Lee Iacocca Father Of The Mustang And Minivan Dies At Age 94

Lee Iacocca, the mastermind behind the Ford Mustang and the straight-talking captain of Chrysler’s historic U.S. rescue and 1980s turnaround that brought him acclaim as America’s most famous CEO and car salesman, died on Tuesday at home in Bel Air, Calif., a neighborhood in western Los Angeles. He was 94.

The cause was complications from Parkinson’s disease.

Iacocca, a natural huckster and tireless competitor with Italian roots and a penchant for cigars, vinyl car roofs and Greek-temple grilles, defined the role of the imperial American executive -- first as president of Ford Motor Co., then as chairman and CEO of Chrysler -- for much of the last quarter of the 20th century.

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skytop - 7/3/2019 10:13:11 AM

+3 Boost

R.I.P. big guy Lee. You did your jobs of leadership exceedingly well.

Foncool - 7/3/2019 11:05:00 AM

+3 Boost

RIP Lido

qwertyfla1 - 7/3/2019 12:06:41 PM

+3 Boost

The best gearhead pitch man ever and titan of industry. Larger than life and true visionary leader. They should bury him in a minivan though ;-)

PUGPROUD - 7/3/2019 12:18:53 PM

+3 Boost

Last true car guy to run a big three. You will be missed. R.I.P.

vdiv - 7/3/2019 1:07:09 PM

+3 Boost

Bob Lutz has had high regards for Iacocca, had great things to say on CNBC this morning:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FEYI_3OAn08

MDarringer - 7/3/2019 4:09:41 PM

+1 Boost

But the Dodge Caravan EXPLODED the volume of the segment by getting the formula right.

MDarringer - 7/3/2019 4:08:45 PM

-1 Boost

Iacocca = gold standard
Musk = shit

ricks0me - 7/3/2019 5:48:35 PM

0 Boost

Matt said: Iacocca = gold standard
Musk = shit

What are your thoughts about Mary Barra? ... and please be polite!!!

MDarringer - 7/3/2019 6:07:07 PM

-3 Boost

She is 100% an undeserving gender token. She is powerfully inept.

Truthy - 7/5/2019 10:17:57 AM

0 Boost

She is a typical GM CEO though. Risk adverse finance driven. The reason GM did not produce one of the outstanding Cadillac concepts was costs and the risk. So they took the safe, bland, let's use existing equipment and cheapen the interior so we have money for incentives. The had a chance to plant the flag for Cadillac and fumbled.
My God, GM makes Toyota look exciting.

mini22 - 7/7/2019 2:44:31 PM

+1 Boost

I think Hackett is the best of the CEO's for US car makers. He has instilled a discipline like Mulally did. Barra's challenge has been corralling a wild out of control horse that did not learn its lesson from the government bailout. Some of her moves have been rather painful but perhaps necessary. Manley may not be great at all but he still has a safety net in Jeep and Ram. They are able to prop up FCA's numbers to offset the failing car side.

MDarringer - 7/7/2019 3:40:00 PM

+1 Boost

Barra has been wildly incoherent in her leadership. Her little romp with Johan might have put a smile on her face, but Cadillac is torched because of that bastard being allowed to run wild. Buick is faltering. Chevrolet is losing ground. GM isn't listening to what Cadillac dealers want and the results are obviously detrimental.

By contrast, Ford listened and Lincoln is gaining strength.

Manley is as dimwitted as Sergio Maricon. Jeep is showing signs of stuttering. The Cherokee is terrible and outdated. The Retrograde is played out. The Compass has been a thud. The Wrangler has been overproduced to claim sales, but that has cut into profits.