Chris Bangle

Christopher Edward Bangle (born on 14 October, 1956 in Ravenna, Ohio) is an American automobile designer. He is the Chief of Design for BMW Group, responsible for design strategy and conception across all BMW's brands including Mini and Rolls Royce.

Bangle was raised in Wausau, Wisconsin, and attended the Wausau West High School. After considering becoming a Methodist minister, Bangle attended the Art Center College of Design in Pasadena, California.

Bangle began his career at Opel where he designed the interior of the Junior concept car. He later moved to Fiat where he became chief designer and was credited with the design of the Fiat Coupé.

When he joined BMW in 1992, he became their first American chief of design, although he had little experience designing complete cars. The first car heavily influenced by his design principles, the 1999 Z9 concept car, marked a controversial departure from BMW's traditional conservative style. BMW's production vehicles incorporating Bangle's styling themes have been similarly controversial, but they have sold well.

Design characteristics

Bangle's designs are incorporated in the entire BMW lineup, including the 1, 3, 5, 6 and 7 series as well as the X5 SUV. The designs have caused widespread controversy and have divided BMW enthusiasts who either love them or hate them. His designs have also influenced other car makers.

Bangle Butt has since been a mildly derogatory term for the current rear-end styling paradigm among automobiles. While all his designs have been the subject of heated debate, the most discussed and imitated is his two-level rear end styling. It features separate rear fenders with a "bustle-back" trunk (boot) lid. However, it may not have been initially designed by Bangle himself. By 1999, various Hyundai automobiles featured the "Bangle-butt", and the Volvo S80 featured a milder form of the design. The Maybach 57 and 62 came out the same year as Bangle's 2002 BMW 7 Series and also features this design element. Since then it has been adopted by Mercedes-Benz and others. Another example is the Lexus LS's trunk and general resemblance to the BMW 7 Series.

Bangle aggressively defended his designs against criticism. He was supported by the BMW board of directors, which wanted to move BMW's image into the future. He said it was necessary for product lines to follow a cycle of a revolutionary generation followed by an evolutionary generation followed by another revolutionary generation and so on. Indeed, he oversaw the conservative evolution of BMW designs with the redesign of the BMW 3-Series BMW E46 and the introduction of the BMW X5. For Bangle this marked the end of the evolution of BMW design and the revolution was witnessed with the 2002 introduction of the BMW E65. Bangle acknowledges that his designs do not look good in photographs, suggesting to critics that they should see the cars in real life before judging them on their looks.

Peer comments

• J Mays, Ford's chief creative officer, dislikes Bangle's designs, but admits Bangle has been significant in reshaping modern cars.
• Marc Newson, an industrial designer and car enthusiast, described Bangle's BMW Z4 as having been designed with a machete.
• Patrick le Quément, chief designer at Renault, said: "[Bangle is] certainly the most talked about designer. His designs have a great deal of presence, and they're well proportioned. He's been highly influential. My only concern is his use of concave surfaces: they're hollow shapes and lack that tightly muscled look I feel helps design."
• Martin Smith, head of design for Ford of Europe, describes Bangle as an instigator of the trend toward "surface entertainment" in cars; the Ford Iosis bears some resemblance to Bangle-styled BMWs.

External links

• Forbes, 2006 "The New BMW 5 Series"
• Slate, 2006: "I Can't Help Hating Chris Bangle" — Includes point-by-point rebuttal of Bangle's design philosophy
• BMW Website — Chris Bangle explains his design philosophy for some key models.