Ford has reportedly announced that its current chief designer at Ford of Europe, Phil Simmons, is being moved over to Land Rover. Rather than having a man with such experience oversee the design of the entire Land Rover brand, Simmons will become the studio director for just the Ranger Rover line of premium SUVs. Simmons is actually the one responsible for the Ranger Rover's current design, having spent a decade at Land Rover before being sent to Ford in the U.S., where he also oversaw the Blue Oval's family of midsize sedans, the Ford Fusion, Mercury Milan and Lincoln MKZ. He's been at Ford of Europe since 1999, and thus also must've been partly responsible for the Kinetic design language that debuted on the Iosis concept and matured into the production design of the current Mondeo.
Is it a waste (or a demotion) to shift such talent to a brand that's on the verge of being sold from the corporate fold, and then to only give him control over one vehicle line? The Range Rover is certainly key to the success of Land Rover as a whole, but does it need its own design steward? We're a bit perplexed at the appointment, but the rest of Ford's loss is Range Rover's gain.
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Yago Bal @ Jul 5th 2007 6:13PM
Maybe that's just a move to keep the European branch design in par with the US craptastic thingmobiles...
Ford should sell Ford USA as soon as possible... they are going down. :(
Ligor @ Jul 5th 2007 6:13PM
I think he is better off.
the Fusion is already looking like a 10yr old vehicle
the Milan fares just sligtly better
the Lincoln MKZ is just plain bad when compared to the copetition (3-series, G35, CTS, TL, A4, etc) so,
Ford needs someone that can make them some designs like the European ones, and this guy was not it period.
Yago Bal @ Jul 5th 2007 6:25PM
You should read the articles before commenting: he was chief designer at Ford of Europe.
Ligor @ Jul 5th 2007 6:14PM
that should say "Ford is better off without him"
BCM @ Jul 5th 2007 6:36PM
"the Fusion is already looking like a 10yr old vehicle"
Name some specific 1997 vehicles which the Fusion resembles.
jf2273 @ Jul 5th 2007 7:50PM
Oy, you know somebody is going to say the Fusion resembles a Honda Prelude from the front. I'm just hoping and praying the designs for the Mondeo and Fusion eventually converge.
M0L0TOV
Rolf B @ Jul 5th 2007 7:22PM
I could have done the Land Rover job. Put one box, than a smaller one, add a grill just like the other one and away you go. Wait don't go yet... it needs wheels... those are round right?
Yago Bal @ Jul 5th 2007 8:30PM
Are you a designer at Ford USA? :) You sure sound like one...
Genkijin @ Jul 5th 2007 9:32PM
I'm sorry but the correct term for box is "squircles"!
a box with radii!
omar @ Jul 5th 2007 8:21PM
Land Rover is a nice off road brand, what i dont like is all of this Ford integration that is taking place like ford designers at the PAG. Ford needs to sell the PAG because the Blue Oval is sinking and needs to get rid of extra weight to come afloat. European brands need to return back to Europe, not EuroAmerica. Just look at all the EuroAmer allainces in the past few years, all disasters.
1.DaimlerChrysler (Failure)
2.Ford PAG (Struggling)
3.GM Saab ( ...?... )
Compare those to European owned Euro brands
1.BMW (Excellent)
2.VW (Superb)
3.Citreon PSA (Good)
4.Fiat ( Well Off)
All those brands are doing excellent, i personally believe that it all boils down to it being useless for AMerican and Europeans to form auto allainces/ mergers.
Yago Bal @ Jul 5th 2007 8:30PM
About GM-SAAB:
SAAB is developing new turbo-engines for the entire group, E85 engines, plug-in hybrids (yes, the Volt was developed at SAAB) and the XWD awd system for the entire group.
SAAB isn't, for GM, about the cars it sells.
And, besides, you seem to have forgoten about the german "Opel".
omar @ Jul 6th 2007 10:11AM
what i was saying is that saab is under bad managment. GM is sucking technology from Trollhattan, Sweden. The same way that Ford is sucking from Gothenburg, Sweden. The Swedes make a very well rounded luxurious vehicle, but the both of them hav fallen prey to american corporations. The Saab factory has lost the previlige to produce the next 9-3 to Opel's german plant. GM is even planning to move the 9-5 production, and use the Saab Swedish plant to produce Cadillacs.
Ford cant do that to Volvo because Volvo is tied in with AB volvo production facility still. AB Volvo wont have that
British_Rover @ Jul 5th 2007 8:51PM
You people saying that the Range Rover design is not good do know the Range Rover was one of the first vehicles displayed at the Louvre art gallery in Paris...
http://www.austin-rover.co.uk/index.htm?rroverf.htm
Think about that for a minute the French, who don't always get along with the English that well, displayed one of the most signature English vehicles in their National Art Museum.
You can still much of the original 1970 design in the current edition.
Then you say PAG is struggling???
Only Jaguar is struggling. Land Rover is very profitable and Volvo is fairly profitable as well. Volvo is in even better shape considering many of Fords vehicles now use Volvo developed platforms and technology. All the work Volvo does saves Ford tons of money.
clovis @ Feb 28th 2008 5:56AM
please advise us if any changing comming in next 2 years for the range rover body or modification