The understated genius of Mercedes-Benz's design chief, Bruno Sacco
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Late Italian designer Bruno Sacco redefined Mercedes-Benz, his legacy still found on every car made by the German brand today. Here, we celebrate five of the best.
The news that legendary designer BrunoSacco passed away last month, aged 90, prompted much discussion at Drive HQ. After all, the Italian who spent almost his entire working career at Mercedes-Benz, is responsible for some of the most enduring and iconic car designs of all time.
It's no accident that Sacco's designs have lasted, their timeless elegance a hallmark of the legendary Italian's pen.
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As head of design at Mercedes-Benz, a position he held from 1974 until his retirement in 1999, Sacco tasked his team of designers to not just think in terms of the next five to 10 years. Instead, he stressed they should be looking 30 years ahead and asking if it will still hold up.
"The development cycle of a new vehicle is typically three to five years, which is then followed by a production life of about eight years", Sacco once said. "The last car off the assembly line of that model will have an average life expectancy of 20 years. That adds up to a product lifecycle of approximately 30 years."
Certainly, Sacco's enduring philosophy was written into every car that came off his drawing board, his list of iconic Mercedes-Benz having stood the test of time.
Picking just a few from his long and storied roll call of cars is no easy task, but we've given it our best shot. Here then, in no chronological order are what we here at Drive consider to be Bruno Sacco's magnum opus.
Mercedes-Benz W123 (1975)
The progenitor for today's E-Class, Sacco's W123 series of sedans, coupes and wagons remains instantly recognisable today, even nearly 50 years after its debut in 1975.
With perfect proportions, and that iconic Sacco designed grille that is Mercedes-Benz, the W123 remains the German brand's best-selling car of all time, some 2.7 million sold between 1977 and 1986.
Even more telling, travel anywhere in the world today and it's odds-on you will spot W123s plying their trade and ferrying their owners around in comfort and luxury, a testament to the model's inherent quality and durability.
When production ended in 1986, the W123 made way for what would go on to become another Mercedes icon…
Mercedes-Benz W124 (1986)
There is, of course, no perfect car. But the W124 series of sedans, coupes, convertibles and wagons comes oh-so-very close.
Sacco's design looked like it had been carved out of granite, its blunt edges bellying its aerodynamic efficiency which was rated at an astonishing for the time 0.28cd. Perfectly proportioned, Mercedes' executive saloon soon earned its reputation as 'the best car in the world', blending elegant design with a commanding presence on the road and bulletproof reliability.
The W124 was also the first Mercedes to sport the now-iconic Gullideckel wheel design, the flat-faced, 15-hole alloy that defined the brand's cars of the 1980 and into the '90s.
And it still looks remarkably fresh and modern today, even with the passage of almost four decades, yet another testament to Sacco's vision.
Mercedes-Benz W126 (1979)
There were S-Class sedans before the W126 and there have been more generations since. But none can hold a candle to what is, to my mind, the very definition of the breed. With its imposingly long bonnet capped by Sacco's signature grille, the W126 S-Class dominated roads with its sheer size and presence.
Better yet, when Sacco added the coupe to the W126's range, he created an icon that looks as fresh today as it did in 1981 when it launched. The 560SEC remained one of Sacco's personal cars throughout his life, the Italian designer dubbing it his all-time favourite, with "the most beautiful front end" of all the cars he designed. Couldn't agree more.
Mercedes-Benz W201 (1982)
The German brand didn’t have a compact car in its line-up in the 1970s and into the early '80s, one that could steal buyers from BMW's then still-new but burgeoning 3 Series range.
BMW had shown there was buyer appetite for a compact luxury car, leaving Mercedes-Benz scrambling to catch up. Of course, it turned to Sacco to create a car that embodied the style of the brand in a compact sedan that would open the doors to a new cohort of Mercedes buyers.
The resulting W201, the forebear to today's C-Class was born. And stylistically, it was a gem. Unmistakably a Mercedes, Sacco's – in his own words – "unfussy well-balanced design", incorporated all the elements of the brand in a small package that despite its size, looked and felt like a million bucks. Perfect!
Mercedes-Benz R129 (1989)
The R129 SL-Class had some pretty big boots to fill when it launched in 1989. The third-generation R107 SL-Class, had since 1971, established itself as the longest running single model in the German brand's history. Now, with Sacco on the tools, the new fourth-generation needed to not only carry on the long tradition of one of Mercedes' most iconic nameplates, but move it into the future.
The resulting R129 did exactly that. It looked fresh, it looked contemporary, and yet it was still unmistakably an SL-Class. Said Sacco of his creation: "For me the R129 just has the perfect profile. I like it best of all when the roof is closed."
Couldn't agree more.
RIPBruno Sacco, 1933-2024
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