Shots fired! According to this new car spot from Arnold Worldwide, Volvos are for real people, but Mercedes-Benzes are for snooty women of the 1% who preen at themselves in rearview mirrors. This is some good, clean class warfare, automobile-style, and luxury brands better watch out.

A few years ago, a Volvo was a boring car for people who needed affordable transportation. Now, the price hasn’t changed much, but the image has shifted slowly. It’s not that crazy to think that someone with enough money would pick a Volvo over a Benz. And the new spot tugs at the right cords of today’s economic realities to make the comparison seem not only feasible, but preferable. There are also a few campaign teasers on Facebook that flesh out the appeal of Volvo as “luxury for real people,” including: If your dog has a wardrobe, the Volvo s60 probably isn’t for you. Now they’re going after snobby women and people who dress up their dogs! More shots fired, Volvo. I’m in. Credits after the jump.

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With lunchtime approaching, why not take some time out while you devour your meal and watch this intriguing short film called “Sunshine.” The clip follows freelance advertising producer John Benet, who’s tasked with selling fast-food in Shanghai. We don’t need to tell you what the brand is since you’ll find out in a millisecond, but director/editor Doug Nichol‘s 15-minute portrait of a seemingly jaded, 22-year ad vet in a foreign land is well worth the eyeball time. Choice quote: “When we travel, we want to experience something different, but it just feels the same.”

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It’s been about a decade since Toyota launched their electric hybrid car, the Prius, worldwide. So, give Chevrolet credit for picking up on the idea and realizing that, “Hey, pretty much every other major car company has a hybrid electric vehicle. We should probably build one too.”

Enter the new Chevy Volt and its “Runs Deep” campaign done by the good folks at Goodby. Premiering during the World Series last night (Giants won FYI), the TV spot already has the audience Chevy needs to sell tons of earth-friendly cars stamped with an American seal of approval. The only problem is that ads like “Anthem” shown above might be too subtle for anyone to notice…at all. Unless, of course, you’re just a fan of Freelance Whales (and you should be).

Now, no one’s asking voiceover guy Tim Allen to overwhelm GM and Chevy with his trademark Home Improvement “man-grunt” noises. And, admittedly, the creatives as Goodby are much better at what they do than most, that being clean-cut simplicity. But, if you’re making a commercial about the “American Way” airing during “America’s Favorite Pastime,” why not use a bit more patriotic imagery? If your electric car is the kind that actually plugs into an outlet, why not show that onscreen for more than half a second so people can see what you’re doing? Also, if your car can run solely on an electric charge for 40 miles, more than 75 percent of the country’s daily commute, wouldn’t you include something about that other than some fine print at the bottom of your ad or mentioning “really far”? Maybe I just don’t understand why Chevy’s trying to sell spontaneity to the kind of people who are counted on to watch the World Series every year.

Credits after the jump. continued…

New Career Opportunities Daily: The best jobs in media.