s Toyota Commercials. If not – you can check them out after the jump. – KickingTires

Eli Manning Toyota Commercial – Photograph:

Eli Manning Toyota Commercial – Wife Calling:

Eli Manning Toyota Commercial – Day Dream:

Eli Manning Toyota Commercial – That was Eli:

Eli Manning Toyota Commercial – Chest Bump:

Eli Manning Toyota Commercial – Paper Football:

- By: Omar Rana

Oh yes, it’s that random time of the day again.

Sony releases screenshots of Gran Turismo 5: While the official release date has yet to be announced, Sony released some screenshots of the upcoming Gran Turismo 5.

US Army could use flying cars: Moller Skycar is working on a solution for the U.S. military – a flying car. Taking the ethos of “why drive on it when you can fly over it”, the Moller Skycar “provides a more cost effective, highly maneuverable, lethal and safe platform for the 21st century soldier,” according to the US Army’s Lieutenant Colonel James Thomas. – PistonHeads

Another Audi ‘Electricity Untamed’ viral ad: We were pretty amused by the couple of viral ads Audi released this morning to build anticipation for their upcoming R8 electric concept that will debut in Frankfurt. We just came across another one that was very funny. Check it out after the jump.

- By: Stephen Calogera

Cadillac has revealed a new 60-second spot called “Re-ignition,” which began appearing on TV channels yesterday. The 60-second spot shows the new Cadillac CTS Sport Wagon, the 2010 Cadillac SRX Crossover and a sneak peek at the new Cadillac CTS Coupe.

We are actually very impressed by the new commercial. Your thoughts? Have your say in the comments section after the jump.

Click through to view the ad.

- By: Omar Rana

BMW has released its first commercial for the upcoming 2011 BMW X1 called “Joy is the new BMW X1.”

Refresher: The BMW X1 will hit markets next year and will be available with three engine choices. Kicking of the lineup is the xDrive20d, which is powered by a 177-hp diesel engine. Second is the xDrive23d, which is powered boy 204-hp turbodiesel. The xDrive28i gasoline model is powered by a 3.0 6-cylinder making 231-hp and a 199 lb-ft of torque. It will be the only model offered in North America.

Check out the commercial after the jump.

2011 BMW X1:

2011 BMW X1:

- By: The Daily Auto Editor

By now we shouldn’t even be doing introductions to our Miscellaneous Thoughts posts (believe us we’re not close to wrapping up this day right now, but it’s time for a little break).

2009 Pontiac Solstice Coupe GXP: After a week of driving, we are slowly starting to fall for the 260-hp little bugger. There may be things that make you think twice about dropping more than $33,000 for the GXP variant of the Solstice Coupe – but it’s definitely a vehicle to consider if you’re shopping in this segment (especially if you have a buy-American motto). Check out this recent pic of that we took of the hood popped up.

Iacocca Ford Mustang commercial flies you to the moon: The new commercial for Iacocca’s Silver 45th Anniversary Edition Ford Mustang features a wonderful piece by none other than Frank Sinatra. Based on the 2009 Ford Mustang, two engine options will be offered: a normally-aspirated 4.6L V8 making 320-hp and a supercharged version pumping out 400-hp.  - Motor Trend

- By: Kap Shah