BMW M760Li xDrive advert banned by advertising watchdog

An advert for the BMW M760Li xDrive has been banned by the ASA (Advertising Standards Agency) and CAP (Committees of Advertising Practice).

The ad was featured in the Telegraph Magazine earlier this year. The ASA took issue with the strapline “Luxury just lost its manners” and alleged that BMW had made speed the focus of the ad by listing the car’s 3.7sec to 62mph acceleration figure, and details of its twin-turbocharged 6.6-litre V12 direct injection petrol engine.

The ASA blocked BMW from using the advert again, and instructed the brand to “ensure they did not make speed or acceleration the main message of their future marketing communications”.

The Telegraph defended the advert, pointing out that the car’s stated acceleration does not exceed the national speed limit, but BMW also defended the phrase “for some, the climb to the top is quicker”, saying that the advert’s target audience would not read the phrase as meaning the car’s top speed, but reflected success in their careers.

The complainant also questioned BMW’s use of language in the advert’s strapline, and said that the phrasing condones driving irresponsibly; BMW dismissed this as ‘advertising puffery’ according to the ASA. The advert was banned regardless.

With a 0-62mph time of 3.7sec - the same as the original Ferrari FF – the M760Li xDrive is the fastest-accelerating BMW to date, trouncing even the i8’s 0-62mph time by 0.7sec.

A BMW spokesman explained that the ad was only a one-off appearance, with no plans for it to be reused, adding: "we always seek to ensure our advertising is compliant with the relevant rules and standards.”

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