French engineer Francois Castaing, along with product development ace Bob Lutz, design chief Tom Gale and many other key executives were part of a dream team of bold and fierce leaders who transformed the Chrysler to America's most popular automaker in the 1990s.
Castaing was only 35 years old when he was sent to the United States in 1980 by Renault, the French automaker that had just bought American Motors Corp. His job: To head engineering design and product development at AMC. Castaing, along with chief engineer Roy Lunn, created the industry-changing 1984 Jeep Cherokee, which kicked off the SUV boom that's still going strong.
Castaing, who retired at the young age of 52 in 1998, died Wednesday. He was just 78 years old.
Castaing's early racing jobs - he worked on engines for cars that raced in the 24 Hours of Le Mans and then worked his way up to become technical director of Renault's racing division - colored his approach to product development during the Chrysler years. It was all about speed and efficiency.
He was instrumental in the development of the big rig-style Dodge Ram, as well as the Dodge Viper, Chrysler Cirrus, Dodge Stratus and Neon, and Chrysler minivans.
It was Castaing who developed the concept of modular platforms, breaking down the barriers between departments such as engineering, markets and design.
"It was the foundation of our success. Francois believed in speed, simplicity, minimal bureaucracy, no excessive analysis and immediate transition to the material," Lutz told Automotive News. "He had an interesting way of challenging people and bringing out the best in them."
Cars LH
Paul Wilbur, a product designer who worked with Castaing on the LH cab-forward cars - the Chrysler Concorde, Eagle Vision and Dodge Intrepid - that debuted in 1993, said the platform team's approach changed everything. "The whole company was split from the chimneys and bunkers into platform teams, and that was really revolutionary," Wilbur said.
"I remember very vividly discussing line rates with manufacturers and colour choices and how many colours we should have. These were conversations that product design and marketing would not normally have ... with production," Wilbur said.
"Between Lutz, Gale and Castaing, Chrysler would not be the same without one of the three. It took all three of them to become a legendary behemoth," Wilbur said.
Another Chrysler executive of the 1990s, Bud Liebler, head of marketing and communications, said Castaing's heavy French accent did not hinder his ability to get things right.
"He was ambitious, hard-working, aggressive and strong. When he had something to say, he said it loud and clear. He didn't care who was bothered by it," Liebler said. "He quickly caught the eye of Lee Iacocca. Castaing was probably the main guy who set up modular platforms, a huge innovation for the industry."
Castaing, along with many other executives, did not remain in the DaimlerChrysler merger in 1998. After his retirement, Castaing's love of engineering and racing never waned. He raised nearly $30 million to rebuild the Detroit Science Center and served on several corporate boards as well as the board of FIRST, the high school robotics competition founded by inventor Dean Kamen.
He was inducted into the Automotive Hall of Fame in 2010.
