Pontiac Solstice Forum - View Single Post - Info From GM Engineer Q&A [from International Solstice Meet]

A few words about me, and the development of the Solstice/SKY.

My name is Steve Padilla, and I am the Ride, Handling and Steering Development Engineer for the Kappa platform. I have met some of you on the forum over the last couple of years, and lurk occasionally on the forum. I attended the first 1000 party, as well as participating at the press event in Oregon. I was also in England with the Solstices, and did tuning on the Kappa in Germany including the Nurburgring.

I was assigned in November, 2002, to develop the vehicle dynamics of the Solstice, having come fresh off co-development of the Chevy SSR. As the platform structural design began, I worked with people from the advanced group to do predictive math modeling of the car.

The limits of the niche and performance envelope of roadster competitors were defined by driving them and testing them. We had to pay attention to where the competition was, like the Miata, the Z3 and Z4, and the Honda S2000. The Toyota MR2 and the Porsche Boxter were also evaluated as part of understanding the market.

Contrary to popular belief, we did not set out to conquer the Miata. From extensive research, it became obvious there was room in the roadster market for the right combination of style, cost, and performance within the niche. While the Miata is undoubtedly one of the most successful in this niche, there were people who made the choice not to buy a Miata for various reasons, be it cost, practicality, or even size.

Once I was assigned and began to research the competition, I set out a personal goal that I kept to myself. I observed that some of the cars did certain aspects well, such as the Miata for ride, or the Honda S2000 for responsiveness, but also did not meet personal expectations, such as overall damping or roll stiffness on the Miata, or a minimum amount of ride comfort on the Honda S2000.

Simply put, I decided to develop the car I would love to own personally, essentially trying to create the ride, steering, and handling that I want in my own personal car. This combination was not, and I believe is still currently not met by the other cars in this niche.

So, I can say I personally achieved this goal, and luckily, it happens to match the same vision that the program management team had for these performance aspects of the Solstice, (including Bob Lutz).

I do not currently own a Kappa platform product, but I know I certainly will in the near future.

However, this assignment was not about what I wanted to do. Accepting the job of tuning the Solstice meant ensuring the ride, handling, steering, and related areas of braking were developed to deliver the promise of the styling of the car. In other words - the performance had to match the look of the car. So, not only did I have to match my own personal expectations, I had to satisfy requirements as determined by the Chief Engineer, the Vehicle Line Executive, my Vehicle Performance Manager, and many other evaluators.

On behalf of my other engineering team members, from the people who worked with me on tires, braking and chassis controls, suspension and steering, to the electrical and structural people and those people who work on all the different systems of this car, I want to thank all of you for your enthusiasm for this car. Working on this platform required sacrifice and lots of elbow grease, and cohesive teamwork, and it is satisfying and also humbling to see people that support the product and are so passionate about it.

Fortunately, I got permission from our internal communications people to post the questions and answers that I addressed at the Kansas City Meet on July 14 through July 16. It was a pleasure to meet and speak to so many of you owners, and I hope to see you all again at future events.

__________________
I don't suffer from insanity, I enjoy every minute of it!

#139640 '07 NA Sly Fully Loaded 12/1/07
#106614 12/15/05 NA Sly Traded @ 35k Miles

Be too blessed to be stressed! ~ Joel Osteen
If you get a second chance, grab it with both hands. If it changes your life, let it.

NASSOA(TM)
Founding Member- Council Chair

	MomsSol Moderator Join Date: Nov 2005	A few words about me, and the development of the Solstice/SKY. My name is Steve Padilla, and I am the Ride, Handling and Steering Development Engineer for the Kappa platform. I have met some of you on the forum over the last couple of years, and lurk occasionally on the forum. I attended the first 1000 party, as well as participating at the press event in Oregon. I was also in England with the Solstices, and did tuning on the Kappa in Germany including the Nurburgring. I was assigned in November, 2002, to develop the vehicle dynamics of the Solstice, having come fresh off co-development of the Chevy SSR. As the platform structural design began, I worked with people from the advanced group to do predictive math modeling of the car. The limits of the niche and performance envelope of roadster competitors were defined by driving them and testing them. We had to pay attention to where the competition was, like the Miata, the Z3 and Z4, and the Honda S2000. The Toyota MR2 and the Porsche Boxter were also evaluated as part of understanding the market. Contrary to popular belief, we did not set out to conquer the Miata. From extensive research, it became obvious there was room in the roadster market for the right combination of style, cost, and performance within the niche. While the Miata is undoubtedly one of the most successful in this niche, there were people who made the choice not to buy a Miata for various reasons, be it cost, practicality, or even size. Once I was assigned and began to research the competition, I set out a personal goal that I kept to myself. I observed that some of the cars did certain aspects well, such as the Miata for ride, or the Honda S2000 for responsiveness, but also did not meet personal expectations, such as overall damping or roll stiffness on the Miata, or a minimum amount of ride comfort on the Honda S2000. Simply put, I decided to develop the car I would love to own personally, essentially trying to create the ride, steering, and handling that I want in my own personal car. This combination was not, and I believe is still currently not met by the other cars in this niche. So, I can say I personally achieved this goal, and luckily, it happens to match the same vision that the program management team had for these performance aspects of the Solstice, (including Bob Lutz). I do not currently own a Kappa platform product, but I know I certainly will in the near future. However, this assignment was not about what I wanted to do. Accepting the job of tuning the Solstice meant ensuring the ride, handling, steering, and related areas of braking were developed to deliver the promise of the styling of the car. In other words - the performance had to match the look of the car. So, not only did I have to match my own personal expectations, I had to satisfy requirements as determined by the Chief Engineer, the Vehicle Line Executive, my Vehicle Performance Manager, and many other evaluators. On behalf of my other engineering team members, from the people who worked with me on tires, braking and chassis controls, suspension and steering, to the electrical and structural people and those people who work on all the different systems of this car, I want to thank all of you for your enthusiasm for this car. Working on this platform required sacrifice and lots of elbow grease, and cohesive teamwork, and it is satisfying and also humbling to see people that support the product and are so passionate about it. Fortunately, I got permission from our internal communications people to post the questions and answers that I addressed at the Kansas City Meet on July 14 through July 16. It was a pleasure to meet and speak to so many of you owners, and I hope to see you all again at future events. __________________ I don't suffer from insanity, I enjoy every minute of it! #139640 '07 NA Sly Fully Loaded 12/1/07 #106614 12/15/05 NA Sly Traded @ 35k Miles Be too blessed to be stressed! ~ Joel Osteen If you get a second chance, grab it with both hands. If it changes your life, let it. NASSOA(TM) Founding Member- Council Chair