Ex-BMW Designer Frank Stephenson Criticizes New 2 Series Coupe

The American designer first made a name for himself by penning the double-decker spoiler of the Ford Escort RS Cosworth. Over at BMW, Stephenson gave us the first-ever X5 SUV and the modern MINI Hatch. Frank is also responsible for the Ferrari F430, Maserati MC12, Maserati GranTurismo, Fiat 500, and pretty much every McLaren from the MP4-12C to the 720S.

With that kind of resume, it’s obvious that Stephenson knows a thing or two about what’s beautiful and what’s not in terms of automotive design. The 2 Series Coupe falls in the latter category, and the worst offender is the rear.

Frank also criticizes how many angles and surfaces have zero functions to them, fussing up the design without any purpose whatsoever. On the upside, the 61-year-old Stephenson gives the Bavarian automaker the stamp of approval for giving the G42 a right-sized front grille instead of a pig snout.

The cartoonish side profile isn’t exactly pleasant either, but Frank does like the greenhouse a lot. Stephenson further highlights the super-talented gentlemen who sketched the 2 Series Coupe in the first place, Jose Alberto Casas, but the original sketch has somehow morphed into the overstyled atrocity that debuted last month at the '21 Goodwood Festival of Speed.

Frank ends his stylistic review with a little story. More to the point, the stand where the 2 Series Coupe was parked at the Goodwood Festival of Speed “was the loneliest place I’ve ever seen in such a context. No viewers looking at the car, nobody stopping and looking at the car from afar, it was on its own. It was the loneliest sight that I’ve ever seen,” signed off Frank.