In recent years, cars have become increasingly comfortable and attractive to drivers, allowing them to experience the pleasure and excitement of driving. It is now possible to enjoy high-quality music by improving the quietude of car’s interior and the sound quality of car’s audio system. However, till date no studies have been reported on the effect of “pleasurable musical chills” experienced while listening to high-quality music on the driver’s comfort and driving performance. We focus on these musical chills by examining the drivers’ physiological responses and investigating the influence of high-quality audio with various sound presentations. Physiological responses, such as brain activity, breathing, and heartbeat, were examined to understand their relationship with sound quality impressions. In the first experiment, the drivers were made to listen to music while in a resting state. The results indicated that the sympathetic nervous system was activated when participants were listening to music, and that they were in a tense or excited state when they felt musical chills. The second experiment focused on participants listening to music while driving. The results indicated that the sympathetic nervous system was again activated, and the ß wave was stable when the sound quality was higher. Additionally, the results confirmed that the sympathetic nervous system was activated when the driver experienced the musical chills. The results of the semantic differential method indicated that the positive factors and the “familiar” factor were good ratings when the sound quality was high. From the results it can be concluded that high-quality music increases the drivers’ excitement and concentration while driving.
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