BMW M Unveils Four New Flashy Designs For The M4 GT4

The BMW Group held a contest recently with 30 designers taking part in trying to come up with a bunch of new looks for the M4 GT4 race car.

Tasked with grading the designs and deciding on the winners were BMW design boss Adrian van Hooydonk, design exec Domagoj Dokec, BMW M boss Markus Flasch and BMW Motorsport director Jens Marquardt. In the end, they settled on four designs.

“The quality of all the designs we received was impressive and shows just how creative and passionate our designers are about motorsport.”

Read Also: Picture-Perfect BMW M4 GT4 Added To iRacing

Once four final designs were selected, they were applied to the M4 GT4 using high quality foil. As for the designers that won, they were Julia Quentin of BMW Motorrad from Munich, Simon Haynes of Rolls-Royce Design from Goodwood, Wesselka Mandowa-Maier of Designworks in LA and Li Tianyuan of BMW i Design from Munich.

Fractal Duality
Julia Quentin, BMW Motorrad Design

As the color and material designer of BMW Motorrad, Julia Quentin focused primarily on large geometric shapes in case of the M4 GT4, to go with a prominent inclusion of the number ’04’.

“My work combines two of my greatest passions, namely motorcycling and designing motorbikes. In my designs I always consider how graphics and patterns can emphasise the sculptural geometry of an object. Adding details and colours can completely change and emotionalise a design. I love to create disruptive designs that convey a strong visual message.”

“That’s why I designed a geometric pattern for the BMW M4 GT4 with cleanly cut squares and large typography. The eye must first understand the pattern before it sees the shape of the vehicle at second glance.”

Vivid Momentum
Simon Haynes, Rolls-Royce Motor Cars Design

As a designer for Rolls-Royce’s coachbuilding division, Haynes decided to revive and reinterpret a legendary BMW Racing paint scheme from the 1970s.

“This task was very different from what I do in my normal job, but I was able to bring my passion for motorsport to bear. My design is a tribute to one of BMW’s most striking racing designs, which stood out from the other designs of its time. The concentric rings play with the original disc motif and radiate from the front wheel to the rear. In addition, the vehicle has a semitone structure that changes from a solid black to an intense metallic red from front to back. This highlights the sense of speed and gives the vehicle a forward facing attitude.”

The Power of Four
Wesselka Mandowa-Maier, Designworks

The Bulgarian-born designer drew inspiration from classic BMW M colors (light blue, dark blue, red) and focused on the nameplate’s primary designation – the number 4.

“I have named my design ‘The Power of Four’. I was inspired by the numbers in the name of the BMW M4 GT4, which also stands for the unimaginable power the engine puts on the race track. And only connected to the track by the four wheels. To support this idea in the design, all four views of the vehicle are abstractly divided by four. The classic BMW M colours are vibrant and powerful and give the vehicle additional energy.”

Fluid Power
Li Tianyuan, BMW i Design

This BMW designer decided to apply influences from his home country of China to his work.

“My main inspiration was calligraphy and Chinese painting with the contrast of black and white and the perfect balance between elegance and power.”

“The design of the vehicle is asymmetrical. Two goldfish, which in China stand for perfection and happiness, but also symbolise powerful movement with their caudal fins, swim in a circle around the driver from above and place him in the centre. In addition to the Arabic numeral 4, this number is also applied to the bodywork as a traditional Chinese calligraphy mark. This stands for the tolerance and openness of a great brand like BMW towards the entire world’s culture and at the same time gives the M4 GT4 a very special, timeless and unforgettable appearance.”

Which of these four designs do you like best?