Temple of VTEC Rumors and News - New Honda ad campaign highlights Honda's racing heritage and new performance models

Racing-Inspired Brand Campaign Heralds New Honda Performance Models

May 16, 2017

Highly anticipated Civic Type R and Si models make television debut: https://youtu.be/VTFcoh2kj5I
Honda's "Racing Spirit" at the heart of its production vehicles
Honda has most robust and diverse racing portfolio of any automaker

TORRANCE, Calif. � "Racing at Heart," a new brand campaign linking Honda's incredibly diverse, high-performance motorsports program to production vehicles including the new Civic Type R, arriving in dealerships late spring, makes its television debut today: https://youtu.be/VTFcoh2kj5I. The new spot, also titled "Racing at Heart," highlights Honda racing programs including the Verizon IndyCar Series, Red Bull Global Rallycross and desert truck racing � demonstrating how the brand's deep roots in competition inspire the engineering of the Honda vehicles available to its customers.

"Racing at Heart" leads a new Honda brand marketing campaign, with the racing-focused spot starring the Civic Type R, Civic Si and Ridgeline, along with the race cars that inspired such production vehicles. The campaign delivers the message that � from the racetrack to the road � racing is at the heart of every Honda vehicle, starting with its engine. The campaign debuts during the NBA Conference Finals on ABC, and will be showcased during the ABC broadcast of the 2017 Indianapolis 500 on May 28, as well as during '500' qualifying on May 20-21, while also featuring additional broadcast, print, digital and social amplifications.

"Racing is a core part of Honda DNA and for over 60 years the new technologies and challenging spirit we gain on the track translates into the high level of performance in the vehicles we make for our customers," said Susie Rossick, Assistant Vice President, Honda Marketing. "This new Racing at Heart campaign helps celebrate the arrival of the Civic Type R and Si at Honda dealerships nationwide in the coming weeks."

"Racing at Heart" Campaign Extension
The multi-channel "Racing at Heart" campaign will include broadcast television, with the spot airing multiple times on NBC, ABC and ESPN sports programming, including during the NHL Conference Finals, Stanley Cup Finals, NBA Conference Finals (first airing 5/16) and NBA Finals, during Red Bull Global Rallycross race competition, as well as on networks targeting performance-minded viewers such as Comedy Central, Spike TV, FX, among others. From a digital standpoint, www.racewithhonda.com is being overhauled and will serve as the destination hub of the racing campaign.

Honda also is launching a motorsports influencer campaign, taking Honda's long-running "Fastest Seat in Sports" campaign, the long-standing experience that gives a celebrity the chance to go on a two-seat ride leading the start of a Verizon IndyCar Series race with legendary Indy 500 champion driver Mario Andretti � to the next level. Eight different influencers from a variety of backgrounds � from base jumping adrenaline junkies to science buffs like Tory Belleci from "Myth Busters" � will discover their inner racer at heart by helping start an IndyCar Series race riding behind legendary Indy 500 champion driver Mario Andretti in the Honda IndyCar two-seater. For more information on Honda and Honda Racing, visit: http://www.racewithhonda.com.

About Honda
Honda offers a full line of reliable, fuel-efficient and fun-to-drive vehicles with advanced safety technologies sold through over 1,000 independent U.S. Honda dealers. The Honda lineup includes the Fit, Civic, Accord and Clarity Fuel Cell passenger cars, along with the HR-V, CR-V and Pilot sport/utility vehicles, the Ridgeline pickup and the Odyssey minivan.

Honda has been producing automobiles in America for 34 years and currently operates 19 major manufacturing facilities in North America. In 2016, more than 95 percent of all Honda vehicles sold in the U.S. were made in North America, using domestic and globally sourced parts.