Auto Express, Britain’s best-selling weekly car title, has today named Honda’s ‘cog’ advert the best car ad of all-time. The 2003 ad for the Honda Accord took 31% of the votes in the poll of users of Autoexpress.co.uk. Ford’s ad for the Puma featuring Steve McQueen took second place, while Peugeot’s 206 advert, ‘The Sculptor’, was third.

Readers picked their favourite car advert from a list of 20 memorable adverts, shortlisted by the experts at Auto Express with the help of Richard Megson, creative director at the advertising agency Red Brick Road.

Steve Fowler, Auto Express editor-in-chief, said: “Honda’s cog ad ticks all the boxes for car ads: it’s incredibly watchable, clever and memorable with a great soundtrack, too. We’re not surprised it came in at number one in our poll, but the size of the vote for it shows what a great ad it is.”

Developed by creative advertising agency Wieden+Kennedy, the ad shows a cog rolling gently down a wooden plank, knocking into a larger cog. It sets off an incredible chain reaction in which a huge array of Accord parts knock, roll or swing into each other. The  ad changed the perception of Honda and its drivers, with it proving so watchable you just don’t want it to end.

Neil Christie, Managing Director of Wieden+Kennedy, was delighted by the result saying: “Fantastic news! That's the power of dreams in action.”

The top 5 adverts as voted for by the Auto Express readers were:

Top 5:
1. Honda Accord: The Cog
2. Ford Puma: Steve McQueen
3. Peugeot 206: The Sculptor
4. Citroen C4: Transformers
5. VW Golf GTI: Changes

The full shortlist of car adverts can be seen in this week’s issue of Auto Express (issue 1248) on sale this Wednesday.