Drive 'n' Theater: Coming to a GM Backseat Near You

DETROIT - April 7, 2006: "Are we there yet?" Remember family vacations as a kid? Long trips in the car playing the license plate game, "I Spy", and longing for the next rest stop so you could get out and stretch your legs?

Today, General Motors offers a variety of vehicles that promise your next multi-hour driving trip will include less whining and more peace in the backseat. How? By allowing back-seat passengers to watch movies, play video games, or listen to music without disturbing front-seat passengers.

"DVD Systems are available on many GM vehicles, straight out of the factory," said Nancy Philippart, executive director, GM Accessories. "But, depending on the vehicle, customers can still add it as an accessory to a vehicle they pick off the dealer lot, or even to some vehicles that they may already own."

General Motors Accessories has expanded its line-up of rear seat entertainment product offerings with Dual Player Headrest DVD Systems that offer two 7-inch TFT-LCD flat screen color monitors and two top-loading DVD/CD/MP3 players along with two wireless headphones. Back-seat passengers have a variety of entertainment options with each Headrest DVD System able to operate independently, allowing one DVD movie or video game to be viewed on both headrest screens, or each screen can play a different DVD or video game. CDs and MP3s can also be played on one or both units.

There's an advantage to buying an electrical accessory, like a Headrest DVD System from a GM dealership, too.

"We understand the electrical architecture of our GM vehicles, so we can engineer and validate according to vehicle platform specifications," said Philippart. "The result is a higher quality, integrated product that operates seamlessly with the GM vehicle."

Because of the sophistication of the vehicle's electrical architecture, some electrical products available on the market today require that installers make modifications to wiring in order for the application to function properly. This sometimes can result in un-intended performance compromises.

"We are working with platform teams to integrate the product as much as possible," said Greg Papendick, program manager, GM Electrical Accessories. "By getting involved early in the development process, we can make these systems 'plug and play' with no cutting or splicing. And, since we're able to integrate with the interrelated on-board systems up front, the system and the vehicle perform the way they were designed to perform."

Dealer installed accessories also give the dealers a lot more flexibility in what they can offer and give customers a lot more choice in how they spend their money.

"We want the customer to have the choice of adding features at the point of sale," said Papendick. "If a product is bundled with other factory options that aren't wanted by a customer, they may have to compromise on their vehicle choice."

Here's a list of which vehicles currently have Headrest DVD Systems available:

2004 - 2006 Buick Rainier 2003 - 2007 Cadillac Escalade, Escalade ESV, Escalade EXT 2003 - 2006 Chevrolet Silverado (extended & crew cab) 2003 - 2006 Chevrolet TrailBlazer, TrailBlazer EXT 2003 - 2007 Chevrolet Avalanche, Suburban, Tahoe 2003 - 2006 GMC Sierra (extended & crew cab) 2003 - 2007 GMC Yukon, Yukon XL, Yukon Denali, Yukon XL Denali 2003 - 2006 GMC Envoy, Envoy XL, Envoy Denali, Envoy XUV (late April) 2005 - 2006 HUMMER H2 SUT, SUV 2006 HUMMER H3 Several additional models will also have the systems available out throughout the year.