Designer Albrecht Graf Goertz dies

One of the world's legendary designers, Albrecht Graf Goertz, has died aged 92.

Goertz was best known for his work at BMW, though he also worked with Porsche, Nissan and Toyota during his career. His most acclaimed works are the BMW 503 and 507 models - but Goertz also had a hand in the design of the 1964 Silvia 1600 Sports Coupe.

Born into German aristocracy, Goertz later emigrated to the US. After a chance meeting with designer Raymond Loewy, Loewy encouraged Goertz to attend design college, before employing him in the Studebaker studio in Indiana.

In 1953, Goertz set up his own design studio and heard of BMW's plans to build a new sports car. Goertz sketched the BMW 507 and won the bid. Later, Goertz's design for an elegant coupe became the BMW 503. At the 1955 Frankfurt Motor Show, both cars caused a sensation.

Later Goertz worked with the Porsche team on the 911 and was an automotive design consultant to Nissan Motors of Japan, an arrangement that resulted in the design of the Silvia 1600 Sports Coupe (1964). Goertz was then assigned to consult with a Nissan team on early proposals for the Z sports car for the U.S. market.

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