What if famous Porsche customizer bb-Auto worked on some everyday Fords like the Maverick?

As Jason mentioned yesterday, Autopian’s partner company Galpin Motors has started a collaboration with the famous German design and tuning company bb-Auto. Founded in 1973 by Rainer Buchmann, bb-Auto has a long history of innovation and is probably best known for its work on Porsches and Mercedes.

In the original version, these are cars that I admire for their understated presence, so you can imagine that I am a little ambivalent about heavily modified models. But the cars that were converted by Buchmann in the 70s and 80s are a different story. With most of these custom-built cars, you can almost smell the fiberglass fumes just by looking at the pictures. On the other hand, the cars from bb-Auto were usually so well-resolved that you could easily mistake them for factory custom-built cars.

Consider, for example, the ’80s 911 “slantnose” conversions from other aftermarket suppliers that looked painfully like kit cars, not to mention the fact that a 911 without visible headlights just looks completely wrong. Buchmann’s version of the slantnose concept solved this problem by fitting real 928 headlights into hand-made steel fenders.

A side air scoop sounds like a striking addition until you see how Buchmann has worked the thing pretty seamlessly into the car’s flanks. Oh, and don’t even get me started on the deep bb-auto wheels; the whole thing looks simultaneously aggressive yet understated, like Schwarzenegger in a tailored suit thirty years ago.

A 928 notchback with T-tops doesn’t sound like a great idea on paper, but the end result actually seems to have left the Porsche factory. Check out the stereo components on the side of the “T” bar facing the driver. bb-Auto did a great job of making the whole thing feel exaggerated yet integrated.

Buchmann’s work on this Mercedes 500SEC appears to be some sort of understated AMG treatment, until you notice some odd stitching lines. For goodness sake: It’s a retractable hardtop, decades before that was in vogue. Notice how the “C” pillars drop into the sides while the roof slides back and fits into the rear decklid spoiler.

As fascinating as these custom luxury car builds were, the Autopian staff seemed most intrigued by the work bb-Auto did on more ordinary cars. The lion’s share of Buchmann’s work seemed to be on Volkswagens, including these gummy bear-colored Golfs. In the photo below, they look like they were dredged out of the sea:

Check out this Polo, the size of a smaller Golf, with wheel arches and custom interior with special fabric upholstery, dozens of speakers and a digital instrument cluster (another innovation from bb-Auto):

Given Galpin’s current association with bb-Auto, is it possible that some cars for everyone will also get this treatment? We have to look into it, don’t we?

It’s not like you can make a Pinto worse

If Galpin offers such customizations for cars purchased by K-Mart customers, as opposed to those visiting the Gucci store, it would by no means be the first time. In the early 1970s, Galpin Ford created several specially modified versions of everyday Ford products, fully street-legal and warrantied custom cars for the average person.

The Mustang II was a best seller when it was launched in 1974, but many enthusiasts were put off by what they saw as an affront to the pony car’s heritage. Perhaps a more offensive aspect of the Mustang II was the more upright and almost formal styling of the front end. Galpin offered a solution in the form of a gently angled new fiberglass nose tip, still using the original bumper and even repositioning the OEM turn signals from the original grille.

Most of the unknown Mustang Majors sold also featured special paint jobs that gave it a semi-custom look and set it apart from the 400,000 other Mustang IIs sold in the first year. It also seems that Galpin only offered these as finished cars; you couldn’t just buy the front end and build your own conversion of questionable quality.

As controversial and humble as the Pinto may seem today, it sold well. Galpin’s 1974 “Pinto Pacer” (before AMC used the name) gave this ubiquitous compact a unique look with a sloping front end that covered the original grille like a knight’s helmet and even had a translucent amber bezel that allowed the existing turn signals to shine through.

Whether you like this redesign or not, there were certainly fans of this redesign in Dearborn. Three years later, the factory-redesigned 1977 nose bore a striking resemblance to the Galpin nose tip. Sure, it could have been a coincidence, but…

Given Galpin’s current connection to bb-Auto and her years of experience converting high-quality production vehicles, can you imagine what cool retro modifications could be made to some of Dearborn’s best offerings?

Buchmann and Boeckmann

Back then, Pintos and Mustang IIs left Galpin’s yard in record numbers. What cars are comparable junk cars today? At the top of the list is almost certainly the Ford Maverick truck for non-truck folks, so we’re going to give this best-seller the quasi-retro bb-car treatment.

Jason in particular has never been a huge fan of the Maverick’s front end. I think he thinks it’s too “truck-like” and even looks a bit like two separate, only partially connected grilles on top of each other. We’re going to ditch the existing nose and add a new, more Mustang-like one that could even use headlight units from the Galpin body shop’s parts department. Of course, we’ll lower the thing to within a few inches of the tarmac, add ground effects, fender flares and those delicious deep bb-auto wheels.

The rails on the side of the bed that extend over the roof can serve another purpose: I could imagine adding removable or sliding glass roof panels that fit into the angled part of the rails.

Covered taillight sides, a new rear fascia with more Mustang elements and a modified tailgate complete the look out back. I’m guessing the interior will include lots and lots of speakers and integrated tablet holders for rear seat passengers. You can see it’s a big change from the stock Maverick:

How about some higher-end, but still affordable models? Here I took a 2024 Lincoln Aviator and did the complete bb-car cosmetic surgery:

Similar work was done at the rear, with narrower taillights and a new bumper and diffuser that merge into the flares for the huge wheels and tires:

The car, now called the bb-Auto Altair, is almost unrecognizable from the original. The idea is to create something that looks almost completely new and is tailored to the preferences of the buyer, and that buyer doesn’t necessarily have to be a hedge fund manager.

BB 4 UN, me?

At this time of crisis, Porsche did not offer a Turbo with a Targa roof, and there was no large Benz convertible. Buchmann’s bb-Auto did not just make bespoke cars: they offered buyers factory-quality examples that the factory did not offer but really should have.

As well as Porsches, Range Rover and other marques sold at Galpin family dealerships will probably benefit from this kind of work, and I look forward to seeing them. But Range Rovers are already pretty exclusive, so why not give some love to underrated and not-so-high-priced cars? Rainer Buchmann has proven that a lime green Volkswagen with twenty speakers can be cooler than some “prestige” cars. Can he do it again?