Bianca Bartz
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In order to get a feel for the female driving experience, GM got their male engineers to put on dresses and take the cars for a spin. Just one more thing GM is doing to make sure customer needs are met. I heard this story when I was in Detroit earlier this week and must admit I was amused and thoroughly impressed. “Think of it as the woman’s revenge, or better, a great learning experience: General Motors engineers running around the Milford Proving Grounds in skirts, heels, fake fingernails,” The Car Connection wrote. Great idea! The guys at GM told me the story after I suggested there by running boards on the Chevy Silverado. As I tried to hop into the huge truck (in jeans), I wondered how smaller people like me were supposed to get into a car, especially if they are wearing tight pants or dresses. Mary Sipes, a GM line director, had the same concern, which is what inspired the idea to dress in drag. Since most cars are designed by guys, they tend to have men in mind in the creation process. But here’s the reality—women have a huge impact on the final decision when it comes to buying new vehicles.
This past week I had the luxury of reviewing the new 2008 line-up of GM’s vehicles in Detroit. Can you believe GM handed me the keys to a 2008 Corvette, then let me loose on their testing track? The company is more than a couple of steps ahead of the competition when it comes to embracing the blogos… [More] |
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"A few times a year we go off site and try to have a learning exercise that is a lot of fun," said Sipes. "We took our group to the proving grounds and broke them into teams. One guy on each team had to be Mr. Mom. We dressed him in a garbage bag to simulate a tight skirt. We gave him rubber gloves with press on nails, a purse, a baby, and a baby stroller and some chores like loading groceries."
With all female handicaps in place, the men were then required to go through what women do routinely every day. They had to put the baby in a car seat and buckle them in, fold up the stroller, pull up the liftgate and stow the stroller, put grocery bags in the back. They then had to walk around the vehicle and step into it not using the running board. Wearing the gloves with press on nails they had to operate the key fob, adjust the radio and then figure out what to do with their purses - without breaking or losing a nail. Lost or broken fingernails or torn garbage bag skirts resulted in points against the final score.
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  Favorited by Hope Walking Tree on May 27, 08 |
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