R.I.P
Bruno Sacco
1933-2024
He was a famous Italian-born car designer and former design director of Mercedes-Benz, born in 1933 in Udine, Italy.
He joined Mercedes-Benz in 1958 and became Head of Design in 1975, a position he held for 24 years until his retirement in 1999, with Bruno Sacco's handiwork in almost every production car.
Under his leadership, the design language of Mercedes-Benz cars was unified and continued, with an emphasis on consistency and familial character, and the design principles of "horizontal homogeneity" and "vertical affinity".
Bruno Sacco's classic idea: A Mercedes should look like a Mercedes Zeekr's head of design, Stephan Sielaff, used to work for Mercedes-Benz and had a brush with Bruno Sacco.
He believes that Bruno's point of view is that the brand is important for the product. Brands need to make sure that the product has a consistent and coherent feel so that consumers recognise you quickly.
8 CARS THAT LOOK BACK AT BRUNO SACCO'S DESIGN CAREER
1. Mercedes-Benz C 111 (1970)
The C111 was an important concept car built by Mercedes-Benz during the 1970s, testing new technologies such as a rotor engine, turbo diesel, multi-link rear suspension, gullwing doors, and leather interior.
A total of 16 were produced and it was an early example of the 'wedge' style of supercar design. Former Ferrari driver Paul Frère wrote of his test drive in Motor magazine in 1970: "This car combines comfort and manoeuvrability in a perfect way, and the handling is definitely comparable to that of a racing car.
2. Mercedes-Benz W123 (1975-1986)
This car was the predecessor of the Mercedes-Benz E Class, and with approximately 2.7 million units sold over its lifetime, it is the largest selling Mercedes-Benz car in history.
3. Mercedes-Benz W/C126 S-Class (1979-1991)
This S-Class was the pinnacle of Bruno Sacco's design career, and he hated the American "obsolescence theory". He believed that a Mercedes-Benz car could be driven for more than 20 years before it was scrapped because of its guaranteed quality.
Therefore, the design of Mercedes-Benz must be pure and simple, not trendy, in order to be timeless. W126 is the longest-selling S Class sedan of Mercedes-Benz, and even at the end of its life cycle, from 1987 to 1990, W126 received the highest customer rating in JD Power Sales Satisfaction Index.
4. Mercedes-Benz W201 190 Series (1982-1993)
The Mercedes-Benz W201 is regarded as the ancestor of today's Mercedes-Benz C Class, and it is also Bruno Sacco's favourite design because of its significance to the company's history.
The W201 was the most affordable Mercedes-Benz available to the public at the time, and its creation was intended to attract young middle-class Americans to Mercedes-Benz.
5. Mercedes-Benz W124 E-Class (1984-1995)
Before Audi and BMW became Mercedes-Benz's luxury rivals, and before Lexus was even introduced, Mercedes-Benz had plenty of profits. So it could afford to send its engineers into a frenzy to build the W124 ultimate saloon. It was as tenacious and indestructible as a Toyota, and was the most versatile model in the Mercedes range; saloon, coupe, estate ......
Fifth Gear once tried to destroy a 300 TE wagon. It still drove after being flooded, with the rear doors shell-shocked and the front doors largely intact. The presenter finally "solved" it by placing explosives in the engine compartment. ......
6. Mercedes-Benz R129 SL-Class (1988-2001)
This car is often found in celebrities' garages. This car is often found in the garages of celebrities.
Diana, Princess of Wales, sold her Jaguar XJS and leased a metallic red 500 SL, becoming the first member of the royal family to use a foreign car. Bruno Sacco said, "The R129 has the perfect shape, it's the most perfect car of my career".
7. Mercedes-Benz W210 E-Class (1994-2003) 
In the 1990s, when Mercedes-Benz products were all too similar and consumers thought that Mercedes-Benz was all about old men's cars, Bruno Sacco was forced to give up on a philosophy that had lasted more than a decade.
He developed many new products with individuality, such as the A Class, SLK, ML, and the E-Class with its four-eye headlamps was also a work of this period.
8. Mercedes-Benz W140 S-Class (1992-1999)
Fans around the world regarded the W140 as "the last true S-Class". Due to price increases and fierce competition, Mercedes-Benz shifted from "engineer-driven design" to "market-driven design" in the 1990s, and the W140's successor, the W220, was criticised for poor engineering and early models' poor reliability.
The W140 successor, the W220, was criticised for its poor engineering and the poor reliability of the early models. Bruno Sacco, however, admits that he was not happy with the proportions of the 1991 W140 S-Class, which he considered to be 10 centimetres too tall.
These models exemplify Bruno Sacco's design talent and contribution to automotive aesthetics during his time at Mercedes-Benz, and his design philosophy, which still influences every Mercedes-Benz car today.
Senior Writer The quest for automotive knowledge began as soon as the earliest memories. Various sources information, even questionable ones, have been explored including video games, television, magazines, or even internet forums. Still stuck in that rabbit hole.
