Abstract Research has shown that automobile advertising commonly depicts reckless, illegal, or aggressive driving. These themes contribute to a pervasive culture that glorifies speed and dangerous driving. Vehicle performance is the most commonly used theme in U.S. vehicle advertising, whereas the use of vehicle safety as a central theme is relatively uncommon. This is surprising, given that North Americans consistently cite vehicle safety as a highly important feature they consider when purchasing a new vehicle. The present study assessed the current state of automotive advertising in Canada. Qualitative analysis of a random sample of 200 recent (September 2006 – September 2007) Canadian television and print advertisements revealed four key message themes: performance, price, lifestyle, and safety. Subsequent content analysis of the sample indicated that vehicle performance themes, including demonstrations of engine power, drive train characteristics and speed, appeared in 59.5% of all advertisements. Pricing information was provided in 54% of the sample, and lifestyle-related themes were present in 33%. Vehicle safety featured in 25% of the advertisements sampled. Eighteen per cent of sampled advertisements depicted ‘unsafe’ message content such as demonstrations of acceleration, speed or hard stops, and/or the inclusion of a disclaimer. A disclaimer uses small font size and is most often found at the bottom of the screen on a television commercial, or at the end of a print commercial. It usually consists of wording to the effect of: a) a professional driver is driving the car, b) the ad is not real, but uses, for example, computer animation, or c) the commercial portrays humour and / or exaggerations of reality. In such cases, disclaimers make it evident that the vehicle manufacturer is aware that the commercial is depicting unsafe or questionable use of their product, and may be irresponsible, as it understates the real risks of driving. Collectively, results demonstrate that Canadian vehicle advertisements often depict unsafe driving practices, and that vehicle manufacturers are often aware that their messages are
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