SITUATION
How could General Motors create "street cred" for the tuner version of the Chevrolet Cobalt? The challenge was to insure this tuner model did not get lost among the myriad of options available in the sport compact market.

SOLUTION
Skip Barber worked with the producers of NightShift – the most influential and successful traveling “tuner” expo in North America – to integrate the Chevy Cobalt SS into the NightShift culture and experience. To differentiate this model from the numerous other vehicles on display at the shows, the Cobalt SS was designated the exclusive "Ride and Drive" vehicles for NightShift. The program involved the following:

  • A special test course adjacent to the convention center that fully demonstrates the Cobalt SS strengths and "coolness" factors.

  • Participants driving the course with Skip Barber professional instructors sitting right-seat to lend credibility to the program and the vehicle.

  • A customer data-capture process implemented into the program.

NightShift enabled General Motors to begin upgrading the perception of domestic compacts compared to their Japanese rivals that dominate the scene. In addition, it offered a creative method of brand promotion with a unique experiential element to introduce new models to the sport compact scene and develop a strong viral marketing initiative within the culture.

  • An average of 900 high performance test drives per NightShift event (within a 7-hour period) were given in 2005.