Whos Where: Hakan Saracoglu appointed design director of Chery's Shanghai studio

Hakan Saracoglu has been appointed director of Chery Motor's Shanghai design facility. He will work alongside director of corporate design James Hope who continues in his role overseeing Chery design.

Turkish-born Saracoglu joins the Chinese state-owned manufacturer from Porsche where he worked from April 1998. He was responsible for the exteriors of the previous-generation 987-series Boxster and Cayman models, the GT2 and GT2 RS variants of the 997-series 911 and, most recently, the 918 Spyder exterior in both concept and production forms.

"After 15 years at Porsche, where I had the great fortune to work on many successful projects culminating with the 918, I felt ready for a new challenge," Saracoglu told Car Design News. "To be able to directly influence the development of a young Chinese marque through design was the key motivation for my decision."

Prior to his time at Porsche, Saracoglu's career began at Ford's Cologne design studio in 1993, where he worked on the Puma, second-generation Focus and 2000 Mondeo.

He graduated from Art Center Europe as a Bachelor of Science in Transportation Design in 1993.

James Hope added his congratulations to the appointment: "I am thrilled to have Hakan join Chery design in the key role of design director supporting the team here with his vast design experience and passion. Being able to attract such a high caliber international designer is testament to the confidence and commitment of Chery's design vision moving forward."

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By Owen Ready