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The Fusion was unveiled at the 2012 North American International Auto Show. Faurote and his team, who were hard at it for the 200, he admits, looked at it. But he adds, "We're always benchmarking our competitors, both inside the class and outside of it." The question arises: Did the Fusion have a big efect on the design of the 200? Did they have to go back and, in efect, erase any lines and add new ones? Faurote answers that the 200 was "90% done" when the Fusion was unveiled. "Typically on cars," he says, "you nail the front end design frst. In this case, we nailed the rear end frst. All the way up to the front axle was mostly fnished, and we were working on the front end p The open-pore wood that is used on the IP of the 200. Klaus Busse, head of Interior Design at Chrysler, points out that the highly formed wood is the sort of thing that one could only fnd in vehicles with a price point that is a multiple of that of the 200. p By using a rotary e-shifter for the nine-speed transmission rather than a conventional mechanical shifter, room is opened up in the center console for storage. The rubber mat below the smartphone has the skyline of Detroit embossed into its surface. when the Fusion was introduced. We were happy to see that we were headed in the right direction, with a coupe-like look, and styling that is more progressive." In efect, there was validation by the competition. Based on Icons The Eames Lounge Chair was designed by Ray and Charles Eames and is produced by Herman Miller. It is an iconic chair. As in the chair, which hails from the mid-50s, is in the permanent collection of the Museum of Modern Art in New York. Yet it remains a chair that you can purchase and put in your own family room (or museum, should you have one around the house). This is one of the infuences that Klaus Busse, head of Interior Design for Chrysler, says had a huge efect on the interior design for the 200. He says of the car, "For us, this was all about American design. We made a promise three years ago, 'Imported from Detroit.' It had deeper meaning than just building the car in Detroit. It meant it had to fulfll the promise of being an American car with American design." So he cites the Eames Lounge Chair, pointing out that the wood structure is not hidden by a leather cover, but it is fundamental to the design: "The wood is not a decoration, but it is the struc- ture of the chair." And he points to the aluminum of the Airstream trailer and the wood of original Chris-Craft Boats. The authentic material in all these cases is used in a functional way. On the instrument panel, stretched in a curvilinear manner from the left side of the steering wheel, encompassing the available 7-in. color multiview display, the available 8.4-in. Uconnect touch- screen and the HVAC vents, and some 40 AD&P; > June 2014 > FEATURE > Creating the 2015 Chrysler 200 > Gary S. Vasilash > gsv@autofeldguide.com 0614ADP FEATURE Chrysler 200.indd 40 5/21/2014 12:50:32 PM