Geely hires ex-Audi designer Stefan Sielaff
Stefan Sielaff replaces Peter Horbury as VP of Global Design at Geely
Geely's future models could take on a more German-inspired design, especially with a new designer joining the team.
After designing cars for Audi and Bentley, Stefan Sielaff has now been appointed as vice president of Global Design at Geely Auto Group. Sielaff replaces Peter Horbury, who has been appointed as senior vice president for design at Group Lotus.
What will Sielaff bring to the Geely table? The German car designer has over 30 years of automotive design experience. He started in Audi back in 1990, where he worked on designing interiors. Perhaps his most notable work came in the form of the Audi Quattro Spyder concept (as seen above) which was revealed in 1991.
Then in 1997, he ran the Audi Design Center before quickly moving to Ingolstadt to become the head of interior design of Audi.
In 2003, he moved to Mercedes-Benz wherein he became the design director of the brand's Interior Competence Center in Sindelfingen. Three years later, Sielaff moved back to Audi where he was appointed Head of Audi Design under the wing of the famous Italian car designer, Walter de Silva.
Years later, Sielaff became the head of Volkswagen Group's Potsdam Design Center before eventually becoming the Director of Design for Bentley Motors in 2015. There, he became instrumental in the design of the Continental GT, the Bentayga, as well as the Flying Spur.
“We are highly appreciative of Peter Horbury’s contribution and dedication to Geely over the past decade. Peter led one of the most creative global teams in the automotive industry and helped Geely to redefine its brand image globally. At the same time we also warmly welcome Stefan Sielaff to the Geely family, we believe that his years of design experience will further enhance Geely Auto Group portfolio of brands with the ultimate goal of providing the best products to consumers,” said Andy An Conghui, president of Geely Holding Group and CEO of Zeekr Technology.
Stefan Sielaff will be based in Gothenburg, Sweden, and will oversee the Geely Auto Group's portfolio of brands, including Geely Auto, Lynk & Co, and Geometry. He will also support the development of the premium EV brand, Zeekr.
With Sielaff's experience in designing cars for Audi, Bentley, Volkswagen, and Mercedes-Benz, we're curious as to what future Geely models will look like under his tenure.
