After the car sinks down into a mire of quicksand, the buffalo ambles away. The Jeep then drives itself up out of the muck and goes on its way. ' 'El Toro,'' another 30-second spot, first aired in September 1996. It depicts the romantic attraction of two animals for a bright red Jeep Grand Cherokee. The car is first pursued by a bull and drives into a river to escape. As the car emerges, dirty, muddy, and dripping, it is chased by a smitten pig.Although Jeep could not draw a direct correlation between the television commercials and its sales figures, it pronounced itself pleased with the results of the campaign. Jeep sales rose during the period the ads were being broadcast, and polls demonstrated their popularity with consumers. In addition, the ads won a number of advertising awards, generating further publicity for Jeep and its vehicles.
HISTORICAL CONTEXT.
The Jeep brand originated during World War II when the U.S. Army required a rugged vehicle that could master off-road terrain and the brutal conditions of battle. Partly because of Jeep's popularity among American GIs, the American Motor Corporation continued to produce the sturdy car after the war. Seemingly half-car and half-truck, the vehicle with its four-wheel-drive capacity had a reputation for being able to go anywhere. Jeep never lost the macho image it garnered during the war. It was a car for the outdoors, for the rugged individual, for the free spirit. In the 1980s, however, a growing market for ' 'passenger-friendly'' four-wheeldrive vehicles developed. Drivers wanted the robust look and image of a four-wheel drive outside but the comfort and smoothness of a sedan inside. Jeep responded by shifting its product line, discontinuing some models, and introducing new ones to conform to this trend. Jeep Cherokee first came on the market in 1984 and quickly attained great popularity. Jeep Wrangler, a smaller and more economically-priced model, appeared in 1986.
