DETROIT — Klaus Busse, Chrysler Group's 6-foot-7 head of interior design, is a gentle giant and a playful one, too.
Busse and his team enjoy hiding what they call "Easter eggs" throughout Chrysler Group vehicles for owners to discover.
Easter eggs are fun, unobtrusive art elements that feature landmarks or historical images related to the vehicle.
Examples include the outline of the Jeep grille on the windshield of the upcoming Renegade, a 1941 Willys military Jeep in the black windshield edging on the Cherokee and the Detroit skyline — minus General Motors' headquarters — in a rubber mat on the Chrysler 200's console.
Chrysler does not publicize the Easter eggs because it wants customers to discover them on their own.
"There is no process on how we design these things," says the 44-year-old Mercedes-Benz veteran, who stayed with Chrysler after the failed DaimlerChrysler merger. "If it works, we'll do it; if it doesn't, we won't."
He says the Easter eggs can appear anywhere on the vehicle, from a taillight lens to an instrument cluster.
"We're infusing some soul, and some passion, and hopefully, putting a smile on the customer's face," says Busse.
Not all Easter eggs all have been discovered yet.
For example, there's a spider somewhere in the new Jeep Renegade. And more are coming.
"I'm working on a couple right now my boss will never know about," Busse says.
Here's a look at some Easter eggs on 2014 and 2015 Chrysler Group vehicles.
Jeep Cherokee
