Longtime Volkswagen designer Tobias Suehlmann has been appointed Head of Exterior Design Creative Development at Bugatti, reporting to Head of Design Achim Anscheidt and working alongside Frank Heyl, Head of Exterior Design Production Development, and Head of Interior Design Etienne Salomé.
In his new role, Suehlmann replaces Sasha Selipanov, who left VW Group’s high-end supercar manufacturer to lead advanced design activities for Genesis in Europe.
“[Suehlmann] has a great talent and has gained valuable experience,” says Anscheidt. “He is joining our brand at an exciting time when we are working on concepts for the next Bugatti. With his passion for high-performance vehicles and his well-developed understanding of brand values, he will be an extremely valuable addition to our highly-qualified design team.”
According to sources, VW Group is keen to augment the niche supercar maker’s product offering to include more than just one model. While the Chiron will continue to hold the mantle as the flagship in the Bugatti range, the supercar brand is apparently developing a new smaller vehicle that could slot in below the Chiron and a new vehicle format, presumed to be a highly luxurious new SUV/crossover.
Suehlmann joined the Volkswagen Group immediately following his studies at Pforzheim’s University of Applied Sciences and spent the first two years of his career at the Potsdam Design Center, which was recently rebranded Future Center Europe.
He has been responsible for a number of Volkswagen concept and production projects over the last 10 years, most recently as the lead designer of the brand’s new flagship vehicle, the Arteon. He also led the exterior design programs for the GTE Sport Coupe concept (the Arteon’s concept precursor); the Golf GTE Sport concept; the T-Prime GTE concept and the next generation Volkswagen Touareg production car.
“The [Bugatti] brand has a strong historic aura and is now more fascinating than ever before,” Suehlmann says of his new employer. “No other super sports car brand serves such an exclusive customer group with a tailor-made product that explores the boundaries of technical feasibility at the same time as having such unmistakable design DNA.”
