Some of you may remember a Porsche variant that came not from the factory but from a tuning company and which stood out with its rainbow-colored decorations. It was the Porsche 911 Turbo Targa from bb. It adorned the front pages of car magazines and even played a major role in a movie.
However, the Porsche 911 Turbo Targa was not Rainer Buchmann's most famous creation; that honor goes to the Mercedes Benz CW 311, which was presented in 1978 and described as the successor to the 300 SL.
Connected with the automobile
Rainer Buchmann was involved with cars from an early age, driving Porsches as a student and starting to trade in vehicles during his training. In 1974, he founded the car company "bb" in Frankfurt am Main, primarily to modify Porsche sports cars.
He limited himself mainly to optical modifications, because in his opinion the technology should above all be reliable.
In addition to various 911 variants, he also created Targa and Cabriolet versions of the Porsche 928. A whole series of Mercedes-Benz vehicles were also refined at the Frankfurt plant.
However, it was his marketing coups that cemented the tuning company bb's worldwide reputation. Whether Playboy, Vogue or car magazines such as Auto Motor und Sport, Buchmann received broad editorial support when it came to presenting his creations.
Pioneering innovations
Less well known than his mostly eye-catching tuning products are the technological innovation projects that Rainer Buchmann drove forward. In fact, he was a pioneer in automotive electronics. With Dinfo, he created complete digital displays at an early stage, he built a multifunction steering wheel, which is common today but was incomprehensibly rejected by the car industry at the time as unergonomic and too expensive, and he installed the first distance warning systems in cars based on Polaroid SX-70 sonar technology. Many of these developments are part of everyday life today, but Buchmann's contribution is all too often forgotten.
Biographical review
Gerold Lingnau, who was head of the "Technology and Motor" department at the Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung for many years, meticulously recounts the stages of Rainer Buchmann's automotive life. There are countless anecdotes and side stories, but above all, many illustrations and photographs contribute to understanding. The result is entertaining to read and largely complete.
At Euro 39.95, the book is not too expensive and is certainly not only aimed at tuning enthusiasts, but actually at anyone who enjoys the car development of the seventies and eighties.
Rainer Buchmann himself had to close his company in 1986 when the tuning industry went through a deep crisis. However, he has been back since 2014, which is why the publication of the book almost looks like another marketing coup by Buchmann.
Bibliographical details
- Title: Rainer Buchmann. Innovation-Design-Emotion
- Author: Gerold Lingnau
- Publisher: Heel-Verlag, 1st edition 2014
- Scope: 208 pages, 203 color and 14 b/w illustrations
- Format: 24.7 x 2 x 29.2 cm, hardcover with dust jacket
- ISBN no.: 978-3-86852-938-8
- Price: Euro 39,95
- Order/buy: At Heel-Verlag online, at amazon.de
or in the relevant bookstores
