Used Honda Ad Sparks Bidding War, Prices Surges From $499 To $150,000

A lot of people buy used cars, but for really old ones, sellers have to get creative just to make a decent sale. In one case, a film-maker is responsible for creating a bidding war that significantly increased the price of a 1997 Honda Accord. It’s all thanks to a brilliant ad video that went viral due to its hilarious and inspired satirization of modern car commercials.

The video was created by Max Lanman, NBC Los Angeles reports, and he made it for the of his fiancée Carrie Hollenbeck. Of course, since the car has been running for 21 years, it would have been difficult to get a good price for it. Fortunately, Lanman got the idea to drum up interest with a commercial-style video.

"A few years ago, I was driving to Big Sur with my (then) girlfriend Carrie to go camping on Highway 1. While we were traversing gorgeous switchbacks, it felt like (we) were driving in a car commercial and that's when it hit me that it would be really funny to make a high-end car commercial for a crappy car," Lanman explained.

When Hollenbeck finally decided to sell the car in 2016, Lanman spent the next few months working on the commercial. The result is a one-minute video with all the hallmarks of a professionally-made ad video for larger car makers. The paradoxical nature of the ad also turned it into an internet sensation. As of writing, the YouTube clip has garnered 2,997,708 views.

The car, which was named Greenie for its green color, was only supposed to sell for $499 but its price quickly soared to surpass $150,000. The auction is now over and there has been no word on what exactly happened. Even if the eventual price of the car doesn’t exactly go anywhere near the peak figure, at least Greenie is assured to have a new home.