Lexus Australia unveils its campaign to launch world’s first heartbeat car via M&C Saatchi
The campaign to launch Lexus Australia’s world-first ‘Heartbeat Car’ innovation project via M&C Saatchi, went live today.
Lexus aimed to showcase the experience of driving its high-performance F line of vehicles. These vehicles are built from the ground up to excite any driver in any environment, demonstrating that Lexus vehicles can conquer the world’s toughest racetracks but still deliver a visceral thrill on the road.
For Lexus, motorsport is much more than pushing the limits of power, or speed, or specification. They are all simply ingredients to achieve one goal: making the driver feel the thrill of the road.
So an RC F V8 Coupe was taken aside and given a very special treatment.
In a R&D collaboration between Lexus, M&C Saatchi and the agency’s innovation hub Tricky Jigsaw, the car was fitted with breakthrough technology that enabled it to react to the driver’s heartbeat in a uniquely visual way.
The driver’s pulse literally lights up the car in a compelling demonstration of the impact human and machine have on one another.
The magic happens via bespoke-built high-tech sensors that detect the driver’s heartbeat and then synch it to illuminate especially-concocted electroluminescent paint applied to the car’s exterior panelling.
The campaign goes live today with especially built digital executions that link to an M&C Saatchi-created film http://thisisheartracing.com.au/ on Lexus.com.au/performance and rolls out across a suite of premium mainstream mastheads and business, tech and men’s lifestyle sites, both online and in print.
In another first, the print executions will feature just-released visual recognition capability from Shazam that will bring the ads to dynamic, interactive life for readers via their mobile phones.
Says Sean Hanley, CEO, Lexus Australia: “The Lexus Heartbeat Car is a stunning testament to the strength of our collaboration with creative partners M&C Saatchi.
“It perfectly embodies the New Lexus ethos that is innovative, bold, dynamic and dynamic.
“Above all, it reaffirms that we make high-performance vehicles, exemplified by the ‘F’ line of which this RC F is a one-off that will truly get hearts racing.”
Says Jaimes Leggett, M&C Saatchi Australia Group CEO: “It has been a privilege to help Lexus bring its vision to life in such a compelling way.
“They are fantastic partners. Pushing the envelope is their default position and their drive and bravery to explore what’s possible are inspiring.
“We are grateful to have had this opportunity to deploy a number of our Group’s capabilities: innovation and NPD, creative, strategy, content, media and PR.”
Heartbeat Car continues a big year for Lexus since appointing M&C Saatchi in June 2014.
Within four months the agency had relaunched the brand with the “This is the New Lexus” repositioning to trigger a reappraisal of the luxury marque by new audiences.
In January it built on the positioning with a campaign to launch the NX Crossover that featured the world’s smartest billboards.
Andy DiLallo, Chief Creative Officer
Ben Welsh, Executive Creative Director
Chris Little, Creative Director
Phil Leece, Creative Group Head
Chris Cheeseman, Senior Art Director
Michael Sinclair, Strategy Director
Nick Russo, Group Head
Liz Ainslie, Group Account Director
Lauren Trace, Senior Account Director
Lill Ireland, TV Producer
Sharon Lewis, Executive Producer, Digital
Matt Willis, Executive Digital Design Director
James Jamias, Senior Digital Designer
Vincent Leong, Designer
Richard Sellies, Digital Designer
Russell Taylor, Senior Digital Designer
Trent Henderson, Executive Producer, Print & Art Buying
Ian Butterworth, Ian Butterworth Photography, Photographer
Louis Molines, Louis & Co, Producer/Agent
Janai Anselmi, Janai Anselmi Styling, Stylist
Cream Studios, Retouching/CGI
Rapid, Production Company
Jonathan Nyquist, Director
Alex Tizzard, Producer
Chris Barron, Editor
Ben Eagleton at B Colour, Colourist:
Alt VFX,Post Production:
Song Zu, Audio:
7 Comments
Nice one Jono & Alex.
Pure wank!
You could run the same strategy on a Hyundi Excel and achieve the same results. The idea is about racing around a track at night flat out not about the car, so it doesn’t matter what car you’re in, your heart rate would be the same.
Interesting idea executed so poorly that it becomes harder to understand
I’m with @hmmmm. This says NOTHING about the brand or the car. It’s an agency getting overexcited by creating some cool tech and not even thinking about why a customer would give a shit or remember this. .
As a demonstrations piece of Lexus intent and growing capability in the innovation space I reckon this is pretty compelling, and fun. It’s getting plenty of chat for the car at the moment, mostly of the wow, whizz bang variety and that’s can be all bad.
Great use of tech to deliver the purpose. Action over ads.