Flawed hero: Car designer Chris Bangle

Chris Bangle, head of design at BMW Group from 1992 to 2009, is the sort of figure whom journalists love to beat up on, and whom BMW die-hard enthusiasts live to venerate.

This tension is evident in Time magazine's 50 Worst Cars of All Time feature, which consigns Bangle's 2002 7 Series to the ash heap of history, despite failing to provide much of a critique. Time complains that the initial roll out of iDrive was a boondoggle, which it was, and pans the Bangle Butt; Bangle's signature trunk line and ubiquitous target of anti-Bangle-ites.

While functionality and design qualms are adequate grounds for a ‘no buy' rating, the fact that Time deemed the 2002 7 Series as one of the worst cars ever built just goes to show how virulent anti-Bangle hype can be.

Rival car makers are very reserved in their praise of Bangle, but tend to concede that his design aesthetic wields influence well beyond Munich. Patrick Le Quément, chief designer at Renault, called Bangle "highly influential," but bemoaned his "use of concave surfaces."

History has, so far, been much kinder to Bangle. In fact, the much-maligned 2002 proved to be the best selling 7 Series of all time, turbocharging BMW sales, alongside other Bangle designs like the then new Z3, to finally surpass Merc in sales for the first time, a lead that BMW has maintained in the post-Bangle era.

Despite, or perhaps because of his legacy, Bangle reportedly left BMW on good terms, inspiring Dr Klaus Draeger, BMW AG's Board Member for Development, to comment: "Christopher Bangle has had a lasting impact on the identity of BMW Group's brands. His contribution to the company's success has been decisive, and together with his teams he has mapped out a clear and aesthetic route into the future."

Before joining BMW, Bangle worked for Opel and then Fiat, where he was the chief designer of the Fiat Coupé. Unveiled at the Brussels Motor Show in 1993, the Coupé was heralded as a return to Fiat's roots, earning it the, albeit overused, moniker; "Baby Ferrari." While rumours about Chris Bangle's next employer abound, and the website for Chris Bangle Associates, his reported design consultancy, is currently a mere placeholder, chances are very good that we haven't heard the last of Bangle and his Sir Mix A Lot approved trunk junk. Bangle modernised a seemingly sacrosanct brand identity, and ultimately succeeded. But even when victorious, that sort of (r)evolution always foments discontent. Personally, we can't wait to see who Bangle rankles next.

FACTS

Name Christopher Bangle

Born October 14, 1956

Qualification Masters degree in Industrial Design

Companies Opel, Fiat and BMW

Best known works Opel Junior concept, Fiat Coupé, the entire BMW line-up and the Gina concept