Toyota Hilux gets muddy in latest Saatchi & Saatchi campaign

Toyota Australia is putting the Hilux through another distinctly Australian test in the latest instalment of its long-running Don't Send a Ute to Do a Hilux Job campaign.

Created by Saatchi & Saatchi Australia, Mud Dance turns an off-road demonstration into a muddy dance-off, with a convoy of utes slipping and sliding down a hillside to Mary Schneider's yodelled rendition of The Blue Danube. The Hilux, naturally, stays out of the performance and gets on with the job. 

Toyota Australia chief marketing officer Vin Naidoo said the campaign builds on the model's long-running Unbreakable positioning.

“For decades, Australians have trusted Hilux to get the job done in some of the toughest conditions imaginable,” Naidoo said via a press release.

“‘Mud Dance’ builds on that enduring Unbreakable spirit, following the success of ‘Don’t Send a Ute to Do a Hilux Job’ and bringing Hilux capability to life in a way that is unmistakably Toyota.”

Saatchi & Saatchi Australia chief creative officer Mandie van der Merwe said Hilux's advertising history gave the agency licence to turn a serious product demonstration into entertainment.

“Toyota understands that creativity is a genuine differentiator, and throwing a fleet of utes down a muddy hill to Mary Schneider’s yodelled rendition of ‘The Blue Danube’ is a wonderfully charming way to prove a serious product point,” van der Merwe said.

Directed by MOFA's Nick Kelly, the campaign debuted ahead of the AFL Grand Final and is rolling out nationally across television, OOH, digital and social. Spark Foundry handled media.