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Car manufacturers test their wares. They test at facilities designed for such purposes, with tracks, simulated rough roads, in cold and hot rooms for temperature extremes, and about any kind of abuse they can think of. I've actually seen the disguised next year models in Michigan sporting their car cover coatings, running in convoys, as well as in the Rockies, for high altitude tests.
Hyundai kinda went on a different bent with their new i30 hatchback: baboons!
The Hyundai was handed over to the troop for ten hours and left unattended. Designers wanted to see how the finish would stand up to the kind of punishment the average child might inflict during the car’s lifetime.
Dozens of the animals colonised it from the moment it was driven into their enclosure.
Result: a few scrapes, lots of smears and finger marks, a dislodged rubber door seal that was rejected as a snack, plus some tooth marks in the steering wheel. The good news: no one stole the alloys.
‘Safari park monkeys are particularly good at discovering weak points on cars and then pulling, prodding and tearing at the parts until they break,’ said Hyundai project manager Felicity Wood.
The park’s general manager David Ross said the baboons, which can weigh up to 66lb, ‘thoroughly enjoyed’ the experiment.
He added: ‘For a baboon to have a car to play with for the whole day is manna from heaven.’
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Bonus - Hyundai Project Manager Felicity Wood gets to say "Cheeky monkeys!"
Might be kinda handy having a monkey proof car if your little cheeky monkeys can't keep their diaper filling in the diaper. This car wipes down fairly easily, if you know what I mean, and I think that you do.
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2 comments:
Baboons have long, razor sharp canines and (I'm sure) weren't too happy about them coming to take their toy. That's one job I don't think I'd volunteer to perform.
Next they need to try border collies. I can tell you from personal experience that they are hard on cars
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