When it comes to automotive design, Klaus Busse is a veteran: the German has been active in the industry for 30 years, during which time he has worked for such illustrious names as Mercedes-Benz, Chrysler and Fiat – and Maserati. Busse has been working for the parent company Stellantis since 2015 and is now responsible for correctly positioning the proud, traditional and high-priced Italian car brand.
“We want to offer a rolling sculpture ” – Klaus Busse
This is certainly not easy in the midst of fundamental upheaval in the industry. But while Maserati emphasises giving customers a choice when it comes to drive systems, the electric version of the latest model, the Maserati GranCabrio, has scored particularly well, at least in reviews by motorsport journalists – a fact that makes Busse proud, but which he does not want to be taken to mean that Maserati is putting all its eggs in the e-mobility basket. Busse is quite happy with the dual track, as he explains: “It’s actually a good situation for us at the moment.”
What was the first car you consciously recognised as a child?
I only realised late on that all the TV series I liked to watch back then had a car as a “hero” – whether it was “Magnum PI”, “Miami Vice”, “The Fall Guy” or “Hart aber herzlich”. From a Ford Bronco to a Mercedes SL to a Ferrari, there really was everything.
What was the first car you owned yourself?
It was a “pass-me-down” from my father, a Mercedes W123. I also travelled to Stuttgart in that car, where I did my first internship at Mercedes.
What does luxury mean to you?
Luxury is one of those terms that is seen very differently from different perspectives: Some say that time is a luxury, or good food is a luxury. I understand luxury as something that has other values in addition to its actual function. Cars, for example, have a clear functional purpose: if I live outside Turin and have to go to work in the city and there is no train, I need a car. When you think of such a car, you mainly see yourself in a car on the way to work. But it’s different with a brand like Maserati: when you think of Maserati, you see yourself on the French Côte d’Azur or in Tuscany, Italy. When something evokes feelings and transports me to a completely different world, then I’m talking about luxury.
How strongly do luxury brands like Maserati have to react to trends?
Maserati has reinvented itself every ten to 20 years. We have been building racing cars for 110 years, but road cars only since 1947. Maserati was very elegant in the 50s, rather provocative in the 60s, futuristic again in the 70s; then, in the 80s and 90s, it became brutalist-pragmatic, then came the romantic period again. The design strongly reflects the spirit of the times. We completely ignore trends in fashion or architecture; trends in terms of where we are as a society – we look at this very closely, for example the fact that the role of a sports car in road traffic in Europe today is being discussed quite critically. In the midst of this, we want to offer a rolling sculpture that continues to trigger positive reactions.
How is Maserati different from other car manufacturers?
German brands always show their predecessor models to illustrate the path to the desired perfection. When I came to Italy, I asked Giorgetto Giugiaro (Italian industrial designer who developed the Fiat Panda and the VW Golf I, among others) what actually characterises Italian design. He said: “It means making the best of the moment.” Only when you approach a vehicle in this way are these extreme breaks possible – such as from the beautiful curves of the 1960s to the flat wedge shapes of the 1970s.
What remains the same despite all the changes?
Maserati has always had a kind of restraint and elegance. We have basically left it to the tridente, the trident, to convey the power of the car to the outside world. We have always avoided unnecessary air intakes or spoilers, and we don’t make fake exhausts either. The trident is not only our logo, but also the weapon of a mythological god. There’s a fountain in Bologna where Neptune is holding the spear behind his back – so he’s showing that he has it, but not in an aggressive way.
How much of your job is a classic designer, how much is an engineer, how much perhaps a historian?
My job is to maintain this strategic altitude. Of course, I sit in the studio in the evening with a pen in my hand with the designers and try to solve a problem. I do that because I enjoy it. However, the expectation that a Head of Design has to fulfil, especially for a historic brand like Maserati, is a strategic one; in other words, not just managing the design team, but also helping to shape the brand as part of the entire leadership team. We are not alone in this, but the team is already looking to us. When we design a new car – the MC20 was my first completely redesigned Maserati – we have these discussions: What does this car mean for the brand? Where do we want to take the brand? What is already available in this segment? How can we be typically Maserati? That has not changed, that is the consistent role of a Head of Design.
The car industry is currently experiencing a major upheaval, particularly in terms of drive types. Does it make a difference whether you design a car with a combustion engine, an electric drive or a hydrogen drive?
We made a conscious decision that the drive should not make a difference. It has always been important to me that customers who come to our showroom do not have to make any compromises because they like the electric drive of the same model better than the combustion engine. One example is the Gran Turismo – this is a product that combines performance, comfort and style. Anyone who opts for this design language should not have to make compromises because of the type of drive. It always depends on your lifestyle: If I live in Wyoming in the USA, it might not be so easy to drive an electric car.
The Maserati GranCabrio can also be purchased in both versions. Is this dual-track approach to powertrains the future strategy at Maserati?
Yes, that is very important for us. The discussion around e-mobility is very emotional, so I’m very happy about the approach – customers can decide what suits their lifestyle. The feedback we are very proud of with the GranCabrio is that many people say that the electric car is the better car in terms of driving pleasure and feel. We don’t have a typical skateboard platform where the batteries are under the seat, we have combined the batteries in the central tunnel, so the seats and the silhouette remain low, the weight is centred in the vehicle – and then we combine this with software that we developed from Formula E, where this power is really brought to the right wheels in a fraction of a second. That’s how you get this unique driving experience that obviously appeals to many.
Wouldn’t it then be logical to say: many people think the electric car is better, we’re going all out for e-mobility?
The path we take is still important – depending on where the customer is, it can be difficult to drive electrically. There are also customers who like a certain nostalgia, who also want the engine noise of the combustion engine. For us, this is actually a good situation to be in right now.
As a German, you are the head designer of an Italian brand – and if there’s one thing Italians are proud of, it’s design. How much did you have to prove yourself? That was indeed the case at the beginning – but it takes three years to develop a new car. So for the first three years, I had to prove myself through my work. Back then, I spent a lot of time in a piazza in Turin, sitting there and drinking espresso. I learnt a lot about Italian self-confidence, for example in fashion: Italians wear trousers that are far too short – but elegantly so. This understanding helped me.
Where do you generally find inspiration?
Of course, I also look at other cars to see how certain problems are solved there. However, everything I look at on the market is already three years old and therefore basically no longer relevant. My inspiration mainly comes from interacting with other people; most recently with Maria Koch, Germany’s only fashion designer, who was officially on the Paris Fashion Week calendar with her brand 032c. These are moments that inspire me – and of course it’s also just hard work looking up history, talking to collectors and thinking about what was relevant for Maserati in the past. But above all, it’s the conversations that give me creative energy.
Klaus Busse studied Transportation Design at Coventry University. He started his career at Mercedes-Benz and then moved to Chrysler. After the merger, he was Head of Design for Fiat Chrysler Automobiles. Today he is Head of Design at Maserati and Head of Stellanti’s Design Studio.
Contact
GOHM Sportwagen Böblingen
Graf-Zeppelin-Platz 1
71034 Böblingen
Tel.: +49 703120550
Web: https://www.maserati.com/de/de/dealers/gohm/ueber-uns
