Bryan Nesbitt named new head of Cadillac

Bryan Nesbitt has been quite the superstar in the auto biz the past 9-10 years. He made his name by being the designer of the original PT Cruiser (don't laugh, more on that in a bit). When Daimler bought Chrysler, he jumped ship and headed over the GM where he rose quickly through the design ranks. From Wikipedia: In February 2004, Nesbitt was made the Executive Director at GM Europe's design center. In this capacity, he headed the GM Europe design organization, responsible for all Opel, Saab and Vauxhall design activities. On June 1, 2007, Bryan returned to the U.S. as the General Motors Vice-President of Design for North America, responsible for all brands marketed and sold in the United States, Canada, and Mexico. Now he has been head of the Cadillac brand. Now, back to the PT Cruiser...say what you will about that car and its owners - the PT Cruiser was one of the most masterfully implemented small-car designs of its time. Any other company and designer would likely have allowed compromises to the overall design that would have made for a more awkward look. If you want to see what could have been - look at the weirdness that is the Chevrolet HHR - which Nesbitt had a hand in, but not ultimate say in the design. This bodes well for Cadillac as it moves to being a more emotionally styled line to go toe-to-toe with well executed products from BMW and Audi. Congrats Bryan - and good luck.