Automakers spent an estimated $84.4 million on national
TV spending in August, down 31.3% compared to $122.8 million in August 2024.
Household TV ad impressions also dropped in August to 17.9 billion, down 20.5% compared to 22.5
billion in August 2024, according to iSpot.tv.
Year-to-date estimated national TV spending also declined 4.9% and year-to-date impressions dipped 16.4 %.
The top five brands by estimated national TV ad spending in August were Lexus ($9.3 million), Kia ($8.8 million), Toyota ($8.6 million), Subaru ($7.7 million) and Volkswagen ($5.5 million),
per iSpot.tv.
Sports-related programming accounted for nearly half (49%) of the auto industry’s total national linear TV ad spend in August, led by the NFL (16.8%), MLB
(6.5%) and college football (4.1%).
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Of the top five automakers, Lexus and Toyota leaned into NFL preseason action the most, allocating a respective 62% and 29% of total outlay
toward games, and all of them activated around college football games to some extent, says Stuart Schwartzapfel, executive vice president of media partnerships at iSpot.tv.
“While MLB games generated the most reach for automakers overall in August, early-season football action also provided reemerging opportunities to tap into some of TV’s biggest
audiences,” Schwartzapfel tells Marketing Daily. “Meanwhile, news remains an underutilized avenue to reaching active auto buyers, with audience demand during those programs
outpacing the number of ads appearing.”
The top five brands by share of automaker household TV ad impressions, August 2025 were Toyota (10.96%), Hyundai (8.88%), Kia (8.06%),
Chevrolet (7.76%) and Ford (7.18%), per iSpot.tv.
The top five brands by share of voice on streaming in August 2025 were Hyundai (12.05%), Ram Trucks (10.97%), Jeep (10.79%),
Nissan (7.54%) and Toyota (6.20%).
Just three automakers accounted for a full third of streaming TV ad reach SOV in August: Hyundai, Ram Trucks and Jeep — and two of those
didn’t rank among the top ten on linear: Ram Trucks was No. 13 on linear and Jeep was No. 11. While Toyota was No. 1 on linear, it was No. 5 on streaming, per iSpot.tv.
The
top programs for automakers by share of household TV ad impressions in August 2025 were MLB (10.12%), College Football (5.37%), NFL (2.88%), PGA Tour Golf (2.60%) and SportsCenter (1.82%), per
iSpot.tv.
The most-seen automaker ads by share of household TV ad impressions in August 2025 were Hyundai: Lawyer (4.12%), Hyundai: Therapist
(4.01%), Jeep: How Summer Rolls (3.44%), Chevrolet: The Heartbeat of America (2.85%) and Nissan: Keep Summer Going (2.80%).
The top automaker ads by likeability among the top 20
most-seen ads, August 2025 according to iSpot.tv were Subaru: Dog Tested: On Repeat
(+17.6% more likeable than August automotive norm), Jeep: How Summer Rolls (+10.2%), Audi:
The Road Is Calling (+10.2%), Lexus: Dogs (+9.0%) and Chevrolet: The Heartbeat of America (+7.3%), per iSpot.tv.
The top automaker ads by
positive purchase intent among the top 20 most-seen ads in August 2025 were Audi: The Road Is Calling (62%), Kia:
VIP Lounge Seating (58%), Chevrolet: The Heartbeat of America (56%), Mercedes-Benz: The Philosophy (56%) and Subaru: Dog
Tested: On Repeat (54%).
Chevrolet’s “The Heartbeat of America” shows various Chevy models — from its SUVs and trucks to electric vehicles — being
used for life’s adventures. It stood out in August not only by industry reach, but from a creative perspective as well: It performed in the 90th percentile for likeability and the 86th
percentile for desire, and also scored above the auto norm for attention and relevance. It had a notable 56% positive purchase intent, according to iSpot.tv.