Currently reading: Sielaff replaces Donckerwolke as Bentley design boss
Stefan Sielaff has been appointed the design boss of luxury brand Bentley, as it emerges that Luc Donckerwolke has left the VW Group

Stefan Sielaff has been named as the new director of design at Bentley, with Luc Donkerwolke leaving the company.

Sielaff will join Bentley on 1 July, having spent the last three years in the VW Group design team. He held two roles, working as head of interior design and design director at the Volkswagen Design Center in Potsdam.

Prior to this, Sielaff has worked with several brands in the VW Group, having started more than 25 years ago at Audi. He spent time as the design director for Audi from 2006 to 2011.

Wolfgang Dürheimer, chairman and CEO at Bentley, said: “Bentley is entering one of the most important phases in the company’s history, with significant plans for new models. With his experience, creative vision and passion for the Bentley brand Stefan Sielaff is perfectly placed to lead the design of our future models.”  

The appointment comes after Donckerwolke leaves both Bentley and the VW Group as a whole. Donckerwolke, 49, had been at Bentley since September 2012, and had previously worked as head of design at Lamborghini and as director of design at Seat. He joined the VW Group in 1992 as an exterior designer at Audi and he worked on models such as the Lamborghini Murcielago and Gallardo, Skoda Fabia and Audi R8 Le Mans prototype during his time at the company.

Wolfgang Dürheimer said of Donckerwolke,: “I would like to thank Luc Donckerwolke for the significant contribution he has made in his nearly three years at Bentley, overseeing the continuation of a very successful period, and I wish him all the very best for the future.”

Bentley’s next anticipated model is the Bentayga, which will have been at an advanced stage of development by the time Donckerwolke left the company. 

Get the latest car news, reviews and galleries from Autocar direct to your inbox every week. Enter your email address below:

Join the debate

Comments
3
Add a comment…
pauld101 5 June 2015

It's not just the style, though...

With the BettyBunter approaching launch, I fear that it all very much involves stable doors, horses and bolts... But it's not just the style, though. I think style was probably the last thing on the mind of the owner of the black Mulsanne being winched onto the flatbed recovery vehicle on the northbound hard shoulder of the M6 yesterday evening, just north of toll road junction. High net worth individuals recognise that they are both extremely conspicuous and vulnerable if their car breaks down. VW group products have a very poor reputation for reliability and this is now, very unfortunately, rubbing off on Bentley product.
abkq 4 June 2015

About time Bentley got a new

About time Bentley got a new design boss. Let's hope his designs will have more distinction & integrity, something that is more competitive in terms of appearance with Rolls Royce. Let's hope he'll get rid of the heavy looks & uninspired visual detailings of the present range of models. Let's hope he'll get rid of the vulgarity of the interior ...
Inthedark 5 June 2015

About time

that the Continental's dashboard is changed, it's been the same now for twelve years. I can only say that I prefer a traditional dashboard that is continuous from one side to the other with an infotainment screen that is higher in one's eye-line. I think that the Mulsanne's dashboard is a touch 'over blinged' and on the exterior, the rear haunches are too bulky.