BMW design guru passes on his wisdom

David Robb knows a thing or two about transportation design – after all, it’s been his life.

After graduating from high school in Texas in 1973, he studied transportation design at the Art Center College of Design in Pasadena, California, earning his Bachelor of Science degree with honours.

He then went on to join the design team at Chrysler, followed by Audi and then the car wing of BMW. Finally, in 1993, he made the switch to two wheels to assume responsibilities as Director of Motorcycle Design, BMW Motorrad.

Five years later, he was appointed Vice President, Motorcycle Design, responsible for all international design activities for BMW motorcycles, including production design and advanced concepts; aftermarket motorcycle accessories; riders’ apparel and accessory equipment; colour; graphics ands material design; and design engineering.

If that all sounds fairly orthodox, also consider that one of Robb’s sons is a successful rap artist in Germany, and David is also an active aerobatic pilot...

David’s brief at BMW is a seriously wide one in anyone’s language, but one the 55-year-old seemingly takes in his stride.

Robb, who is based in Munich, recently spent some time in Australia, where he officially launched the latest big-ticket release from BMW – the six-cylinder K 1600 GT.

While he was Down Under, he also addressed a gathering of dealers and media at a special gala evening, using a mountain of butcher’s paper to explain the method of his design team’s ‘madness’.

Well not quite, but if there is a marque which has pushed the design envelope over the years, it’s BMW. Like all manufacturers, BMW hasn’t always hit the right notes every time, but then again it hasn’t always followed conventional wisdom – which is why most BMW motorcycles are instantly recognisable to the naked eye, certainly in comparison to some of the other major marques.

Indeed, BMW doesn’t believe in wearing blinkers. But, as Robb pointed out, design is only one part of his team’s terms of reference.

“As well as design, we also have engineers, marketing people, and we have responsibility for sourcing input from our customers.

“Our products are much wider in range than what they used to be. In 1993 when I joined this team the motorcycles were kind of substituting each other.

“Obviously, now we are entering the sports bike class, we’ve got naked bikes, enduros, tourers – all kinds of motorcycles. And they all have their own personality. So even if we talk about a bike like the GS which started life as the R 80, now we have a whole family of GSs and each of them is very different.

“So there are individual personalities, but for all of them you should be able to know they are a BMW.

“And every time when someone sits on the bike it takes on a different character, because we all sit on bikes differently. That’s something we spent a lot of time working on in the studio.”

One BMW which certainly exudes individuality is the S 1000 RR Superbike with its distinctive ‘split face’ or asymmetrical design.

Robb spent some time explaining the S 1000 RR’s design language during his address, and he clearly has a soft spot for the machine which has made such a huge impact in a short period of time.

“People have expectations of BMW quality and personality, and that’s what we try and get across in the motorcycles,” began Robb. “We have been very excited about the S 1000 RR and the response to it, and there are a lot of things we did there that also apply to the K 1600 GT – even though it’s a completely different class. A lot of the challenges are the same.

“We wanted a sporting and dynamic character with the S 1000 RR, but not in a ‘rushed’ kind of way.

“The split face is both aesthetic and functional – you’ve got the headlights, the windscreen, and the air intakes. It makes sense in so many different ways, including the central air intake.

“Sure, in endurance racing they use one big headlight. It looks cool, but there is not enough lighting for the street.

“Of course, you could do it symmetrically and have two of those, but two round headlights do not fulfil the regulations to put that bike on the road.

“So we then have two headlights which are functional and a different shape. Some people say the lights have to look exactly the same, but that’s not an edict that we adhere to.

“We eventually chose the asymmetric design because it was the better engineering solution, and it’s something people are beginning to recognise.

“In the case of the S 1000 RR, we completed a million kilometres of testing before it got out there. We had race riders sitting on clay models in the studio giving feedback. This is for me an example of BMW thoroughness.”

And what’s his take on the soon to be released K 1600 GT?

“This particular motorcycle is not as relaxed or cruisy as the LT was. It’s more aggressive, but not so much as the engine character is concerned.

“And the GT L has very different ergonomics, although it looks very similar. It has a very different feel – you sit lower, the pedals come towards you. All these things were considered at the beginning.”

As well as his passion for aerobatics, Robb also rides motorcycles – including the opposition’s – regularly, which is perfectly understandable when you consider that he’s on the doorstep of some adrenalin-inducing mountains.

“Management [takes part in] all rides, including comparison rides with other companies,” said Robb.  "And all my design studio rides as well, with the exception of a few.

“We have GS riders, cruiser riders, and those who like to ride quickly on and off road. This is very important when we begin discussing what BMW motorcycles should do.

“And an important thing to keep in mind with bike design is that functional doesn’t have to be boring,” Robb continued, with the R 1200 GS clearly at the forefront of his thinking.

“And if we miss something in design we catch it before it gets out there. In many ways we are done with these bikes a year-and-a-half before production because of the nature of how things work.”