Volvo and Mercedes chief designer takes wheel at AvtoVAZ

The former chief designer of Volvo Car and Mercedes, Steve Mattin, will start working for AvtoVAZ, Russia's biggest carmaker from October, AvtoVAZ President Igor Komarov said late on Wednesday. "We have signed a contract with Steve and he starts working from October 1," Komarov said, adding that a three-year contract with Mattin could be extended. AvtoVAZ signed the deal with Mattin thanks to its French partner Renault, which owns 25 percent plus one share of AvtoVAZ and expects to raise its stake to 35 percent, he said. British-born Mattin joined Volvo in 2005 after 17 years at Mercedes-Benz, where he was a senior design manager for projects such as the A-class and S-class cars. At Volvo, Mattin helped update the brand's design language and assisted with models like the S-60, V-60 and XC-60.