Toyota Hilux advert was environmentally "irresponsible", watchdog rules

Facebook advertising showing Toyota Hilux four-wheel drive pick-up trucks crossing desert and plains similarly to a herd of wildebeest has been deemed socially unacceptable by the Advertising Standards Authority.

The advertising watchdog said Toyota's promotion "had not been prepared with a sense of responsibility to society" and "presented and condoned the use of vehicles in a manner that disregarded their impact on nature and the environment".

It's a blow to Toyota, which has long been progressing hybrid powertrains and now is under pressure to speed up introduction of more battery electric vehicles to meet the UK's zero emissions vehicle (ZEV) mandate.

The carmaker was trying to promote the Hilux's off-road abilities in the video with a fantastical depiction of a herd-like spectacle, with the slogan 'Born To Roam' and it told the ASA that hey said the footage of the vehicles off-road was minimal and when they appeared they were never in an environment which was ecologically sensitive or a habitat with wildlife.

The Hilux was meant for the toughest environments and certain industries had a genuine need for off-road which included specialised workers such as farmers, forestry workers and park rangers.

Toyota argued that it was entitled to advertise to those markets and should be allowed to depict suitable off-road environments to demonstrate the off-road capabilities of the vehicle, in a way that was not restrictive and did not involve depicting a specialised worker character or scenario in the ads. It further stated that if ads were able to show cars on race tracks or circuits, then off-road environments should also be permissible.

The ASA noted that the Toyota Hilux trucks had travelled across untarmacked plans and through rivers, with dust and scree visible disturbed, and it said that although Toyota said it was targetting specialised vehicle users such scenarious were not depicted.

"We therefore considered that the impression given by the driving scenes and messaging in both ads was one of driving regardless of its purpose, across off-road environments and natural ecosystems which had no regard for the environmental impact of such driving," said the ASA, issuing a ban on the advert.

In another case, the ASA rejected a complaint that an Abarth advert encouraged irresponsible driving because its footage was taken from Mission Impossible 7 and featured Tom Cruise, so it was satisfied viewers would understand the driving was fantastical..