In the race toward digital transformation within the automotive industry, CGI (Computer-Generated Imagery) is emerging as a strategic tool — not only to create product visuals but to redefine how brands approach and engage with customers. From virtual showrooms and 360° videos to personalized experiences on digital platforms, CGI unlocks comprehensive innovation in communication and the car-buying journey. This article delves into CGI’s role in the automotive sector through key case studies, along with the challenges and opportunities ahead.

As competition in the automotive market expands from product to digital brand experience, communication becomes a crucial factor in consumers’ decision-making process. Today’s customers don’t just want to “see”; they want to interact, explore, and personalize their journey right from the first touchpoint. This is the moment CGI steps beyond a supportive role to become a strategic tool in automotive communication.

1. A New Wave of Visual Technology: When CGI Leads the Automotive Industry

Vietnam’s automotive market is rapidly evolving in both scale and competitiveness. In addition to product quality, brands now need to emphasize information and visual experience to gain an edge with consumers. Instead of visiting a dealership, most users now begin their car-buying journey in the digital space. According to Think with Google, 95% of car buyers use online tools to research before making a decision, and 86% are influenced by video content, particularly from YouTube, TikTok, and review platforms — a clear sign of how digital communication shapes brand awareness. (Source: Think with Google, 2023)

This trend is further driven by the widespread adoption of the internet and mobile devices. As of early 2024, Vietnam had over 70 million internet users — nearly 73% of the population — with an average of 6 hours and 30 minutes of daily access, mostly spent on social media and online videos. (Source: We Are Social & DataReportal, 2024) In this context, consumers increasingly expect content that is visually appealing, interactive, and easily accessible. They want to “see” the car in real-life environments, observe details, and even “test drive” before ever stepping into a showroom.

However, most automotive brands in Vietnam have yet to catch up with this shift. Product visuals often remain static images, traditional renderings, or one-way TVC-style videos, making it difficult to stand out in today’s highly competitive digital environment. This creates a gap between consumers’ active search behavior and how brands deliver messages — especially as customer demographics trend younger and demand more dynamic digital content.

As a result, new communication solutions — especially advanced visual technologies like CGI — are gaining attention as a potential breakthrough. CGI not only brings products to life more vividly and flexibly but also opens the door to personalization and immersive user simulations right on digital platforms.

As users increasingly begin their car-buying journey online, automotive communication strategies are under pressure. Brands must now show up at the right moment, with striking visuals and a deeply engaging experience. This is where CGI shines. Leveraging its digital communication and visual technology expertise, Novaon Digital supports brands in adapting to this trend through flexible, standardized, and personalized content solutions across customer touchpoints.

Consumer behavior in the modern car market

2. CGI – Redefining Visual Communication in the Automotive Industry

In the automotive sector, imagery has always played a central role in conveying emotion, messaging, and product value. Traditionally, brands relied on physical shoots with real cars, real locations, and large crews. This approach is time-consuming, labor-intensive, and subject to constraints such as weather, logistics, and high costs.

In contrast, CGI offers a new path for visual communication in the industry. Rather than waiting for a finished prototype, brands can build full car models based on CAD data and place them in digitally simulated environments. This dramatically shortens production timelines and allows for easy adjustments to angles, colors, lighting, and backgrounds via software.

Beyond technical and cost benefits, CGI aligns with evolving consumer content preferences. Today’s customers — especially Gen Y and Gen Z — are no longer swayed by static images or traditional TVCs. They seek interactive content, multisensory experiences, and high personalization. CGI enables the creation of 360° videos, virtual showrooms, augmented reality (AR), and even live-streamed events in digital environments — all designed to deliver immersive, tailored experiences to specific audiences.

From a technical solution, CGI is becoming an integral part of automakers’ communication strategies — not only to save costs but to deliver stronger, more personalized, and contextually relevant brand experiences in the digital era.

As visual expectations and user interactivity rise, relying solely on traditional photos or video shoots is no longer sufficient. CGI provides a flexible, cost-efficient image solution, helping brands refresh their storytelling while maintaining emotional impact and visual detail. Novaon Digital integrates CGI into its creative communication services — from visual concepting and virtual showrooms to simulation videos — enhancing engagement and conversion in campaigns.

How is CGI OOH created

3. CGI in Automotive: Breakthrough Opportunities and Challenges to Overcome

The digital revolution is reshaping the entire car-buying journey as consumers increasingly expect seamless, intuitive, and personalized experiences. In this landscape, CGI offers a wide range of opportunities for the automotive industry — from optimizing visual communication to redefining customer experience on digital platforms.

One of CGI’s greatest strengths is its ability to build highly customizable visual ecosystems — enabling consumers to interact with products in unprecedented ways: choosing paint colors, interior designs, or experiencing the vehicle in different scenarios through 3D or virtual reality. CGI also helps brands drastically reduce time-to-market while cutting post-production and filming costs, offering a clear competitive edge in digital-first communications.

However, for CGI to deliver its full strategic potential, automakers must tackle several challenges. Implementing a digital rendering system requires consistent design data infrastructure, specialized technical teams, and tightly integrated workflows across platforms — from websites and virtual showrooms to e-commerce. Without clear strategies and proper investment, CGI risks becoming a costly but disjointed tool with limited effectiveness.

CGI is not a one-size-fits-all solution, but it is a key enabler for the shift toward personalized automotive communication — where imagery is not just seen, but interacted with, customized, and used to inform purchase decisions. When implemented correctly, CGI does more than support marketing — it reshapes how consumers discover, connect with, and fall in love with a vehicle.

Expert insight from Novaon Digital: CGI offers competitive advantages in speed, cost, and user experience personalization. However, success requires smart investment — in data systems, rendering technology, and collaborative workflows. As an integrated strategy and execution partner, Novaon Digital helps brands build effective CGI adoption roadmaps — visually stunning, operationally efficient, and commercially viable.

4. Leading Automotive Brands Using CGI as a Strategic Tool

CGI is no longer just about hyperrealistic visuals — it’s a vital strategic tool helping automakers build brands, engage users, and bridge the gap between virtual and real experiences. Below are three standout case studies (Audi e-tron GT, Honda ADV160/CBR250RR, Honda Civic), each showcasing how CGI plays a role in storytelling, emotional branding, and user interaction.

Case Study 1: Audi e-tron GT – Cinematic Renders Powered by Unreal Engine

Context
Audi aimed to reinforce its premium EV positioning with futuristic, tech-driven imagery aligned with the message “Future is an Attitude.” Filming real-world scenes in studios, cities, or nature posed challenges in cost, time, and environmental control. Audi sought a more scalable, agile solution to meet high-volume content needs quickly.

CGI Solution
Audi partnered with FIXIP Studio and Audi Business Innovation to develop the Automotive Visualization Platform (AVP) using Unreal Engine 5. CAD design data was rendered using ray tracing and real-time rendering, enabling production of visual content in diverse contexts — day, night, urban, or studio — without real-world shooting. The pipeline was automated, reducing time and enhancing creative flexibility.

Results
CGI reduced production costs by around 30% and cut lead times from weeks to hours. The output was visually striking and adapted across media and markets. Audi later scaled AVP across the Volkswagen Group to support content creation for over 1,000 dealerships — making CGI a core platform in its digital communication strategy.

Audi e-tron GT – Cinematic Renders Powered by Unreal Engine

Case Study 2: Honda ADV160 & CBR250RR – Fully CGI-Animated Commercials

Context
In its push to reposition as youthful and creative, Honda identified the ADV160 and CBR250RR as breakthrough models. For ADV160 — a versatile model targeting young users — Honda wanted to evoke a sense of adventure even in everyday rides. Meanwhile, CBR250RR’s sporty look needed a fresh visual language to appeal to dynamic, thrill-seeking users.

CGI Solution
Honda launched a campaign using full 3D CGI animation. For ADV160, the video “DISCOVER NEW EXCITEMENT” reimagined a daily ride as an adventure — with throttle motion, ambient lighting, and rider movements precisely crafted using CGI and test-rider references. For CBR250RR’s “PLAY LEGIT,” Honda blended everyday city scenes with sci-fi elements to capture a futuristic athletic spirit. All visuals were high quality, integrating 3D textures and lighting effects for a cinematic short-film feel. (Source: global.honda, 2023)

Results
Both videos — ADV160 “DISCOVER NEW EXCITEMENT” and CBR250RR “PLAY LEGIT” — won the 2023 Red Dot Brand & Communication Design Award, a global design benchmark. The success affirmed CGI’s power in storytelling, helping Honda connect with younger consumers in a visually compelling and inspiring way.

Honda ADV160 & CBR250RR – Fully CGI-Animated Commercials

Case Study 3: Honda Civic – Interactive “Real View Test Drive 360°”

Context
Post-COVID, younger consumers — especially Gen Z and Millennials — have shifted to digital-first experiences. They wanted realistic test drives at home, without showroom pressure. Honda recognized that traditional dealerships no longer met this need and sought a creative solution to reinvent test drives digitally.

CGI Solution
Honda developed “Real View Test Drive 360°,” an interactive CGI test drive experience. The cabin, dashboard, ambient lighting, and road conditions were all digitally simulated in high fidelity. Users could rotate the 360° camera on a web interface, exploring seat textures, instrument panels, interior space, and overall feel — all from home. This marked the first step toward immersive, location-free virtual test drives.

Results
Although Honda did not disclose exact figures, the experience drew strong digital engagement — longer view times, more website interaction, and higher emotional connection to the Civic before showroom visits. More importantly, CGI helped Honda create a new, immersive, shareable test-drive experience — paving the way for the industry’s digital transformation.

Honda Civic – Interactive “Real View Test Drive 360°

Conclusion

As consumer behavior becomes more digitized and personalization sets a new standard, CGI is emerging as a strategic tool in automotive communication. It enables brands to shorten production cycles, reduce costs, and refresh storytelling — while designing interactive experiences that let customers “touch” products in more immersive, intentional ways. Case studies from Audi and Honda prove that CGI is no longer experimental — it’s the new standard for brands looking to move fast, go far, and build stronger user connections.

However, to unlock CGI’s full potential, brands must overcome significant hurdles — from technical infrastructure and design data to platform integration across digital touchpoints. CGI is not just beautiful imagery; it’s part of a personalized experience strategy where each video or virtual setting serves a single purpose: to help customers understand and choose products more intuitively. In the era of experience-led competition, CGI does more than attract — it builds long-lasting brand-consumer relationships.