Volvo’s Head of Design Steve Mattin Resigns

Volvo’s award-winning design director, Steve Mattin, has left the company. U.K.-born Mattin has been Volvo’s design director since May of 2005 and was instrumental in creating designs like the C30, XC60, and most recently, the S60 Concept from Detroit. Mattin joined the Swedish automaker after coming over from (then) DaimlerChrysler, where he was employed for 17 years. Mattin left DCX as the company’s senior design manager after having a hand in vehicles as wide-ranging as the SL, SLK, SLR, R-Class, M-Class, and the Maybach line.

The departure could signal a wave of changes at Volvo as Ford ramps up the intensity of its push to sell the brand. Despite serious talks with a number of potential buyers, however, Ford has released nothing indicating a sale is imminent. News of Mattin’s exit from Volvo comes from Sweden’s GP, which quotes Mattin, shortly after being hired on at Volvo in May 2005, as saying he would “stay [at Volvo] for the rest of my life.” That sort of talk doesn’t lend itself to an easy change in career path, especially immediately after an 18-year stint at Mercedes-Benz.

But perhaps the change-up is just another in the cycle of designer exits that has swept the industry in the past several months. Chris Bangle, BMW’s famous, or to some eyes, infamous, designer for most of the last decade, left the industry altogether. Karim Habib, also from BMW, defected to Mercedes-Benz just a few weeks ago.

Even among the purely design-focused companies there have been changes, including the switch from Pininfarina to Stile Bertone by modern legend Jason Castriota. So perhaps Mattin’s departure from Volvo is just a normal part of business in a depressed economy. But it could also be a hint at worse times to come.

Volvo S60 Video Introduction

Volvo Car unveiled the S60 Concept at the 2009 Detroit Motor Show on January 11. Volvo Cars’ CEO, Stephen Odell held a press conference about the business and the future of the company. The company has the potential to reestablish its credentials in the premium sedan segment. The video also shows interviews with Design Chief Steve Mattin, interior designer Lars Falk and more.

Volvo Cars Presents First Pictures of New S60 Concept with Orrefors Crystal

Volvo Cars presents the first pictures of the new S60 Concept, which will be unveiled at the Detroit Motor Show in early January 2009. The production version of the new Volvo S60 will be available in 2010. This video includes exterior studio shots of the car plus shots of the crystal center stack being created at Orrefors’ workshop and interviews with designers.

Volvo Cars has engaged world-famous Swedish glass works Orrefors in the work with the company’s next concept car, which will be a first version of the next-generation Volvo S60. The joint creation, a floating center stack of hand-made Orrefors crystal, will be shown for the first time at the Detroit international motor show in January 2009.

A few days before Christmas, Volvo Cars treats the automotive world to an early unwrapping of a car that will shine bright in the streets for years to come. The Volvo S60 Concept gives the car world a glimpse of what the all-new Volvo S60 is going to look like when it arrives in 2010.
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