6 Minutes
Some designers leave fingerprints on a brand so quietly, you only notice them once they’re gone. Hussein Al Attar is one of those names. After 14 years shaping BMW and Designworks, he’s moving to General Motors as Design Director at the company’s Advanced Design Studio in Pasadena, California. It’s a big hire for GM. And for BMW, it’s the loss of one of the people who helped define the look and feel of some of its most talked-about cars.
Al Attar confirmed the move on LinkedIn, writing that he was grateful to his BMW family for “14 fantastic years full of great projects, exciting challenges, and, most importantly, amazing people.” That’s the polite version of a career packed with standout work. The less formal version? He helped shape some of BMW’s most recognizable metal.
The man behind the M2
If you know Hussein Al Attar, chances are you know him through the F87 BMW M2 Coupe. That car did something rare. It earned instant respect. Short, muscular, and unfiltered, it looked exactly like what an M car should look like. Al Attar led the exterior design, and the M2 quickly became the car that most people associated with his name.
That reputation stuck. For years, one sentence was enough to introduce him in BMW circles: he designed the M2. Simple. Effective. Memorable. Some cars are just better business cards than others.
Then came the BMW 6 Series Gran Turismo, a completely different kind of machine. Long, tall, and unapologetically unusual, it sat far away from the M2’s compact aggression. If the M2 was a punch, the 6 Series GT was a glide. Not everyone loved it, but that was part of the point. It was a car built to make a statement, and Al Attar was the one guiding its exterior design.
He also led the BMW X6, one of the brand’s most divisive success stories. Love it or hate it, the X6 changed the conversation. It helped create the sports activity coupe segment and pushed other brands to follow. Designing a car that people argue about and still buy in huge numbers takes real confidence. That’s a designer knowing exactly where to push.
California opened a new chapter
In 2019, Al Attar moved to Los Angeles and joined Designworks, BMW Group’s advanced design studio. There, the brief changed. Less production pressure. More freedom. More speculation. More of the kind of work that hints at what might be coming next rather than what is already locked in for dealerships.
One of the standout results from that period was the BMW M Hybrid V8 race car. Al Attar was among the designers behind the project, alongside Michael Scully. Built for endurance racing and BMW’s return to Le Mans, the car had to look aggressive, purposeful, and unmistakably motorsport-ready. It does. It’s dramatic without feeling forced, which is harder to pull off than it sounds.
He also had a hand in one of those details most drivers never consciously think about, but designers never forget: lighting. The signature headlights and taillights of the BMW 4 Series Coupe carry his influence too. In a market filled with similar-looking light graphics, BMW’s sharp, crystalline treatment stands out. That matters. A front end can live or die by a few millimeters of lighting character.
Now Al Attar is heading to GM’s Advanced Design Studio in Pasadena, a place built less for answering today’s questions and more for asking tomorrow’s. That kind of environment suits a designer like him. He’s worked across performance cars, grand tourers, SUVs, racing prototypes, and even side projects that go beyond cars entirely. At one point, he even showed sneaker designs he had worked on. They were good. Really good.
His own words suggest he sees the opportunity clearly: “I 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.” That sounds like someone ready for the next phase, not just the next title.
Before BMW, Al Attar sharpened his skills through internships at Mercedes-AMG, Audi, and Daimler, where he contributed to the Smart eBike Concept that later influenced the production model. So this is not a designer who has lived in one lane. He’s moved between performance, premium, experimentation, and electrified thinking, and that breadth is exactly what makes him valuable to GM now.
There’s also something fitting about the timing. Automotive design is changing fast. EVs are reshaping proportions, lighting is becoming a signature language, and concept studios matter more than ever because they help brands define identity before the market catches up. GM isn’t just hiring a designer. It’s bringing in someone who understands how to balance emotion, brand heritage, and what comes next.
I’ve known Hussein for a long time, long enough to watch my own introduction for him change over the years. It started with the M2. Then it became the 6 Series GT. Then the X6. Then the race car. That’s usually how a designer’s influence works when it’s real. It spreads. Quietly at first, then all at once.
BMW’s recent design history carries his imprint in more places than most people realize. GM’s Pasadena studio just got someone who knows how to turn a concept into a conversation. And if history is any guide, we’ll be talking about his next chapter for a long time.
Congratulations, Hussein. BMW was lucky to have you. GM just got very interesting.
Source: bmwblog
Comments
skyspin
Seen this before designers move and you still spot their details years later. Hope GM gives him time, freedom and not just toys to play with.
atomwave
Is this even true? Feels a bit like PR spin, did he really leave 14 yrs at BMW for Pasadena studio? Skeptical but intrigued.
v8rider
Wow, didn't expect GM to pull a designer like Al Attar from BMW! Curious how he'll tweak proportions, lighting... big move, but risky.
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