{"id":85223,"date":"2026-04-07T22:00:28","date_gmt":"2026-04-08T02:00:28","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/autosector.com\/?p=85223"},"modified":"2026-04-07T22:00:28","modified_gmt":"2026-04-08T02:00:28","slug":"hussein-al-attar-leaves-bmw-gm-advanced-design-studio","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/autosector.com\/?p=85223","title":{"rendered":"BMW Designer Behind the F87 M2 and More, Leaves BMW After 14 Years to Lead GM Advanced Design Studio"},"content":{"rendered":"<section class=\"post-summary-wrap\">\n<h3 class=\"post-summary-title\">Article Summary<\/h3>\n<ul class=\"post-summary-list\">\n<li>Hussein Al Attar is leaving BMW Group and Designworks after 14 years to become Design Director at General Motors&#8217; Advanced Design Studio in Pasadena, California.<\/li>\n<li>During his tenure, Al Attar led the exterior design of several landmark BMW models, including the F87 M2 Coupe, the 6 Series Gran Turismo, the X6, and the BMW M Hybrid V8 Le Mans race car, as well as the lighting design featured on the 4 Series Coupe.<\/li>\n<li>Al Attar steps into a forward-looking role at GM&#8217;s California studio, which focuses on advanced and concept design \u2014 giving him the creative runway to shape what the brand&#8217;s future vehicles will look like.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/section>\n<p class=\"font-claude-response-body break-words whitespace-normal leading-[1.7]\">There are people you meet in this industry whose fingerprints you can spot on a car before you ever learn their name. Hussein Al Attar is one of those people. After 14 remarkable years with BMW and Designworks, he is leaving to take on the role of Design Director at General Motors\u2019 Advanced Design Studio in Pasadena, California \u2014 and while I couldn\u2019t be happier for him, BMW is losing someone extremely talented.<\/p>\n<p class=\"font-claude-response-body break-words whitespace-normal leading-[1.7]\">Hussein confirmed the move himself on LinkedIn, saying: \u201cI am deeply grateful to my BMW family for 14 fantastic years full of great projects, exciting challenges, and, most importantly, amazing people who, knowingly or unknowingly, shaped me to become the designer I am today.\u201d He\u2019s not wrong about the projects. Let me tell you about a few of them.<\/p>\n<h3 class=\"font-claude-response-body break-words whitespace-normal leading-[1.7]\">The Man Behind the F87 M2<\/h3>\n<figure id=\"attachment_179130\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-179130\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><a href=\"https:\/\/cdn.bmwblog.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/01\/hussein-al-attar-bmw-m2.jpg\"><img fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-179130\" title=\"hussein-al-attar-bmw-m2\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.bmwblog.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/01\/hussein-al-attar-bmw-m2-750x500.jpg\" alt=\"Hussein Al-Attar the designer of the F87 BMW M2\" width=\"750\" height=\"500\" srcset=\"https:\/\/cdn.bmwblog.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/01\/hussein-al-attar-bmw-m2-750x500.jpg 750w, https:\/\/cdn.bmwblog.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/01\/hussein-al-attar-bmw-m2-1024x682.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/cdn.bmwblog.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/01\/hussein-al-attar-bmw-m2-300x200.jpg 300w, https:\/\/cdn.bmwblog.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2016\/01\/hussein-al-attar-bmw-m2.jpg 2000w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 750px) 100vw, 750px\"\/><\/a><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-179130\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Photo for BMWBLOG by @CKCMNS<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p class=\"font-claude-response-body break-words whitespace-normal leading-[1.7]\">For years \u2014 and I mean <em>years<\/em> \u2014 whenever I introduced Hussein to someone in the BMW world, I had exactly one line: \u201cThis is Hussein. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.bmwblog.com\/2016\/01\/14\/interview-hussein-al-attar-bmw-m2\/\">He designed the M2<\/a>.\u201d That was all I needed to say. Eyes would light up. Handshakes would turn warm. The F87 BMW M2 Coupe is one of those cars that earns its designer genuine street credibility, not just professional respect. Compact, aggressive, honest \u2014 the M2 wore its proportions like a fighter who knows exactly how dangerous he is. Hussein led the exterior design of that car, and every time someone mentions the M2, it\u2019s the F87 that first comes to mind.<\/p>\n<p class=\"font-claude-response-body break-words whitespace-normal leading-[1.7]\">But it was a great introduction. Maybe too great, because for a while it became something of a running joke between us.<\/p>\n<h3 class=\"font-claude-response-body break-words whitespace-normal leading-[1.7]\">Then Came the 6 Series Gran Turismo<\/h3>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/cdn.bmwblog.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/10\/Hussein-Al-Attar-BMW.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-medium wp-image-257897\" title=\"Hussein-Al-Attar-BMW\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.bmwblog.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/10\/Hussein-Al-Attar-BMW-830x553.jpg\" alt=\"Hussein-Al-Attar the designer of the BMW 6 Series GT\" width=\"830\" height=\"553\" srcset=\"https:\/\/cdn.bmwblog.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/10\/Hussein-Al-Attar-BMW-830x553.jpg 830w, https:\/\/cdn.bmwblog.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/10\/Hussein-Al-Attar-BMW-768x512.jpg 768w, https:\/\/cdn.bmwblog.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/10\/Hussein-Al-Attar-BMW-1024x683.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/cdn.bmwblog.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/10\/Hussein-Al-Attar-BMW-300x200.jpg 300w, https:\/\/cdn.bmwblog.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/10\/Hussein-Al-Attar-BMW.jpg 1900w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 830px) 100vw, 830px\"\/><\/a><\/p>\n<p class=\"font-claude-response-body break-words whitespace-normal leading-[1.7]\">Shortly after, Hussein became the Lead Exterior Designer on the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.bmwblog.com\/2017\/10\/11\/bmw-6-series-gt-design-explained-hussein-al-attar-bmw-exterior-designer\/\">BMW 6 Series Gran Turismo<\/a> \u2014 a car that sits at nearly the opposite end of the automotive spectrum from the M2. Where the M2 was taut and muscular, the 6 Series GT was long, high and simply too weird for my taste. It was four-door grand tourer designed for people who want to cross a continent without wrinkling their suit, but also who maybe couldn\u2019t afford a 7 Series.<\/p>\n<p class=\"font-claude-response-body break-words whitespace-normal leading-[1.7]\">So I updated my introduction accordingly. \u201cThis is Hussein. He designed the 6 Series GT.\u201d He thought this was hilarious. We joked about it for years \u2014 the idea that his career was doing laps between two completely different automotive philosophies. Compact M car for the track rats. Stretched GT for a crowd that I still didn\u2019t figure out. As introductions go, it covered a lot of ground.<\/p>\n<h3 class=\"font-claude-response-body break-words whitespace-normal leading-[1.7]\">The BMW X6 and a Decade of Influence in Munich<\/h3>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/cdn.bmwblog.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/2024-bmw-x6-m60i-atlantis-blue-14.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-medium wp-image-446765\" title=\"2024-bmw-x6-m60i-atlantis-blue-14\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.bmwblog.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/2024-bmw-x6-m60i-atlantis-blue-14-830x553.jpg\" alt=\"The new BMW X6\" width=\"830\" height=\"553\" srcset=\"https:\/\/cdn.bmwblog.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/2024-bmw-x6-m60i-atlantis-blue-14-830x553.jpg 830w, https:\/\/cdn.bmwblog.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/2024-bmw-x6-m60i-atlantis-blue-14-1536x1024.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/cdn.bmwblog.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/2024-bmw-x6-m60i-atlantis-blue-14-768x512.jpg 768w, https:\/\/cdn.bmwblog.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/2024-bmw-x6-m60i-atlantis-blue-14-300x200.jpg 300w, https:\/\/cdn.bmwblog.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/03\/2024-bmw-x6-m60i-atlantis-blue-14.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 830px) 100vw, 830px\"\/><\/a><\/p>\n<p class=\"font-claude-response-body break-words whitespace-normal leading-[1.7]\">Those two cars don\u2019t fully capture the breadth of what Hussein contributed during his seven years based in Munich. He also led the exterior design of the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.bmwblog.com\/2024\/02\/14\/2024-bmw-x6-m60i-review\/\">BMW X6<\/a> \u2014 one of the most polarizing yet commercially successful vehicles in BMW\u2019s lineup, a car that essentially defined the \u201cSports Activity Coupe\u201d segment and inspired a generation of imitators across every brand. Designing something that genuinely divides opinion while simultaneously selling in enormous numbers is a specific kind of skill, and Hussein had it. And he was quite proud of that project, despite his heart still being in that F87 M2. Literally.<\/p>\n<h3 class=\"font-claude-response-body break-words whitespace-normal leading-[1.7]\">California, Designworks, and the BMW M Hybrid V8<\/h3>\n<figure id=\"attachment_512160\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-512160\" class=\"wp-caption alignnone\"><a href=\"https:\/\/cdn.bmwblog.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/hussein-al-attar-bmw-00.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-512160\" title=\"HUSSEIN AL ATTAR BMW 00\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.bmwblog.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/hussein-al-attar-bmw-00-830x642.jpg\" alt=\"HUSSEIN AL ATTAR BMW 00\" width=\"830\" height=\"642\" srcset=\"https:\/\/cdn.bmwblog.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/hussein-al-attar-bmw-00-830x642.jpg 830w, https:\/\/cdn.bmwblog.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/hussein-al-attar-bmw-00-1325x1024.jpg 1325w, https:\/\/cdn.bmwblog.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/hussein-al-attar-bmw-00-768x594.jpg 768w, https:\/\/cdn.bmwblog.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/hussein-al-attar-bmw-00-1536x1187.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/cdn.bmwblog.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/hussein-al-attar-bmw-00.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 830px) 100vw, 830px\"\/><\/a><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-512160\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Julie Mehretu, Hussein Al Attar<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p class=\"font-claude-response-body break-words whitespace-normal leading-[1.7]\">In 2019, Hussein moved to Los Angeles to join Designworks, BMW Group\u2019s advanced design studio, eventually rising to Director of Automotive Design. It was in California that his work took a different character \u2014 forward-looking, experimental, untethered from production constraints in the best possible way.<\/p>\n<p class=\"font-claude-response-body break-words whitespace-normal leading-[1.7]\">The most visible result of that period is the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.bmwblog.com\/2026\/01\/14\/bmw-m-hybrid-v8-2026-daytona-facelift\/\">BMW M Hybrid V8 race car,<\/a> which he led as one of the designers, alongside <a href=\"https:\/\/www.bmwblog.com\/2018\/03\/19\/video-bmw-motorsport-designer-explains-the-bmw-m8-gte\/\">Michael Scully<\/a>. This machine \u2014 built for endurance racing, including a return to Le Mans \u2014 had to be both functionally extreme and visually coherent with BMW\u2019s motorsport identity. It\u2019s a stunning piece of work, dramatic without being gratuitous, and it showed that Hussein\u2019s range extended well beyond road cars into purpose-built competition vehicles.<\/p>\n<h3 class=\"font-claude-response-body break-words whitespace-normal leading-[1.7]\">Those 4 Series Headlights<\/h3>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/cdn.bmwblog.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/BMW-4-Series-Coupe-concept-taillight-in-studio.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-medium wp-image-94701\" title=\"BMW-4-Series-Coupe-concept-taillight-in-studio\" src=\"https:\/\/cdn.bmwblog.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/BMW-4-Series-Coupe-concept-taillight-in-studio-750x469.jpg\" alt=\"The taillights of the BMW 4 Series Coupe Concept\" width=\"750\" height=\"469\" srcset=\"https:\/\/cdn.bmwblog.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/BMW-4-Series-Coupe-concept-taillight-in-studio-750x469.jpg 750w, https:\/\/cdn.bmwblog.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/BMW-4-Series-Coupe-concept-taillight-in-studio-1024x640.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/cdn.bmwblog.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/BMW-4-Series-Coupe-concept-taillight-in-studio.jpg 1500w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 750px) 100vw, 750px\"\/><\/a><\/p>\n<p class=\"font-claude-response-body break-words whitespace-normal leading-[1.7]\">There\u2019s one more thing worth mentioning. If you\u2019ve ever admired the distinctive headlight and taillight signature of the new BMW 4 Series Coupe \u2014 those sharp, crystalline light forms that give the car such a distinctive face and tail \u2014 <a href=\"https:\/\/www.bmwblog.com\/2013\/01\/02\/bmw-headlighttaillight-designer-explains-the-4-series-coupe\/\">that design language has Hussein\u2019s fingerprints on it too<\/a>. Lighting design has become one of the most important battlegrounds in modern automotive design, and the 4 Series treatment is genuinely distinctive in a segment full of look-alike lamp clusters. It\u2019s the kind of detail that designers care about deeply and most drivers never consciously register, which is exactly why it matters.<\/p>\n<h3 class=\"font-claude-response-body break-words whitespace-normal leading-[1.7]\">What This Means for GM<\/h3>\n<p class=\"font-claude-response-body break-words whitespace-normal leading-[1.7]\">Hussein will be heading GM\u2019s Advanced Design Studio in Pasadena \u2014 not a production studio, but a forward-thinking creative outpost tasked with shaping what comes next. It\u2019s the kind of role that rewards curiosity and range, both of which Hussein has in abundance. At some point, he pulled up some sneaker designs he\u2019d done on the side. As a sneakerhead, I can tell you \u2014 they were genuinely good.<\/p>\n<p class=\"font-claude-response-body break-words whitespace-normal leading-[1.7]\">So what will it mean for GM? I honestly don\u2019t know, but he can explain it better, as always: \u201cI am very excited to be joining General Motors, a company with a deeply rooted design history, an innovative present, and a future I have been privileged to help shape, along with a great team whose work I\u2019ve long admired from afar.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"font-claude-response-body break-words whitespace-normal leading-[1.7]\">Before his time at BMW, Hussein interned at Mercedes-AMG, Audi, and Daimler \u2014 where he contributed to the Smart eBike Concept that premiered in Paris and later influenced the production version. He has always been someone who understood the full spectrum of what design can be, from track-focused aggression to refined elegance to electrified futures. GM is getting someone who has genuinely lived in all those spaces.<\/p>\n<h3 class=\"font-claude-response-body break-words whitespace-normal leading-[1.7]\">A Personal Note<\/h3>\n<p class=\"font-claude-response-body break-words whitespace-normal leading-[1.7]\">I\u2019ve been lucky to know Hussein for a long time, in fact, we met on a car forum. So long enough to have watched my one-line introduction evolve from the M2 to the 6 Series GT to, eventually, something far more complicated to summarize. Which is probably the best possible testament to a designer\u2019s career \u2014 that it keeps growing beyond whatever single thing you were most famous for.<\/p>\n<p class=\"font-claude-response-body break-words whitespace-normal leading-[1.7]\">BMW\u2019s design language over the past decade carries his DNA in ways both obvious and subtle. Whatever GM\u2019s Advanced Design Studio produces under his direction, I suspect we\u2019ll be saying the same thing about it someday.<\/p>\n<p class=\"font-claude-response-body break-words whitespace-normal leading-[1.7]\">Congratulations, Hussein. You\u2019ve earned it. And thank you for always teaching me something about design. Even when I didn\u2019t like a particular car.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Article Summary Hussein Al Attar is leaving BMW Group and Designworks after 14 years to become Design Director at General Motors&#8217; Advanced Design Studio in Pasadena, California. During his tenure, Al Attar led the exterior design of several landmark BMW models, including the F87 M2 Coupe, the 6 Series Gran Turismo, the X6, and the [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":85224,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"","ast-site-content-layout":"default","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","ast-disable-related-posts":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"default","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"ast-content-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-85223","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-industry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/autosector.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/85223","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/autosector.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/autosector.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/autosector.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/autosector.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=85223"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"http:\/\/autosector.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/85223\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/autosector.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/85224"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/autosector.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=85223"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/autosector.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=85223"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/autosector.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=85223"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}