• by Tanya Gazdik , Yesterday

Automotive national TV spending and ad impressions both took  serious hit in April.

Estimated national TV spending was $160.3 million in April, down 23.9% year over year compared to $210.6 million in April 2024, according to iSpot.tv.  Household TV ad impressions fell 20.3% year-over-year to 16.8 billion compared to 21 billion.

The decline prompted year-to-date spending to fall 1% ($881 million vs. $907.2 million.) Year-to-date household TV ad impressions were also are down 12.8%, per iSpot.tv. 

The top five brands by estimated national TV ad spending in April were Hyundai ($18.4 million), Nissan ($16.5 million),Mercedes-Benz ($13 million), Kia ($11.5 million) and Lexus ($10.6 million).

“Overall, automakers may be decreasing linear TV ad spend and impressions year-over-year, but it’s also a reflection of those advertisers consolidating around specific TV programming,” says Stuart Schwartzapfel, executive vice president, media partnerships at iSpot. “For many auto brands, that focus has shifted to sports, where they saw increased ad reach in April during NBA, NHL and MLB games vs. 2024." 

Sports-related programming accounted for over 71% of the auto industry’s total national linear TV ad spend in April, led by men’s college basketball (27%) and the NBA (19%). All of the top five automakers activated around NBA games to varying extents, and all but Kia also aired ads during men’s college basketball. 

The 2025 Masters Tournament led for outlay for Mercedes-Benz (63%), while the other four brands saw either the NBA or men’s college basketball as the No. 1 driver of spend. Mercedes-Benz also stood out as the only automaker in the top five that did not advertise during MLB games. 

The top five brands by share of automaker household TV ad impressions in April 2025 were Hyundai (11.91%), Toyota (8.92%), Lexus (8.39%), Nissan (7.73%) and Subaru (6.29%). The top five brands by share of voice on streaming were  Hyundai (10.98%), Nissan (7.84%), Honda (6.68%), Lexus (6.61%) and Toyota (6.42%), according to iSpot.tv.

Four of the top five automakers by ad reach were the same across streaming and national linear TV impressions, with Hyundai leading the way on both. Honda was the outlier, putting a greater emphasis on streaming over national linear from an ad reach SOV standpoint: The brand ranked third for streaming SOV, but was ninth on linear.

The most-seen automaker ads by share of household TV ad impressions in April 2025 was Genesis: Blank Canvas (3.64%), Hyundai: The Hyundai Way: Customer Assurance (3.29%), Jeep: American Freedom (2.05%), Honda: Dream Up Anything (2.02%), and Kia: The Next Movement (1.99%).

The top automaker ads by likeability among the top 20 most-seen ads for the month were Subaru: Dog Tested: On Repeat (+16.3% more likeable than April automotive norm), Subaru: The Arbor Day Foundation: Kids (+13.4%), Hyundai: Blind Spot (+9.7%), Genesis: Blank Canvas (+6.8%) and Honda: Dream Up Anything (+5.5%).

The top automaker ads by positive purchase intent among the top 20 most-seen ads were  Hyundai: Blind Spot (60% positive purchase intent), Genesis: Blank Canvas (55%), Subaru: Dog Tested: On Repeat (54%), Ford: Committed to America (53%) and Lincoln: Mic Drop (52%).

Subaru has playfully used dogs instead of humans in its spots for years now, a tactic that continues to resonate with viewers. In April, an ad for the Subaru Crosstrek stood out from both a likeability and positive purchase intent standpoint, per iSpot.tv.

The commercial taps into a familiar experience for many parents (kids wanting to hear the same song repeatedly) but does so through the charm of an adorable dog family. As a result, 38% of survey respondents cited the characters as the “single best thing” about the ad, with “cute” being the most common viewer reaction. In addition to surpassing the auto norm for likeability, this ad scored notably well for attention, watchability and relevance, according to iSpot.