• by Karl Greenberg , May 27, 2011

Nissan has a new campaign for the Leaf electric car called "Gas Powered Everything" centering on a spot that contemplates a steam-punk (except gasoline instead of steam) world where innovation has begun and ended with the internal combustion engine.

The creative forwards the idea that there is nothing inevitable or perpetual about the internal combustion. The effort, via AOR Chiat makes that point by imagining a world where just about everything requires a gasoline powered engine to operate.

The ad begins with a couple waking up in the morning to their alarm clock, which is powered by a gasoline engine with a tiny Mack truck-style stack spewing a little plume of smoke over their bed. They head into the kitchen where the man pulls a lawn-mower style lanyard to start the coffee maker while his wife blow dries her hair with a gasoline powered hair drier. It gets more absurd from their, with gasoline powered office computers, dentist drills, you name it.

The effort breaks early next month, and includes a new website, GasPoweredEverything.com