As a newbie to the BMW ownership scene (but a long-time admirer of BMW cars), I'm kinda confused about the whole Chris Bangle thing. Who is this guy? Where did BMW get him from? I take it from his name that this guy is American?? Only ONE guy is designing the new cars? Design of a car is rarely (if ever) performed by ONE person, especially for mass produced vehicles that need to "appeal" to a wide range of people. Why would BMW all of a sudden let ONE American design all their new cars? What do the Germans think about this guy?
Can you guys clear me up here?
I realize that the new designs don't really jive with the traditional BMW styling cues. I can see that. However styling legacy aside, I have to say that I definitely like the styling of the 7 series. I also like the back end of the Z4, but don't like the styling of the rest of the car. And from the pictures of this new 3 series, I have to say that I like it with the realization that the proportions of the car are kinda hard to delineate in those pictures.
Just my humble opinion.