For people of a certain age, it's obvious that today's automobiles are designed for a young and agile customer; even climbing in and out of a car can be a chore.

That isn't necessarily good marketing in a country whose Boomer population is rapidly aging. So, Ford Motor, for one, is encouraging its designers to think about older customers. But that's a difficult assignment when many of the designers are in their 30s. To give them a different perspective, Ford has outfitted some of their design team with a special "age suit," to simulate stiff joints and declining vision. The automaker will show off the results in its new Focus, a compact car that goes on sale in the United States this fall.