Car Tech Testing Lab setup

Car Tech editors Wayne Cunningham and Kevin Massy fiddle with a Scion xD.

(Credit: CNET Networks)

At this year's CES, the Car Tech editorial staff members not only cover the show, we are part of it. Along with looking at new and innovative automotive gadgets around the show floor, we are running the Car Tech Testing Lab. We've invited major car stereo manufacturers, such as Eclipse, Alpine, Pioneer, and Blaupunkt, to stop by our Lab and install their latest car stereos in our test car, a 2008 Scion xD, so we can check out the products in a standard environment.

We first got a sense of our new responsibilities as we waited in line to drive our test car into the convention center. There we were, 8 a.m. on Sunday, sitting in our Scion xD, in front of a Morgan, a Ford GT, and a Ferrari F430. We felt a little outclassed, but were happy with our car when we had to maneuver it around crates, forklifts, and cranes through the hall to our Lab. We spent the rest of our setup time prepping the car--taking out the original stereo and disconnecting the starter--and setting up camera angles. Then Monday through Thursday we will be getting our first looks at the latest car stereos.