Ulrich Bez

Last updated

Ulrich Helmut Bez (born 7 November 1943 in Bad Cannstatt, Germany) is a German businessman [1] and was, until the end of 2013, chief executive officer of Aston Martin motorcars when he stepped down to serve as non-executive chairman.

Contents

Life

Bez holds a doctorate in engineering from the Technical University of Berlin. At various times throughout his career he has been responsible for product design and development at Porsche, BMW and Daewoo Motors.

While at Porsche, he led vehicle research and development and motor sport programmes in Formula One and World Endurance Championship in Indianapolis and Le Mans. He directed design and development of the 911 Turbo, the Carrera RS 2.7, the 968 and the 993.

Bez was the first director of BMW Technik GmbH (BMW Technology), developing a BMW V8 concept engine which helped to replace the big inline six-cylinder with an eight-cylinder engine, a DCT, voice activated car systems as well as the world's first acoustic wind tunnel and the responsibility for the design of the BMW Z1, a leading concept in its time for modularity, material, aerodynamics and safety.

At Daewoo Motors, Bez was vice president of engineering from 1993–1998, helping Daewoo Motors to become a globally recognized brand, involved with the development and launch of a series of models such as the Daewoo Matiz - the first four-door mini car, Daewoo Lanos, Daewoo Leganza and the Daewoo Nubira.

Before he became the chief executive officer and chairman of Aston Martin Lagonda Ltd. in July 2000, he was a business advisor to the Ford Motor Company. Under his leadership Aston Martin has developed into a global recognized luxury brand, selling more than 50,000 cars in 13 years, more than three times the number sold from 1913 to 2000. Under his leadership the company developed and launched - based on the VH architecture which he initiated - 20 major car models, including the DB9, the V8 and V12 Vantage, the Vanquish and the four-door Rapide, as well as the supercar One-77, the V12 Zagato and the Cygnet, a concept addressing the needs of a crowded metropolis. Under his leadership the company also returned to motorsport with the GT1, GT2, GT3, GT4, and GTE cars.

Bez is also a keen racing driver and in the 24 Hours Nürburgring endurance race achieved 24th place in 2006, 126th place in 2007, 27th place in 2008 (all in an Aston Martin Vantage N24), [2] and 21st place in the 2009 race (the race debut of the Aston Martin V12 Vantage). [3] [4] He has also run the 1959 24 Hours of Le Mans winning Aston Martin DBR1 in the Le Mans Legend race together with racing legend Sir Stirling Moss.

In 2013 Bez published a book, Making Aston Martin, which describes his background as well as his work at Aston Martin.

Bez lectured in 2013 and 2014 in Harvard, Columbia, Chicago Booth, UVA Darden, LBS, Kings College, INSEAD, Erasmus, and EBS.

In 2014 Bez joined ALSET, a technology company targeting zero emission in combustion engines with a hydrogen hybrid concept, as a non-executive vice chairman. He also served as an advisory board member for the Althoff Hotel Collection from 2012 to 2015.

In 2017 Bez joined the board of Magnis Energy Technologies as a non-executive director. A battery and technology company with a graphite mine that has strong prospects to become a major producer and supply many industries with very high quality graphite material for batteries and aerospace initiatives. Bez stated: "In my career, I have overseen many projects shaping the future in various areas of the automotive industry, sometimes 10 to 20 years ahead of implementation."

"The Nachu Graphite Project has attributes that can and will make a huge contribution to the automotive industry due to the quality of its graphite resource. The team at Magnis and their expertise in the lithium-ion battery industry, which includes the inventor of the Lithium-ion battery, is testament to the quality of the Project and the Company as a whole. I'm excited to join the Board and help take Magnis to the next stage of its development." [5]

Awards

Literature

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lexus LFA</span> Sports car

The Lexus LFA is a two-seat sports car manufactured by Lexus, the luxury car division of Toyota. It is the second model in the F marque line of performance vehicles from Lexus, following the IS F, and also the first standalone Lexus F model. Three concept versions were unveiled, each debuting at the North American International Auto Show with the LF-A designation as part of the LF Series concept line. After beginning development in the early 2000s, the first LF-A concept premiered in 2005, followed in 2007 by a second concept with a more completely furnished interior and exterior. The third version of the LF-A, featuring a roadster body style premiered in 2008. The production model, trademarked LFA, was unveiled at the Tokyo Motor Show in October 2009. According to Lexus, the "A" in production LFA name stands for the "Apex" of the LF line of cars.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Aston Martin Vantage (2005)</span> Motor vehicle

The Aston Martin Vantage is a series of hand-built sports cars from the British automotive manufacturer Aston Martin. Aston Martin has previously used the "Vantage" name on high-performance variants of their existing GT models, notably on the Virage-based car of the 1990s. The modern car, in contrast, is the leanest and most agile car in Aston's lineup. As such, it is intended as a more focused model to reach out to potential buyers of cars such as the Porsche 911 as well as the exotic sports and GT cars with which Aston Martins traditionally compete.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jörg Müller</span> German racing driver

Jörg Müller is a Dutch-born German BMW factory driver.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Nürburgring 24 Hours</span> 24-hour annual touring car and GT endurance racing event

The Nürburgring 24 Hours is a 24-hour annual touring car and GT endurance racing event that takes place on a combination of the Nordschleife and the GP-Strecke circuits of the Nürburgring in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. Held since 1970, the over 25.3 km (15.7 mi) lap length allows more than 200 cars and over 700 drivers to participate.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Aston Martin Rapide</span> Motor vehicle

The Aston Martin Rapide is a sports saloon car, built by the British marque Aston Martin from 2010 to 2020. It has four doors and four seats. It was first presented as a concept car at the North American International Auto Show in 2006 and the production version was shown at the 2009 Frankfurt Motor Show.

The ADAC GT Masters is a grand tourer-based auto racing series founded by the international Stéphane Ratel Organisation (SRO) and supported by the German ADAC automotive club. Similar to an earlier ADAC GT Cup series in the 1990s, the new GT Masters ran their first season in 2007. Although the series is based in Germany, select events are run elsewhere in Europe.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jamie Campbell-Walter</span> British racing driver

Jamie Oliver Campbell-Walter is a British professional racing driver. He was born in Oban, Scotland on 16 December 1972. He won the FIA GT Championship in 2000 and took a World Endurance Championship title in 2013 as an Aston Martin Racing factory driver. He now owns and runs Bullet Sports Management with business partner and former team-mate Nicolas Minassian.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Aston Martin Racing</span> Motorsports team

Aston Martin Racing is a British auto racing team established in 2004 as a partnership between automobile manufacturer Aston Martin and engineering group Prodrive. The partnership was initially created for the purpose of returning Aston Martin to sports car racing with the DBR9, a heavily modified variant of the Aston Martin DB9. Since the DBR9's racing debut in 2005, Aston Martin Racing has expanded to build a variety of cars available to customers, as well as development of Aston Martin's V12 engine for Le Mans Prototype use. Aston Martin Racing's program has earned several successes over the years.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Aston Martin Vantage N24</span>

The Aston Martin Vantage N24 is a race car introduced by Aston Martin in 2006, based on the V8 Vantage road car. In late 2008, Aston Martin debuted an updated version of the N24, with the newer Aston Martin Vantage GT4, which featured a larger 4.7-litre engine.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Nick Yelloly</span> British racing driver

Nicholas Jon Yelloly is a British professional racing driver, and BMW Motorsport works driver. He is also currently a test and simulator driver for the Aston Martin F1 team.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Maxime Martin</span> Belgian racing driver

Maxime Martin is a Belgian professional racing driver and son of four-time Spa 24 Hours winner Jean-Michel Martin. He currently is a BMW factory driver mainly competing in the GT World Challenge Europe driving for Team WRT. Martin had previously been a BMW factory driver between 2013 and 2017, racing full-time in the American Le Mans Series for BMW Team RLL in 2013, as well as acting as BMW's DTM test and reserve driver. In late 2013 at BMW Motorsport's yearly review, Martin was confirmed as a full-time BMW DTM driver for the 2014 season. In 2018 Martin joined Aston Martin Racing for which he competed in the FIA World Endurance Championship between 2018 and 2020.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Aston Martin V12 Zagato</span> Concept car / grand tourer

The Aston Martin V12 Zagato is a British sports car/endurance racer made by Aston Martin in collaboration with Zagato to celebrate a fifty-year partnership since the Aston Martin DB4 GT Zagato. Introduced in Lake Como, Italy at the Concorso d'Eleganza Villa d'Este on 21 May 2011, the Zagato was awarded with the competition's "Design Award for Concept Cars and Prototypes" which has also been won by the One-77 in 2009. Zagato introduced the "Corsa" (race) version of the car in 2011 and the "Stradale" (road) version in 2012. The Stradale version doesn't have the black quick releases on the bonnet and boot that the Corsa has and the exhaust pipes of the Stradale version are further apart than on the Corsa version.

The 2012 Avon Tyres British GT season was the 20th season of the British GT Championship. The season began on 9 April at Oulton Park and finished on 30 September at Donington Park, after ten rounds held over seven meetings. Motorbase Performance drivers Michael Caine and Daniele Perfetti won the GT3 category in a Porsche 997 GT3-R, Team WFR's Jody Fanin and Warren Hughes won the GT4 championship driving a Ginetta G50, while Ryan Hooker and Gary Eastwood took the GTC title in a Ferrari 458 Challenge driving for FF Corse.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Group GT3</span> Regulation for grand tourer racing cars

Group GT3, known technically as Cup Grand Touring Cars and commonly referred to as simply GT3, is a set of regulations maintained by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA) for grand tourer racing cars designed for use in various auto racing series throughout the world. The GT3 category was initially created in 2005 by the SRO Group as a third rung in the ladder of grand touring motorsport, below the Group GT1 and Group GT2 categories which were utilized in the SRO's FIA GT Championship, and launched its own series in 2006 called the FIA GT3 European Championship. Since then, Group GT3 has expanded to become the de facto category for many national and international grand touring series, although some series modify the ruleset from the FIA standard. By 2013, nearly 20 automobile manufacturers have built or been represented with GT3 machines.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rowe Racing</span>

ROWE Racing is the motor racing team of the German lubricant manufacturer Rowe Mineralölwerk. Since 2011, ROWE Racing has competed in series such as the Nürburgring Endurance Series, the GT World Challenge Europe, the Deutsche Tourenwagen Masters and the 24 Hours Nürburgring. In 2020 it won both the Nürburgring 24 Hours and the Spa 24 Hours. In 2023 it won the Spa 24 Hours for the third time.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Akhil Rabindra</span> Indian racing driver

Akhil Rabindra is an Indian racing driver and a graduate from the University of Edinburgh, Scotland. For the 2019 Season, Akhil Rabindra is selected as the Aston Martin Racing Academy Driver and will be racing in the GT4 European Series and will drive an Aston Martin Vantage GT4 for PROsport Performance and Rabindra teamed up with 23-year-old Swiss racer Florian Thoma. The 2019 GT4 European Series began at Autodromo Nazionale Monza Italy on 12–14 April where Akhil finished 8th and 7th in 2 races securing 10 points. Akhil with his team PROsport Performance achieved the first podium for the New Aston Martin Vantage GT4 by finishing 2nd in the 2019 24H GT Series European held at Mugello Circuit Italy on 29 to 30 March 2019, Won in the 2019 24H GT Series European at Circuit de Spa-Francorchamps Belgium on 19 to 20 April 2nd in the Race-1 at the GT4 European Series held at Brands Hatch UK on 4 to 5 May 2019 and 3rd in the GT4 class at 2019 24H GT Series European held at Brno Circuit Czech Republic on 24 to 25 May.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Schubert Motorsport</span> German auto racing team

Schubert Motorsport is a private motorsport team founded and owned by team principal and European Autocross champion Torsten Schubert, and headquartered in Oschersleben, Germany. The team has operated as a BMW privateer since its inception in 1999, with plenty of success, and has specialised in endurance racing since 2004. Although it is closely related to contract BMW associate Schubert Motors GmbH, also owned by Torsten Schubert, they are separate entities.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Emil Frey Racing</span> Swiss racing team

Emil Frey Racing is a Swiss racing team and racecar constructor. The team is named after the Emil Frey Gruppe, a Swiss car dealership for Jaguar, Lexus and other marques. Emil Frey Racing was founded in 2011, competing in the Blancpain GT Series and other series.

The 2021 Nürburgring Langstrecken Serie was the 44th season of the German endurance series run at the Nürburgring Nordschleife, and second run as the Nürburgring Langstrecken Serie (NLS). The season began on 27 March and will end on 9 October.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2022 24 Hours of Nürburgring</span> Endurance race

The 2022 Nürburgring 24 Hours was the 50th running of the Nürburgring 24 Hours and took place over 28–29 May 2022.

References

Business positions
Preceded by
N/A
 Chairman of Aston Martin
January 2014 -		Succeeded by
Incumbent
Preceded by Executive Chairman of Aston Martin
July 2000 - December 2013		Succeeded by
Andy Palmer (Chief Executive)
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.