2 Filipino car designers who helped shape Mercedes-Benz and Porsche

Apr 20 , 2020

Mercedes-Benz has benefited from the design skills of the two top Filipino auto designers – Wini Camacho (left) and Benjamin Dimson. Photos: Instagram

For a country that doesn’t make cars, it may come as a surprise that these two designers have been so influential and successful with these famous marques

Filipinos are known for their creativity. But for a country that doesn’t have a car manufacturing base, it may come as a surprise that two designers have made their mark at Porsche and Mercedes-Benz.

The first is the renowned Filipino car designer Benjamin Dimson, who is currently the chief designer at Mercedes-Benz Advanced Design Studio in California. He is also a senior design consultant for Story Dimson Design in Orange County.

Dimson studied industrial engineering at Adamson University in Manila. He then went on to do a design course at ArtCenter College of Design in Pasadena, California. After graduating he went to Europe.

Dimson’s career as a car designer began at Porsche AG where he worked for seven years. The model 911 that he was given to work on was already a big hit in the market.

Benjamin Dimson worked on one of Porsche’s most popular models, the 911. Photo: handout

However, he was assigned to give it a whole new look. Today, this model is known as the Porsche 964. Dimson finished his work on it in 1986. It featured significant styling revisions over previous 911 models including the integrated bumpers, side sills, rear lamp panel and rear spoiler. It was also the first model to be offered with the Porsche’s Tiptronic automatic transmission and all-wheel drive as options.

During his seven-year tenure at Porsche, Dimson also applied his touch to models such as the 928 S-4, 944 Turbo, 944 Cabriolet, 959 and 964 Speedster. Known for his design flair, he has also had the chance to work for Airbus Industrie, Mooney International and Linde Forklift.

He joined Mercedes-Benz in 1989, where he introduced the MCC (Micro Compact Car) Swatch Car programme and the AAV car which won the best in show award in 1996 at the Detroit Auto SUV. Dimson’s designs are also visible in the popular S- and C-Class Mercedes sedans and coupes. In fact, Dimson is the mastermind behind the 2012 Mercedes-Benz SLK Class-coupe and 2011 M-Class. He has also worked for Audi.

Dimson was responsible for the design flair of the Porsche 964. Photo: handout

Wini Camacho is another Filipino to reckon with in the world of car design. His work on the Mercedes-Benz E-Class earned him kudos at the company, with his designs chosen to go into production.