a sign of the times

In response to the unstable economy, automaker Hyundai launched its unusual "Assurance Program" with ads from San Francisco-based Goodby, Silverstein & Partners yesterday.

It's simple: if you buy or lease a new Hyundai and within the next year lose your income due to a job loss, you can return your car for free. Sans penalty.

The tagline: certainty in uncertain times.

I like the idea. Or, at least, I'm trying to like it. It's a great gesture, one along the lines of when the automaker became the first in the U.S. to offer a 10-year/100,000-mile warranty in 1998.

But it feels like the buyer should be knocking on wood before signing on the dotted line. After all, it's hard to be enthusiastic about the prospect of losing your job. You know things are bad when the elephant in the room is not only addressed but also invited to carve the turkey and stay for dinner.

Kudos to Hyundai for making such a bold move. I'm curious, though, how their program will play out with consumers over the next year.