is money. The Mercedes 500 SL is made primarily by hand in 150 hours and it costs 90,000 dollars. Its baby sister, the 190E sedan, is made in 50 hours and sells for 30,000. If a car takes too long to build, it will cost too much and no one will buy it. A car lives or dies by the cost of its design (Butterworth 2).
             In the research stage the automaker decides what kind of car to build for what kind of buyer. Often, a car is aimed at filling a special niche in the market. The development starts after the car's type is decided. With CAD (Computer Aided Designing) designers copy, modify, and manipulate cars at the push of a button. Then, if the design is approved, the result is turned over to a computer robot that carves a three-dimensional model of the car. This "mock up" then goes before the company's executives. If it's rejected the car goes back to the computer to be revised and presented again later. If the design is approved, the concept moves on and a prototype is built. The prototype is then tested to work out all of the problems. Testing will be conducted in many places and ways including roaring wind tunnels and outdoor proving grounds. After all the problems are worked out and the public has accepted it through various car shows, the design moves on to the manufacturing stage. The trip from the computer to the assembly line can take from three to five years.(Butterworth 3)
             Automakers use concept cars to introduce new designs to attract more customers. Performance is something that auto makers stress as a selling point. Many people are interested in how fast the car accelerates, how well the car handles and how much fun it is to drive. Almost every year automakers make a more powerful engine. Take the Honda Accord for example. In 1993 its engine created approximately 125 horsepower, then in 1998 it made 150 horsepower. It doesn't sound like much, but automakers will brag ...