‘I couldn't work without passion’
Frank Weber, mechanical engineering alumnus of TU Darmstadt, is developing a new generation of electric cars as a board member at BMW
2024/11/26 by Astrid Ludwig
His passion for cars began in his garage at home. He completed his mechanical engineering degree at TU Darmstadt in ten semesters and later rose through the ranks at Opel and now at BMW, where he is responsible for the development of new technologies and models. His studies were the foundation, he says today. ‘You become good when you know what fascinates you.’
When all four parking spaces in front of the house were occupied by the cars he was working on, his parents went on strike. ‘Then I knew I had to give one back,’ remembers Frank Weber and laughs. He has been tinkering and working on things since he was a teenager – on cassette recorders, electric guitars and synthesisers. At the age of 18, the car came into his life and sparked a passion that filled two garages in his hometown of Wiesbaden with workbenches, welding equipment, tools and loads of spare parts.
When it came to choosing a study programme, Frank Weber briefly wavered between music, electrical engineering and mechanical engineering, but quickly decided in favour of the latter. ‘Mechanical engineering was something to touch. I enjoy creating something and seeing real results.’ He decided in favour of TU Darmstadt because it had a good reputation in mechanical engineering, but also because of the proximity of the university. ‘So I could continue to spend time in my garages,’ he grins. However, he was not born with a love for mechanical engineering. ‘Everyone in my family is a teacher. I was the only one interested in crafts.’
Car construction a ‘creative act’
Now 58 years old, he still remembers his first lecture in the Audimax at TU Darmstadt. ‘The professor told us that the world was open to us after graduation. But only if you successfully complete your undergraduate studies.’ At the time, however, only half of the students managed that. This prospect didn't worry Frank Weber. ‘You have to do things you like doing. Then you'll be good at it,’ he is convinced. At the beginning of his studies, he concentrated on general mechanical engineering, but it was only after his undergraduate studies that he realised: ‘I want to design and develop cars according to my own ideas. Creating things from nothing is easy for him and gives him satisfaction, says the TU alumnus. The engineer sees car construction as a ‘creative act’.
He completed his degree in less than ten semesters. He wrote his diplom thesis on automotive engineering and then remained an assistant at the Institute of Automotive Engineering at TU Darmstadt for a short time before joining Opel as a project engineer for complete vehicles in 1991. At Opel AG and GM Europe, he soon took on leading positions in development and product line, becoming Director of Programme Management, Advance Development and Concept Planning. The father of four also worked for three years in Michigan in the USA, where he was responsible for the Chevrolet Volt and the Voltec drive system, among other things, before becoming Vice President of Corporate and Product Planning at Opel.
Move to BMW
In 2011, Frank Weber moved to BMW as Head of Complete Vehicle Development and was subsequently Head of the product line for large model series and most recently for Rolls-Royce and the BMW luxury class. From Opel to Rolls-Royce – does he see this as a step up? ‘It's all about customer appeal,’ he says. ‘Developing a compact car is basically just as demanding as developing a luxury vehicle. It's a question of the task. From an engineering perspective, one is as difficult as the other.’ Does he feel his studies have prepared him for this? ‘That's the basis, the tools of the trade. But you have to find out what fascinates you,’ he emphasises.
His ability to inspire both himself and others becomes evident in conversation. Cars are Frank Weber's passion. That seems to carry people along and spur them on. He has been a member of the BMW Board of Management since 2020 and is responsible for development. He emphasises that he did not have a career plan. ‘I wasn't actually overly ambitious. But I could never work without passion. I'm successful at what I enjoy doing.’ He was allowed to develop – both at Opel and BMW. At General Motors, he globalised the mid-size class. He sees models such as the Vectra, Chevi Malibu and Opel Ampera as his children.
At BMW, he is the father of the current large X models, the 7 Series and the 8 Series. He is currently creating a completely new range of electric models that will be launched on the market in 2025 as the “Neue Klasse” – and whose technologies will characterise all future BMW models. ‘The car business is changing faster today than it has in the past 30 years. Electric drives, digitalisation and sustainability require a new design language,’ he says. BMW will bring technologies to the market that have never existed before.
During his own studies, electric motors did not play a major role. ‘There were experiments with electric cars, but battery technology wasn't that advanced yet,’ he says. However, his childhood love of electrical engineering meant that he had no reservations. He was later responsible for early electric car models such as the Volt and Ampera at Opel and GM. Weber would like to see a kind of electrical engineering for today's mechanical engineering degree programmes at universities. ‘Linking software and hardware is the key to the future.’
How does he himself see the future of German car manufacturers? Future US President Donald Trump is threatening to impose tariffs, Tesla and Chinese electric cars are dominating the market, while German manufacturers are in crisis. Weber is certain that the US election will have an impact. However, the largest BMW plant is in the USA and is also the largest US car exporter. And the e-car competition? ‘You always have to face competition. The car business has now become even more challenging and therefore more exciting,’ says the TU Darmstadt alumnus.
