Volkswagen design boss replaced already
Controversial Kaban out, Bentley man Mindt in, according to Volkswagen sourcesA disagreement over the 2021 VW ID.Life concept car has led to the Volkswagen brand replacing its design boss, Jozef Kaban, after just two years in the job.
Kaban will be replaced by Bentley’s head of design, Andreas Mindt, from the start of February, sources at Volkswagen have confirmed.
Mindt, 53, was born and raised in Volkswagen’s home town of Wolfsburg and will follow in the footsteps of his father, who was also a Volkswagen designer.
The designer’s Lazy Susan of Volkswagen Group penmasters has stopped spinning already, with Tobias Suehlmann taking over at Bentley after stints at Bugatti, Aston Martin and McLaren.
Kaban, meanwhile, will be assigned to another brand inside the Volkswagen Group after falling out of favour with the VW brand’s new boss, Thomas Schaefer.
The catalyst for their conflict was the ID.Life concept shown at the 2021 Munich auto show, because it was a preview car for a 2025 budget EV from Volkswagen and Kaban pushed back against it.
Kaban, who has also spent time at Audi, Bugatti and Skoda during a 23-year Volkswagen Group career, was also asked to rework his finalised designs for the flagship Volkswagen ‘Trinity’ electric sedan to move it away from its limousine-style design.
Related: Volkswagen Trinity to be built at new $3 billion factory
Related: Volkswagen ID.Life previews ID.2
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