It is no secret that, in recent years, the styling of many new BMW models has been anything but universally liked. The iX and the latest 7 Series are clear examples, yet arguably the model that has sparked the most debate is the XM, with its huge "twin kidney" grille at the front.
Unsurprisingly, BMW will not have been deaf to all the talk surrounding the look of some of its cars and, in a move many are reading as acknowledgement of the criticism, it has decided to overhaul its entire Design office, with the changes taking effect from 1 October.
This is a genuine game of musical chairs that goes beyond BMW itself and stretches across the whole Group, including MINI and Rolls-Royce.
Why the BMW Group is reshuffling its Design leadership
The shake-up is wide-reaching and affects multiple brands at once, signalling a serious attempt to steer the visual direction of BMW, MINI and Rolls-Royce.
Who’s who?
Adrian van Hooydonk will remain at the top as Head of Design for BMW Group, but beneath him almost everything changes. Ready for a round of musical chairs? Here it is.
To reshape the design language for the upper mid-range line-up (above the 3 Series, luxury models and the Alpina range), the German brand has brought in Maximilian Missoni. He previously served as Volvo’s Vice President of Design and, since 2018, has been responsible for styling Polestar models-making him the only external hire from outside the Group.
Meanwhile, the look of the compact and mid-range families (including the 1, 2 and 3 Series, plus the X1, X2 and X3), as well as every BMW M model, will now fall under Oliver Heilmer. Until now, Heilmer has been in charge of MINI Design.
Taking Heilmer’s place at MINI is Holger Hampf, who has been leading the “BMW Group Designworks” subsidiary-the Group’s design innovation studio, essentially an ideas incubator. Hampf’s former role will be filled by Anders Warming, previously Rolls-Royce’s Head of Design.
As for Domagoj Dukec-until now the director of BMW’s Design Studio and widely seen as the father of the brand’s oversized grilles-he will move to Rolls-Royce in a comparable role.
What happens to BMW’s “Neue Klasse”?
These changes to the BMW Group’s design structure are substantial and are expected to influence the aesthetic path BMW, MINI and Rolls-Royce have been pursuing. However, within this puzzle there is one major question the reshuffle does not answer: the future of the Neue Klasse.
At the end of last year, BMW unveiled the Vision Neue Klasse, a concept that sets out the direction for the design of upcoming generations of BMW models.
Neue Klasse roadmap: Vision Neue Klasse X and what comes next
The key unknown is how-and when-this deep reorganisation within BMW Group Design will affect the next wave of production cars. Is there still time to alter the visual course for the Neue Klasse? Or will Maximilian Missoni and Oliver Heilmer have to wait until a later generation of models before their influence becomes visible?
We will find out in 2025, when BMW presents the production version of the Vision Neue Klasse X. It will be an SUV (the successor to the iX3) and the first electric model from the German brand built around this new design philosophy.
The following year, it will be the saloon’s turn to enter production (as previewed by the Vision Neue Klasse concept): a fully electric BMW 3 Series that could revive the i3 nameplate.
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