Two-Thousand-and-Ten or Twenty-Ten?

[Bruce Nunnally]

On the lighter side, advertisements for the new 2010 vehicles have to choose which way people are likely to refer to the new year.

Cadillac is joining Lexus and Toyota on the two-thousand-ten side of the fence, in commercials for the 2010 Cadillac SRX.

The move was “was a client decision,” Tracy Brady, a spokeswoman for Modernista, Cadillac’s creative agency in Boston, wrote in an e-mail message. Referring to the co-founder and executive creative director at Modernista, Lance Jensen, she added: “Or as Lance put it, ‘Because the client said so.’ ”

(If that seems cheeky, it may be because Cadillac recently placed its creative account in review and Modernista decided not to take part.)

Among other commercials siding with Cadillac, Lexus and Toyota are spots for the Ford Fusion; the Lincoln MKS, sold by Ford’s Lincoln Mercury division; the Mitsubishi Lancer, sold by Mitsubishi Motors North America; and American Honda Motor cars sold by dealers in the New York Long Island Honda dealers association.

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The most notable brand taking the opposite tack is another General Motors nameplate, Buick. Commercials for the Buick LaCrosse refer to twenty ten rather than two thousand ten.

The reason, said Steve Rosenblum, director for advertising and promotion for the Buick and GMC lines at G.M., is that twenty ten sounds “different, modern and progressive, which is very appropriate for the new Buick.”

“It’s also a quicker, more intuitive read” for an announcer, he wrote in an e-mail message, “when time is at a premium.” The Buick agency is Leo Burnett, part of the Publicis Groupe.

NY Times Media & Advertising: http://www.nytimes.com/2009/11/03/business/media/03adco.html

[abad95]

I think Twenty-Ten sounds nicer myself,but it's a matter of preference I think...

Florin

[BodybyFisher]

It used to be 1985 was Nineteen-Eighty-Five, so

2010 should be Twenty-Ten, IMHO

[joeb]

how did you say 2009? twenty-nine or 2000-nine? i said 2000-nine or just 09. we just bought a 2010 and the dealer said 2000-10 like i did.

[BodybyFisher]

how did you say 2009? twenty-nine or 2000-nine? i said 2000-nine or just 09. we just bought a 2010 and the dealer said 2000-10 like i did.

I agree that the single digit years break the rules, but the next time that happens we wont be around, LOL....

I think it has to be Twenty-OHH-NINE, LOL

[Bruce Nunnally]

I think in "Car Culture" we should call the year "DUB-10". But you know, that's just the way I roll.