Patrick le Quément
Encyclopedia
Patrick G. M. Le Quément (born 4 February 1945 in Marseille
) is a retired French car designer, formerly chief designer of Renault
.
Born in France but brought up in the United Kingdom, Le Quément holds a BA Hons. degree in Product Design from Birmingham Institute of Art and Design
, and an MBA from Danbury Park Management Centre
.
Le Quément joined Simca
of France in 1966 after graduation, but left and set up his own design business which failed. He returned to England and Ford in 1968 as a designer, where his signature products included the Ford Cargo
truck, and 1982's seminal Ford Sierra
, ridiculed at the time for its jelly mould shape. The latter car was designed at Ford´s engineering and research centre in Merkenich, near Cologne, Germany. Promised promotion, he went to Detroit but returned to Europe in June 1985 when Carl Hahn
, Chairman of the Volkswagen
-Audi
Group
, invited him to set up a centre for Advance Design and Strategy.
In light of poor and declining sales, Renault then-chairman and CEO Raymond Levy recruited le Quement on a hunch that French design could jump-start the company. But before he took the job as Vice President, corporate design in 1987, le Quément demanded structural changes in the role of design at Renault, telling Levy: his department would no longer answer to engineering; outside consultants were removed; the design team was doubled to more than 350 people; the department took a seat on the executive board; and personally, le Quément answers to no one but the chairman.
His team's products since have included Twingo
, Mégane
and Mégane II – which he later admitted in an interview with Automotive News Europe magazine, was too much of a bold design; Scénic
; the Espace
models of 1994 and 1998; Kangoo
; Laguna
models of 1994; Avantime
and the Vel Satis
of 2002.
Le Quément's motto is Design = Quality, and says his structural changes of Renault design were to develop an independent and innovative formal language: "Up to just a few years ago, I would have given you the name of individual products – but today I would be more inclined to say Renault Design. So basically we have abandoned what I call 'styling esperanto
', namely the formal language used by most other manufacturers".
In 1987 Le Quément was appointed Senior Vice President of Quality and Corporate Design in 1995, when he also joined the Renault Management Committee. He is the head of Joint Design Policy Group formed by Renault
-Nissan design body, since it was founded in 1999.
In 2002 he was the winner of the Lucky Strike Designer Award
, and he sits on the board of the Europa Academy for Automotive Excellence.
On 10 April 2009, he announced his retirement in October 2009. He was replaced at Renault by Laurens van den Acker
, former Head of Design at Mazda.
Marseille
Marseille , known in antiquity as Massalia , is the second largest city in France, after Paris, with a population of 852,395 within its administrative limits on a land area of . The urban area of Marseille extends beyond the city limits with a population of over 1,420,000 on an area of...
) is a retired French car designer, formerly chief designer of Renault
Renault
Renault S.A. is a French automaker producing cars, vans, and in the past, autorail vehicles, trucks, tractors, vans and also buses/coaches. Its alliance with Nissan makes it the world's third largest automaker...
.
Born in France but brought up in the United Kingdom, Le Quément holds a BA Hons. degree in Product Design from Birmingham Institute of Art and Design
Birmingham Institute of Art and Design
The Birmingham Institute of Art and Design is the largest British university art and design teaching and research centre outside London. It is a faculty of Birmingham City University and the largest, most successful department of the university.-History:BIAD dates back, in various incarnations, to...
, and an MBA from Danbury Park Management Centre
Anglia Ruskin University
Anglia Ruskin University is one of the largest universities in Eastern England, United Kingdom, with a total student population of around 30,000.-History:...
.
Le Quément joined Simca
Simca
Simca was a French automaker, founded in November 1934 by Fiat. It was directed from July 1935 to May 1963 by the Italian Henri Théodore Pigozzi...
of France in 1966 after graduation, but left and set up his own design business which failed. He returned to England and Ford in 1968 as a designer, where his signature products included the Ford Cargo
Ford Cargo
The Ford Cargo is a cab-over-engine lightweight truck model formerly manufactured by Ford. It was originally launched in 1981 by Ford of the United Kingdom....
truck, and 1982's seminal Ford Sierra
Ford Sierra
The Ford Sierra is a large family car that was built by Ford Europe from 1982 until 1993. It was designed by Uwe Bahnsen, Robert Lutz and Patrick le Quément. The code used during development was "Project Toni"....
, ridiculed at the time for its jelly mould shape. The latter car was designed at Ford´s engineering and research centre in Merkenich, near Cologne, Germany. Promised promotion, he went to Detroit but returned to Europe in June 1985 when Carl Hahn
Carl Hahn
Dr. Carl Horst Hahn is chairman emeritus of the automotive concern Volkswagen Group. He served as the Chairman of the Board of Management of the group's parent company, Volkswagen AG from 1982 to 1993...
, Chairman of the Volkswagen
Volkswagen
Volkswagen is a German automobile manufacturer and is the original and biggest-selling marque of the Volkswagen Group, which now also owns the Audi, Bentley, Bugatti, Lamborghini, SEAT, and Škoda marques and the truck manufacturer Scania.Volkswagen means "people's car" in German, where it is...
-Audi
Audi
Audi AG is a German automobile manufacturer, from supermini to crossover SUVs in various body styles and price ranges that are marketed under the Audi brand , positioned as the premium brand within the Volkswagen Group....
Group
Volkswagen Group
Volkswagen Group is a German multinational automobile manufacturing group. , Volkswagen was ranked as the world’s third largest motor vehicle manufacturer and Europe's largest....
, invited him to set up a centre for Advance Design and Strategy.
In light of poor and declining sales, Renault then-chairman and CEO Raymond Levy recruited le Quement on a hunch that French design could jump-start the company. But before he took the job as Vice President, corporate design in 1987, le Quément demanded structural changes in the role of design at Renault, telling Levy: his department would no longer answer to engineering; outside consultants were removed; the design team was doubled to more than 350 people; the department took a seat on the executive board; and personally, le Quément answers to no one but the chairman.
His team's products since have included Twingo
Renault Twingo
The Renault Twingo is a city car built by French automaker Renault, first presented at the Paris Motor Show in September 1992 and sold in continental European markets beginning in 1993...
, Mégane
Renault Mégane
The Renault Mégane is a small family car produced by the French automaker Renault since 1995. It is offered in 3- and 5-door hatchback, saloon, coupé, convertible and estate bodystyles...
and Mégane II – which he later admitted in an interview with Automotive News Europe magazine, was too much of a bold design; Scénic
Renault Scénic
The Renault Scénic is a compact MPV produced by French automaker Renault, the first to be labelled as such in Europe. It is based on the chassis of the Mégane small family car. It became 1997 European Car of the Year on its launch in late 1996...
; the Espace
Renault Espace
The Renault Espace is a large MPV from French car-maker Renault. Generations 1-3 were sold under the Renault brand but manufactured by Matra. The current fourth generation model, which seats seven passengers, is an all-Renault product; the Renault Grand Espace is a long-wheelbase version with...
models of 1994 and 1998; Kangoo
Renault Kangoo
The Renault Kangoo and Kangoo Express are panel van and leisure activity vehicle produced by French automaker Renault since 1997. The Kangoo is manufactured in the MCA plant in Maubeuge, France, and in Santa Isabel, Argentina. The version for the ASEAN markets was assembled by the Tan Chong Euro...
; Laguna
Renault Laguna
The Renault Laguna is a large family car produced by the French manufacturer Renault. The first Laguna was launched in 1993, the second generation was launched in 2000, and the third generation was made available for sale in October 2007....
models of 1994; Avantime
Renault Avantime
The Renault Avantime is a grand-touring coupé combining features of a 2+2 coupé and an MPV — marketed by the French manufacturer Renault, designed and manufactured by Matra, between 2001 and 2003...
and the Vel Satis
Renault Vel Satis
The Renault Vel Satis was an executive car produced by the French manufacturer Renault, launched at the 2001 Geneva Motorshow to replace the already-discontinued Safrane...
of 2002.
Le Quément's motto is Design = Quality, and says his structural changes of Renault design were to develop an independent and innovative formal language: "Up to just a few years ago, I would have given you the name of individual products – but today I would be more inclined to say Renault Design. So basically we have abandoned what I call 'styling esperanto
Esperanto
is the most widely spoken constructed international auxiliary language. Its name derives from Doktoro Esperanto , the pseudonym under which L. L. Zamenhof published the first book detailing Esperanto, the Unua Libro, in 1887...
', namely the formal language used by most other manufacturers".
In 1987 Le Quément was appointed Senior Vice President of Quality and Corporate Design in 1995, when he also joined the Renault Management Committee. He is the head of Joint Design Policy Group formed by Renault
Renault
Renault S.A. is a French automaker producing cars, vans, and in the past, autorail vehicles, trucks, tractors, vans and also buses/coaches. Its alliance with Nissan makes it the world's third largest automaker...
-Nissan design body, since it was founded in 1999.
In 2002 he was the winner of the Lucky Strike Designer Award
Lucky Strike
Lucky Strike is a brand of cigarette owned by the R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Company and British American Tobacco groups. Often referred to as "Luckies", Lucky Strike was the top selling cigarette in the United States during the 1930s.- History :...
, and he sits on the board of the Europa Academy for Automotive Excellence.
On 10 April 2009, he announced his retirement in October 2009. He was replaced at Renault by Laurens van den Acker
Laurens van den Acker
Laurens van den Acker is an automobile designer from the Netherlands.-Biography:Van den Acker studied at the Delft University of Technology, where he obtained a Master of Engineering at the Faculty of Industrial Design Engineering.-Career:He began his career in 1990 as a designer at Design System...
, former Head of Design at Mazda.