Mobile HVAC
Amerigon Climate Control Seat System Featured in Redesigned 2010 Toyota Crown Majesta
By prnewswire.com
Mar 31, 2009, 12:55

Northville, MI — March 31, 2009 — /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ — Amerigon Incorporated (NASDAQ:ARGN) , a leader in developing and marketing products based on advanced thermoelectric (TE) technologies, today announced that its proprietary Climate Control Seat(TM) (CCS(TM)) system has been selected by Toyota Motor Corporation to be included as an optional feature in the redesigned 2010 Toyota Crown Majesta full-size premium luxury sedan. Sold only in Asia, the flagship Crown Majesta, the Toyota brand's top sedan, is expected to be in showrooms this summer.

The Crown Majesta is designed with distinctive interior and exterior styling, unparalleled comfort and an ultra-luxurious interior which includes CCS.

CCS, the premier actively heated and cooled seat system in the global automotive seat market, delivers year-round comfort to automotive seat occupants by providing both active heating and cooling. The system is completely independent of the automobile's heating and air conditioning system and does not reduce power available to the engine. It also emits no CFCs or other gases and is completely friendly to the environment.

"The inclusion of CCS in a luxury vehicle such as the Crown Majesta underscores the recognized value of CCS and our continuing commitment to providing unparalleled passenger comfort," said Amerigon President and Chief Executive Officer Daniel R. Coker. "We are pleased to continue our longstanding relationship with Toyota, which was the first Asian automotive manufacturer to offer CCS. The desire by consumers and the selection of CCS in vehicles offering the seat system remains high and we expect the same for this vehicle."

Other vehicles from Toyota that offer CCS are the Toyota Celsior, Toyota Century, Lexus LS 460, Lexus LS 460L, Lexus 600Lh and the Lexus LX 570.

About CCS
In the CCS system, which is built around Amerigon's highly-efficient, solid-state thermoelectric device, air is forced through the heat pump and thermally conditioned in response to electronic switch input from the seat occupant. The conditioned air circulates by a specially designed fan through ducts in the seat cushion and seat back, so that the surface can be heated or cooled. Each seat has individual electronic controls to adjust the level of heating or cooling. CCS substantially improves comfort compared with conventional air conditioners by focusing the cooling directly on the passenger through the seat, rather than waiting until ambient air cools the seat surface behind the passenger.

Amerigon is the largest supplier of TE systems for cars, with more than 4.5 million thermoelectric-based seat systems sold.

About Amerigon
Amerigon (NASDAQ:ARGN) develops products based on its advanced, proprietary, efficient thermoelectric (TE) technologies for a wide range of global markets and heating and cooling applications. The Company's current principal product is its proprietary Climate Control Seat(TM) (CCS(TM)) system, a solid-state, TE-based system that permits drivers and passengers of vehicles to individually and actively control the heating and cooling of their respective seats to ensure maximum year-round comfort. CCS, which is the only system of its type on the market today, uses no CFCs or other environmentally sensitive coolants. Amerigon maintains sales and technical support centers in Southern California, Detroit, Japan, Germany, England and Korea.