All Cars, All the Time

What is Attention to Detail?

A recent "short take" article in Autoweek pointed out that the Buick Enclave had two clocks. The radio's clock and the round, analog clock in the center of the dash. The driver felt that this was a slightly annoying gaffe in an otherwise pretty well designed and executed dash.

I think that this raises a good point. I mean, let's face it. There are a lot of Detective Adrian Monk's out there, maybe your one of us, that will spend a lot of time making sure those two clocks are synchronized. Obviously GM used a corporate radio and then added the signature, "ooh look, i'm a premium car with an analog clock" on the Enclave. Now, I'm sure that with relative ease the clock feature on the radio could have been disabled. Of course, now you'd have a Buick only radio w/ that feature and that would add cost. The question becomes then, does GM step up to the plate and cover that detail? A workaround in my mind would be to give all corporate radio's the ability to turn off the clock as a menu option. Obviously those folks w/o an additional clock would probably not elect to turn it off, but it would be very little cost to add this feature.

Is a detail like this even worth as much text as I am typing now? I'm inclined to say yes. Because once the new car smell has faded, it's these kinds of touches that you begin to notice.

I really like the Enclave's style, it's by far the pick of the litter. I hope that over the next few years Buick continues to minister to its baby and fix issues such as the dual clock.