Ex-Porsche engineer Harrer to lead Hyundai’s high-performance push

Hyundai Motor Group is upping the ante to lead in the luxury and high-performance car market and speed up electrification by tapping a high-profile automotive expert from foreign supercar auto brand Porsche AG.

The South Korean auto giant announced on Tuesday that it has appointed former Porsche engineer Manfred Harrer as executive vice president and head of the newly established Genesis & Performance Development Tech unit under the Research & Development (R&D) division of Hyundai Motor Co. and Kia Corp.

Harrer has worked on diverse projects in the automotive and tech industries, including chassis development, electronic systems, software development, full vehicle integration and ADAS over the past 25 years.

His former employers include Audi AG, BMW Group and Porsche AG. Notably at Porsche he led the development of Cayenne and the carmaker’s first all-electric car Taycan from 2007 to 2021. 

Just before joining the Korean carmaker, Harrer was hired by Apple Inc. as senior director of Product Design Engineering for Project Titan, the iPhone maker’s doomed car project.

Hyundai pins high hopes on Harrer for another big leap in its R&D competitiveness, especially with its luxury and high-performance cars focusing on the Genesis and Hyundai N brands. He is expected to lead the development of Genesis' high-performance trim Magma.

“As a world-renowned performance vehicle expert, Manfred will contribute significantly to the development of future Genesis luxury high-performance models, as well as our transition to electrification for the Hyundai Motor and Kia brands,” said Yang Heui-won, president of the Hyundai-Kia R&D Division.

FOREIGN DESIGNERS AND ENGINEERS ON BOARD TO BRING INNOVATION

Hyundai Motor Group, known worldwide for its bang-for-the-buck cars, started actively recruiting foreign talent in the mid-2000s to improve its brand image and awareness with better design and performance.

Hyundai Motor's first high-profile automotive hire was Peter Schreyer, then a seasoned designer at Volkswagen Group. Schreyer joined the Korean auto group in 2006 and is credited for making a big impact on Hyundai Motor Group’s cars with strong and characteristic designs.

Later, former BMW’s M Division engineer Albert Biermann joined the Korean car company to lead the development of the high-performance Hyundai N line.

Hyundai Motor Group also brought former Bentley and Lamborghini designer Luc Donckerwolke on board, who is now the Korean automaker’s chief design officer and chief creative officer, leading design creation for Hyundai Motor brands.

More foreign automotive experts have joined the Korean auto group, which has grown into the world’s third-largest car seller with Hyundai Motor, Kia and luxury marque Genesis brands.

ON HUNT FOR TALENT FROM APPLE CAR TO TAKE FUTURE CAR LEAD

Hyundai is now said to be seeking to recruit about 10 former Apple Car engineers who left Apple after the US tech company pulled the plug on its self-driving car project.

Of the 1,000 engineers and researchers who worked on Apple’s Project Titan, many software developers joined Apple’s artificial intelligence division and hardware engineers like Harrer joined other carmakers. 

With former Apple Car engineers, the Korean auto giant hopes to expedite the development of high-performance and autonomous driving technologies to lead the future car market.

To achieve the goal, Hyundai Motor will ratchet up its efforts to lure more R&D talent, not only from Apple but also from other multinational companies, said an official from Hyundai Motor.

Inspired by Hyundai Motor’s innovative future mobility development plan, Harrer is said to have decided to join the Korean car company after rejecting offers from other global finished carmakers, according to sources.

“My commitment to Hyundai Motor Group is driven by a profound belief in their visionary approach to advanced mobility solutions,” Harrer said in a news release on Tuesday.

“With my extensive experience in the automotive and tech industry, I am dedicated to playing a pivotal role in the future evolution of Genesis and high-performance vehicles within the Group.”

Write to Jae-Fu Kim at hu@hankyung.com

Sookyung Seo edited this article.