A 'green' Honda in Formula one - has the paradigm of sports sponsorship suddenly changed?

The irony, of course, is that the Honda team, in its previous guise as BAR Honda, was the most commercially exploitative user of F1 as a sponsorship medium of all.

BAR Honda cars were high speed cigarette packets for years

BAR stood for 'British American Racing' and the team was initially a wholly owned subsidiary of tobacco giant 'British American Tobacco (BAT)'. The only reason that BAT got so involved in F1 was to find a way to continue to promote their 'Lucky Strike' and '555' cigarette brands despite the tightening of anti tobacco advertising legislation. It was a perfectly legal, but supremely cynical, way to keep their brands in the public eye - but as soon as it became clear that tobacco promotion laws would eventually succeed BAT withdrew and Honda took over the team. Few will mourn BAT's passing from the F1 scene. Now Honda has apparently turned their back on the convention of using their cars as high speed commercial billboards. Instead their striking new livery is designed to emphasise that Honda is an ecologically minded company.

Have Honda taken leave of their senses?

Honda's explanation for their environmental livery decision is as follows: 'This year our car will race to raise awareness of environmental issues and to encourage people everywhere to make a difference to the world around them. By pledging to make small changes to our lifestyle, and supporting our environmental partners, we can all make our earth dreams a reality'. The problem that Honda has, and it is one shared in particular by multinational oil companies, is that everyone knows that their core business by its very nature damages the environment and contributes to global warming. Just as more than 95% of the business of Shell or BP is hydrocarbon related (thus making many deeply sceptical of their continued promotion of their green credentials) so it is with the world's big motor manufacturers like Honda. Honda makes cars and cars pollute the planet - it's as simple as that! Some commentators have suggested that Honda have taken leave of their senses and have become a hostage to fortune with their eco-friendly imaging. For example all Motor manufacturers have emission targets set for them by governments and it is reported that Honda is highly unlikely to be able to meet European targets by 2008/09 as they have been challenged to do.

Green campaigners are queuing up to lambaste Honda - and Formula one

No sooner had Honda revealed their new livery than the Green campaigners were falling over themselves to lambaste it. Greenpeace called it 'cynical marketing hype', and 'Friends of the Earth' said 'There is some irony in the fact that Honda are attempting to promote the environment and calling on others to address environmental issues when they are contributing to climate change by participating in what is probably the most polluting sport on the planet.' These campaigners point to the undeniable fact that F1 cars are thirsty - guzzling fuel and running at only 4 miles per gallon. There is also a huge amount of travel involved in getting the F1 circus to the seventeen races around the world. Cars are transported by air and team bosses drivers travel by private jets - environmental awareness is hardly their watchword.

Is it all 'Greenwash'?

The multinational oil companies focus in their corporate advertising on their supposedly eco friendly 'Renewables' businesses despite the fact that these businesses represent less than two percent of their annual investments. Honda uses their gas guzzling F1 car to promote an environmental message similarly leading to charges of 'Greenwash'. The criticism of oil companies and car companies alike is that the rhetoric does not reflect the reality. The reality is that Honda has a 13% market share for passenger cars in the United States a country where the average gas mileage for new vehicles sold has moved from 23.1 miles per gallon in 1980 to 24.7 in 2004 - a paltry increase of slightly less than 7% over the 25 year period. Improved fuels and improved engine efficiency has been offset by the American's love affair with fuel thirty cars like SUVs - a segment in which Honda is very active.

Is sport the right medium for 'Corporate Social Responsibility' messages?

Sports offer a powerful platform for the promotion of commercial messages - and no more so that Formula one whose very existence relies on corporate sponsorship. So in theory the very visibility of a truly global sport like F1 could be used to promote any message, including ones that promote a company's corporate social responsibility. FC Barcelona the European football club champions endorse UNICEF on their shirts this season - a rare example of a sports team forgoing sponsorship money and promoting a social message. Honda's F1 livery is a similar initiative. It will continue to attract criticism - but it will at least allow for some heightened awareness of environmental issues, albeit in a surprising and some think inappropriate medium. Perhaps the critics should wait and see rather than rushing to judgment?