A banner across the advert read: “Drive it like it's stolen!” Two residents complained to the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) and said the advert promotes and glorifies the stealing of cars, speeding and reckless driving.
Macbeth Ngema and Candice Nene said the billboard was especially distasteful as it was placed near where musician Molemo “Jub Jub” Maarohanye and his friend Themba Tshabalala killed four school children and seriously injured two others in 2010 while racing Mini Coopers. The two were sentenced to 25 years in prison in 2012.
The ASA decided not to rule on the matter after BMW promised not to use the phrase “Drive it like it's stolen” in future. BMW defended the advert and said the wording was chosen after the original billboard was stolen. It said the phrase “drive it like it's stolen” was a tongue-in-cheek reference to the theft. The ASA also noted that, subsequent to the complaints, the second billboard was also stolen.
2 comments:
Much ado about nothing.
I was going to buy a new Mini recently, would like to have a new car once before I die, but took it for a test drive and was under impressed about the power.
Drive it like it's stolen ? Who would bother stealing one ?
It's just a saying, it's used in a lot of movies.
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