thank to Keith Tedford   GM article

Front Bench Takes a Back Seat

Three across front seat in passenger cars kicks the bucket

When the 2014 Chevrolet Impala arrives next year it will put to rest a fixture of automobiles since the

days of the horseless carriage the front bench seat. The outgoing Impala is the last passenger car in

production in North America to offer three-across front seating, an option that ends with the introduction

of Chevys redesigned flagship sedan.

The passing of the front bench seat in to automotive history is expected to transpire without notice from

many car buyers. Only one in 10 Impala buyers chose the $195 option last year on the LS and LT models.

For many of todays car buyers, front bucket seats are the norm a trend that General Motors designers

expect will continue.

A lot of people prefer bucket seats because theyre sporty, even in models that arent sports cars, said

Clay Dean, GM director of design. Our customers also appreciate having the centre console as a

convenient place to store their phone and other personal items.

The first Chevrolet ever manufactured, the Series C Classic

Six of 1911, featured a front bench seat. Chevrolet will

continue to offer bench seats on pickup trucks and sport

utilities.

The need for six-passenger sedans is largely being met

today by SUVs or crossovers, such as the Chevrolet Suburban

and Traverse, which offer seating for up to eight.

There is certain nostalgia for bench seats, like being able

to snuggle up with your date at a drive-in movie, and some

customers still like them, Dean said. You never know, we

might see bench seats re-emerge someday, possibly in very

small cars like the EV-V urban mobility concept vehicle, in

which the feeling of open space may be very desirable.

****  Chevrolet will

continue to offer bench seats on pickup trucks and sport

utilities.    Not too many, if any bench seats in trucks