By Liz
More answers to your questions . . .
Test Cars:
The cars we typically build and use in development are kept for as long as possible, sometimes a couple of years. They often start their “life” underneath heavy camo, being driven and otherwise used in any number of ways. As time goes on, the camo sometimes comes off and we often adjust and update them to incorporate other features in need of testing. These can be features or systems for subsequent model years. Or, sometimes they can even turn into “mules." In any event, we never sell these cars, as they are often heavily altered, and, frankly, they’re just very tired! If they’ve outlived their usefulness in testing, they are scrapped. The photo above shows one of these in action in Germany last year.
Competitive Comparison:
Yes, we almost always have competitive cars involved in our driving tests, all the way through the process. It’s almost a constant. At different times and in different tests the competitors chosen might change. For instance, at times we’ll use a cross-section of comparable cars. Other times, we might select a competitive car for just one or a few attributes, such as a car we want to compare ourselves to only for ride quality, or seat comfort. We purchase competitive cars – a pretty large and ever-changing fleet of them – for exactly this purpose.
Emergency Brake:
For 2008, the emergency brake for CTS will be located in the same place as it was in the previous car -- in other words, a pedal. We find many consumers to be really focused on maximizing storage space (for things like cell phones, iPods, sunglasses, drinks, etc.) in the center console area. The ’08 CTS has even more storage and convenience capability in the center console between the seats – including an auxiliary audio port, a USB port, larger and better cupholders -- which we think people will really like. We are continuing to work on another solution altogether for the emergency brake for the future, so this one is a work in progress.
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