German-U.S. automaker DaimlerChrysler AG scored a coup on Tuesday by hiring a top Volkswagen AG designer credited with developing the New Beetle and the Audi TT coupe. <p>DaimlerChrysler, the world's No. 5 automaker, said it had hired Freeman Thomas, 41, as vice president of advance design strategy. He had been VW's U.S. design studio chief in Simi Valley, Calif., where he led a team of 40 people. <p>Thomas, along with J. Mays, designed some of VW's hottest cars. Mays became Ford Motor Co.'s design chief in 1997. <p>"I've always admired what Chrysler had been doing in the last 10 years, and Chrysler has brought itself up from the bottom," Thomas told Reuters. <p>The California native, who speaks German fluently, said the merger of Chrysler and Germany's Daimler-Benz AG last year made the job opportunity even more attractive. <p>"What excites me about DaimlerChrysler is it takes risks," said Thomas, who began his career at German luxury sports car maker Porsche AG in 1983 and joined VW in 1991. <p>"(Germans) really enjoy what the Americans have to bring to the table," he added. Analysts lauded the move. <p>"That was rather a coup," Nextrend analyst Wesley Brown said. "What we're clearly seeing is much greater focus by some of the automakers on design and knowing that design is obviously still very important, maybe even playing a bigger role now with the younger generations." <p>Thomas's hiring is part of a shuffling of top design positions at<br> DaimlerChrysler's U.S. design studios. He will take one of the posts held by Neil Walling, 55, who is retiring on Wednesday. <p>Walling also handled passenger car and minivan design, which Vice President Trevor Creed will now handle. <p>Replacing Creed as head of truck and Jeep design will be Rick Aneiros, who was promoted from within the company. <p>All three design vice presidents will report to John Herlitz, senior vice president of product design, and DaimlerChrysler's North American design chief Tom Gale. <p>"Freeman brought with him a strong track record," Herlitz said. VW officials said they would survive the loss. <p>"Freeman was an important member of the team and he will be missed," VW spokesman Doug Clark said. "The good news is that it's a strong team with great depth. <p>"Talented people are always in demand, and with the success of projects Freeman has worked on, it's understandable."<p>VW has received a lot of attention recently because of the popularity and strong sales of such new models as the New Beetle, the TT coupe and the Passat mid-size sedan. <p>"The downside of being successful and getting lots of publicity for being on an upswing and having products that are very appealing to the younger generations is the executives responsible for all that will get a lot of offers," Nextrend's Brown said. <p>Brown suggested the hiring of Thomas brings fresh perspective to<br> DaimlerChrysler's U.S. design studios and also puts in place a potential successor to Gale, who has denied repeated rumours he will leave the automaker soon. Gale is 55, and the company's other top design executives are all 52 or older. <p>Thomas expects to move with his family from California in August. His first day at DaimlerChrysler has not been set. <p>He was born in California but raised around the world, as his father's career in the U.S. Air Force moved the family through Spain, Greece, Norway and Germany.

 

Looks like the value of the TT Coupe and the Roadster (Freeman's first TT design) could in a way increase their value. Freeman Thomas is sure to go on to be a mega-star in automotive design management circles via Daimler-Chrysler, and the TT will go down as his exclusive designs for the 4 rings of Audi. When Audi eventually changes the TT design, it will no longer be a Thomas "original".<p>Just finding the bright side; it's what we do on this board right?

 

JIM