When It Comes To Bottoms, Chevy Cobalt Aims To Be The Tops

Seat comfort and support are among the pleasing details on Chevrolet's new small car

Detroit July 20, 2004; To reach the top of the small car market, engineers working on the 2005 Chevrolet Cobalt knew they would have to start with bottoms.

"Styling and horsepower dazzle, but to really make our customers happy, we need to offer truly supportive and comfortable seats," said GM Small Car Vehicle Line Executive Lori Queen. "After approximately 2,000 hours of seat testing, we think we've accomplished that goal."

The Cobalt team set out to design seats that complement any driving experience, from cruising down an interstate to twisting through a mountain pass. To achieve this goal, the engineers created two levels of seats for various Cobalt models.

A touring-oriented seat features a more open layout and a softer feel to appeal to the more conservative motorists. It has enough support for most driving maneuvers, but its design is biased toward highway driving and daily commuting.

A performance-oriented seat was styled more aggressively, yet still achieves high levels of comfort. The backrest and lower cushion are contoured with more defined winged bolsters that provide thigh and torso support to keep the driver in position during hard cornering maneuvers.

The Science of Seats Cobalt seat engineers collaborated closely with the Ergonomic Research Laboratory (ERL) in East Lansing, Mich. The lab's advanced computer models consider biomechanical factors such as back posture and changes in soft tissue shape from sitting, along with the positioning of the driver in the vehicle. These calculations let experts locate key passenger contact points with the seat that ensure optimal fit. The Cobalt's seats were then designed around those contact points.

"True seating comfort is actually the absence of discomfort, " said Dr. Mac Reynolds, president ERL, LLC. "By studying the biomechanical interaction between the occupant and the seat, we can design a seat configuration that supports each occupant in his or her preferred comfortable driving posture."

Feel the Burn, Feel the G's The Cobalt's seats were then validated in extensive road tests conducted by people of various body sizes that were physically representative of 96 percent of the population.

Engineers riding along on test drives regularly asked drivers to rate the level of "tail burn" or other discomfort experienced on long distance drives - all in the name of creating the most comfortable and supportive seat for Cobalt customers.

Unlike more conventional seat testing for cars in its segment, the Cobalt tests also included some of the most severe ride and handling maneuvers.

"We put the Cobalt seat through many of the same performance tests that are used in the development of the seat for the Chevrolet Corvette," said Queen. "We balanced that with extensive long range driving to gauge seat comfort for commuting and road trips."

The 2005 Chevrolet Cobalt begins production this fall in Lordstown, Ohio.