Bruno Sacco(12 November 1933 – 19 September 2024) was an Italianautomobile designerand chief engineer, who served as the head of styling at theDaimler-Benz AG,the German manufacturer ofMercedes-Benzautomobiles and trucks, from 1975 to 1999. Since Bruno Sacco was hired as a Mercedes-Benz stylist in 1958, his career and contributions to their vehicles'industrial designspanned more than four decades.
Bruno Sacco | |
|---|---|
 Sacco in 2007 | |
| Born | 12 November 1933 |
| Died | 19 September 2024(aged 90) Sindelfingen,Baden-Württemberg,Germany |
| Citizenship | Italian, German |
| Education | Polytechnic University of Turin |
| Occupation | Engineer |
| Spouse | Annemarie Sacco |
| Engineering career | |
| Discipline | Automotive design |
| Significant design | Mercedes-Benz W201 Mercedes-Benz W126 Mercedes-Benz SEC Mercedes-Benz W124 Mercedes-Benz W210 Mercedes-Benz W140 Mercedes-Benz C111 Mercedes-Benz W123 Mercedes-Benz SL-Class (R129) Mercedes-Benz S-Class (W220) Mercedes-Benz SL-Class (R230) |
Biography
edit
According to Sacco himself, he was first inspired towards car design as an eighteen-year-old, after seeing aRaymond Loewy-styled 1950Studebaker Commander Regalas he cycled through the streets ofTarvisioin 1951.[1]Afterwards he could not get the car out of his head, and "knew [his] life had been decided."[2]
After studyingmechanical engineeringat thePolytechnic University of Turin,he first sought work at the renownedGhiaandPininfarinacarrozzerie(coachbuilders), but moved to Germany when his efforts proved unsuccessful.[1]Daimler-Benz hired him as a stylist in 1958,[3]and although he intended to stay only briefly, his marriage toBerlinerinAnnemarie Ibe in 1959, and the birth of their daughter Marina the following year, made him reconsider his future.[1]
Sacco rose through the corporate ranks at Daimler-Benz over the next fifteen years, becoming chief engineer in 1974, before taking over fromFriedrich Geigeras head of the Daimler-Benz styling center atSindelfingenin 1975.[1][4]For the next quarter century, until he retired in 1999, he was responsible for the design of every Mercedes road car,bus,andtruck.[5]Among his numerous works are theC111 concept car,three successive generations ofthe S‑Classluxury saloons, (theW126,W140,andW220), theR129 SL convertible,theC-Class W202compact executive car, theW124andW210versions of theE-Classsedan, theCLKandSLKsports cars, theM-Classluxury sport utility vehicle, and second generationC‑Class W203.[1]Sacco made significant contributions to the design of theMercedes W123,the best selling Mercedes-Benz ever,[6]as well as his very last design, theR230 SL convertible(in 1997).
Sacco's favourite design, because of its significance to the company's history, is theMercedes-Benz 190introduced in 1982, while he confessed dissatisfaction with the1991 W140 S-Class,of which he considered the'greenhouse'(upper body) to be "four inches [10 cm] too tall".[7]In his retirement he had given up his old redSLK convertiblein favour of a dark blueMercedes-Benz 560SEC(C126).[5][7]
In addition to the 1989 C126 560SEC, he owned a 2019C238 E-Class Coupé,also in dark blue.[8][9]
Sacco died on 19 September 2024, at the age of 90 inSindelfingen,a suburb ofStuttgart,where he had lived.[10]
Design themes
editA Mercedes-Benz must always look like a Mercedes-Benz.
— Bruno Sacco.[2]
It took several years for Sacco to fully understand the culture at Daimler-Benz, since by his own attestation there were no "written [styling or design] laws".
He has long advocated "horizontal homogeneity" and "vertical affinity", terms he used to describe the continuity andhomogeneityof Mercedes designs.[3][5]Horizontal homogeneity is the common styling cue between different models in the manufacturer's range; there should be a strong visual relationship between the smallest and largest cars.[3][11]Vertical affinity is the requirement for cars not to be rendered stylisticallyobsoleteby their successors, ensuring greater timelessness of design.[3][11]Sacco felt this was of special importance to Mercedes, whose cars' reputation for longevity meant that their typical life cycle was 20 to 30 years.[1][2][4]
Awards
editSacco accumulated numerous awards and honours during his career; his overall body of work has been acknowledged byCar Magazine's"Designer's Designer" (1996) as chosen by forty of his peers,[5]theEyesOn DesignLifetime Design Achievement Award (1997),[12]and the Raymond Loewy Foundation's Lucky Strike Designer Award (1997).[13]He was shortlisted as one of the 25Car Designers of the Centuryin 1999, and was inducted into theAutomotive Hall of Famein 2006 and the European Automotive Hall of Fame in 2007.[4][11]
In his homeland, he was awarded theGrand Official Order of Merit of the Republicin 1991,[5]and received an honorarydoctoratefrom theUniversity of Udinein 2002.[5]
Books
edit- Sacco, Bruno (1988).Mercedes-Benz design: a look at the past, a look at the present, and some incidental observations on the design of other automobiles.Montvale, New Jersey:Mercedes-Benz of North America.
References
edit- ^abcdef"Bruno Sacco".EyesOn Design. Archived fromthe originalon 30 April 2008.
- ^abcStein, Jason (23 April 2007)."Sacco created Mercedes' design" language "".The Herald-Mail.Archived fromthe originalon 9 October 2007.
- ^abcdMeiners, Jens (January 2007)."The man who shaped the quintessential car company".Automotive News Europe.
- ^abc"Bruno Sacco (1933 - )".Automotive Hall of Fame: Inductees.Automotive Hall of Fame. Archived fromthe originalon 20 July 2011.
- ^abcdefHenke, Wolfgang (November 2001)."Bruno Sacco".WH Networks. Archived fromthe originalon 26 July 2008.
- ^Forums. Who designed W123benzworld.orgArchived23 September 2015 at theWayback Machine
- ^abNoordeloos, Marc (January 2007)."Q & A: Mercedes-Benz's Bruno Sacco".Automobile magazine. Archived fromthe originalon 12 February 2012.Retrieved6 June2008.
- ^"Bruno Sacco:" A Mercedes-Benz needs to look like a Mercedes-Benz. "".mercedes-benz.Archived fromthe originalon 19 July 2022.Retrieved19 July2022.
- ^"What did the future look like in the past, Mr Sacco?".mercedes-benz.Archived fromthe originalon 20 May 2022.Retrieved19 July2022.
- ^"Traueranzeigen von Bruno Sacco".stuttgart-gedenkt.de(in German).Retrieved28 September2024.
- ^abcMeiners, Jens (February 2007)."Sacco created timeless designs".Automotive News Europe. Archived fromthe originalon 22 February 2014.
- ^"Bruno Sacco".EyesOn Design Lifetime Design Achievement Award.Archived fromthe originalon 21 May 2008.
- ^"1997 Bruno Sacco".Lucky Strike Designer Award: Past Winners.Raymond Loewy Foundation. Archived fromthe originalon 18 March 2011.Retrieved18 March2011.
Further reading
edit- Felicioli, Riccardo P. (1998).Bruno Sacco. Mercedes-Benz Bereich Design.Car Men series, no. 4 (in German, English, and Italian). Milano: Automobilia.ISBN88-7960-090-7.
- Greene, Nik (2020).Bruno Sacco: Leading Mercedes-Benz Design 1975–1999.Ramsbury, Marlborough, UK: The Crowood Press.ISBN9781785007170.