Indoor torture testing simulates extreme weather conditions for improved quality and durability for Corry, Erie, Warren and Titusville area drivers
In order to ensure improved quality and durability for Corry, Erie, Warren and Titusville area drivers, 2013 Chevrolet Malibu engineers have taken vehicle development and validation testing to the extremes. The location for all of this torture testing? General Motors’ Climatic Wind Tunnel in Warren, Mich., where all Chevrolet vehicles take on the elements.
The Malibu went on sale at Crotty Chevrolet Buick this past fall, but prior to arrival, on the hottest days of summer, Malibu, which starts at $27,710, withstood blizzard and hurricane conditions inside the wind tunnel. Inside this tunnel, the temperature can replicate 40 below zero and the wind can blow 150 mph. Even on the coldest nights of winter, the tunnel’s temperature can easily climb to 140 degrees under 1,155 watts per square meter of simulated sunshine.
At this state-of-the-art facility, engineers take vehicle development and validation testing to the extremes, subjecting powertrain cooling, cabin heating, ventilation and air conditioning systems to the harshest weather conditions found in Death Valley, Calif., and Denali, Alaska.
