2015 Lexus RC 350 Super Bowl ad scores big with KBB.com visitors

While the New England Patriots emerged as champions of Super Bowl XLIX, the 2015 Lexus RC 350 took top automotive honors with visitors to KBB.com after seeing the car advertised during the game. The engaging RC 350 spot that juxtaposed real and scale-model remote-controlled versions of the new Lexus luxury sport coupe led to a huge 1,820-percent increase in new-car search activity, more than any other individual vehicle. The electric-powered 2015 BMW i3 finished second, upping its search stats by 1,131 percent compared to pre-game levels while the 2016 Mercedes-AMG GT grabbed third spot in the rankings recording a 950-percent increase on the day. 

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Moving down the list, the new 2015 Jeep Renegade saw search interest pop by 500 percent while the 2015 Chevrolet Colorado enjoyed 370 percent more inquiry activity. Of the remaining six vehicles advertised during the game, the Nissan Maxima netted a 229 percent gain in searches on KBB.com followed by the Kia Sorento (225 percent), Fiat 500X (113 percent), Dodge Challenger (106 percent), Lexus NX (48 percent) and Toyota Camry (20 percent). 

Ads bump interest

"Most new models, with the exception of the Lexus NX, saw increases of more than 100 percent after the ads aired," noted Arthur Henry, senior manager of Market Intelligence for Kelley Blue Book’s KBB.com. "The popular crossover/SUV segment, which included spots from models like the Lexus NX, Fiat 500X, Jeep Renegade and Kia Sorento, accounted for more than a third of the models advertised." 

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At the brand level, Kia led all automotive advertisers by generating 68 percent more total search activity. Dodge trailed close behind netting a 62-percent gain while Fiat rounded out the top three, with KBB.com visitors boosting their information queries by 52 percent as the result of having viewed the 500X commercial. Although the new RC 350 was the clear standout individual model, Lexus finished last among the brands that advertised, upping its total post-game search numbers by a mere six percent.