Björn Erik Anders Envall (born 1942), is a Swedish retired
automobile design
Automotive design is the process of developing the appearance (and to some extent the ergonomics) of motor vehicles, including automobiles, motorcycles, trucks, buses, Coach (vehicle), coaches, and vans.
The functional design and development o ...
er. He was head of the design department at
Saab.
He started his career in the 1960s at Saab as an
apprentice
Apprenticeship is a system for training a potential new practitioners of a Tradesman, trade or profession with on-the-job training and often some accompanying study. Apprenticeships may also enable practitioners to gain a license to practice in ...
under
Sixten Sason
Karl-Erik Sixten Sason (born Sixten Andersson; 1912–1967) was a Swedish industrial designer, noted for his work in designing several generations of Saab automobiles.
Biographical
Sason was born in 1912, the son of a Swedish sculptor. He t ...
, especially helping with the design of the
Saab 99 and the ill-fated
Saab Catherina sports car. In fact, after the failure of that design to be accepted by Saab, he designed (on paper only) a further and progressive two-seater, which was never built.
After a two years spell at
Opel
Opel Automobile GmbH (), usually shortened to Opel, is a German automobile manufacturer which has been a subsidiary of Stellantis since 16 January 2021. It was owned by the American automaker General Motors from 1929 until 2017 and the PSA Gr ...
he took over Sason's work at Saab, in 1969, following Sason's death. He held this position until 1992. Among his designs there was the
Saab EV-1,
Saab 98, the Saab 99
Combi Coupé, the
Saab 900
The Saab 900 is a mid-sized automobile produced by Swedish manufacturer Saab from 1978 until 1998 in two generations: the first from 1978 to 1994, and the second from 1994 to 1998.
The first-generation car was based on the Saab 99 chassis, ...
and the
Saab 900 convertible. He also guided the
co-operation project with
Fiat
Fiat Automobiles S.p.A., commonly known as simply Fiat ( , ; ), is an Italian automobile manufacturer. It became a part of Fiat Chrysler Automobiles in 2014 and, in 2021, became a subsidiary of Stellantis through its Italian division, Stellant ...
, that led to the
Saab 9000. He made the original drawings of the 'new generation'
Saab 900
The Saab 900 is a mid-sized automobile produced by Swedish manufacturer Saab from 1978 until 1998 in two generations: the first from 1978 to 1994, and the second from 1994 to 1998.
The first-generation car was based on the Saab 99 chassis, ...
, in 1988, before the involvement of
General Motors
General Motors Company (GM) is an American Multinational corporation, multinational Automotive industry, automotive manufacturing company headquartered in Detroit, Michigan, United States. The company is most known for owning and manufacturing f ...
in the company.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Envall, Bjorn
Swedish automobile designers
Saab
1942 births
Living people