Domagoj Dukec may no longer be the head of the design at BMW. He himself describes as an “emotional rationalist” and is now responsible for design at Rolls-Royce. But his decisions and guidelines today continue to shape the perception of the BMW brand. That won’t stop soon. Above all, because Domagoj Dukec in 2020, when the new class started to be the responsible man. Although not the one who wrote it -this honor to Anders Thøgersen -it was Dukeec at the top and Dukec who chose perhaps unorthodox decision to debut a class concept/vision car as a limousine. After all, everyone knows that SUVs are what is right now. In Steve Saxty’s excellent book BMW from design, Finally we get a look at what Dukeec will get to know in the direction of the NEE class in 2026.
Why vision made new class as a limousine
“The limousine silhouette is a symbol for BMW,” begins Dukec. “It somehow connects to those who say:” We thought that would no longer exist because cars had to change. They told us that electrification and efficiency means that everything will look like a bar of the soap, “he continues. This is a good recall of the origins of the new class. After all, the car, the BMW, as we know it today, was also born, but also a reserved, but sporty and aerodynamic look.” We want to show that a modern car can be more efficient and maybe something from the 60s or 70s Can, “says Dukec. And in this regard we think it is fair to describe the new class a designer success.
On shape and function
Of course, BMW could have achieved something similar with an SUV. Domagoj Dukec, however, is convinced that the design of the limousine was an integral part of the new design language. “The sporty, elegant three-box sedan is somehow the key, the core idea of BMW.” For customers who deal with the lightning -fast change that rocks the automotive industry, Dukeec considered it important to demonstrate that “some things will never change”. He admits that the three-box layout of the new class is not really the most aerodynamic. But he agrees.
“The aerodynamics determine a more fluid roof shape,” Dukeec begins and says that the design of new class as a classic limousine was a big challenge. “Therefore, everyone in the industry goes for a more fluid, liquid style that looks super aerodynamic.” Do not seek more than the model 3 or even the new C-Class for an example. “Of course it’s more aerodynamic,” he says, “but we want to be a different face in the crowd. To do that, you have to do something that stands out, otherwise it will only be another one who has been done ten times.”
Directly from the source
We think the new class is a good look for the brand. At least part of it can go back from the influences of the designers of the car, Anders Thøgersen attracted. “It was not about muscular ascent, but about 2002, E30 and E36, which were more driven by their geometry and their attitude than by their surface,” he says. We think that is a pretty accurate summary of what we like in new class. Perhaps it is the best way to ensure that new class joins the Pantheon of the legendary BMW designs.
Quotes were loaned directly by Steve Saxty’s BMW from Design Book, only one of many excellent BMW books Saxtty’s pisted. Get the full ball – complete with sketches, early rendering and pictures – by picking up a copy yourself.
