Ferdinand Piëch | |
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| Born | Ferdinand Karl Piëch (1937-04-17)17 April 1937 |
| Died | 25 August 2019(2019-08-25) (aged 82) Rosenheim, Germany |
| Occupations | Automobile engineer,business executive |
| Known for | Chairman ofVolkswagen Group until 25 April 2015[1][2] |
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| Children | 13 |
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Ferdinand Karl Piëch (German pronunciation:[ˈfɛʁdinantˈpiːɛç]ⓘ; 17 April 1937 – 25 August 2019)[3] was an Austrianbusiness magnate, engineer, and executive who held the positions of chairman of theexecutive board (Vorstandsvorsitzender) of theVolkswagen Group from 1993 to 2002, and chairman of thesupervisory board (Aufsichtsratsvorsitzender) from 2002 to 2015.[2]
A grandson ofFerdinand Porsche, Piëch began his career atPorsche before moving toAudi, where he was instrumental in transforming the brand into a formidable competitor toMercedes-Benz andBMW, thanks to groundbreaking models like theAudi Quattro and theAudi 100. Trained as an engineer, Piëch had a profound impact on the design and engineering of several iconic vehicles, including thePorsche 911,Porsche 917,Audi Quattro, and most notably theBugatti Veyron, which, as of 2012, held the title of the fastest, most powerful, and most expensive road-legal car ever produced. Due to his significant contributions to theautomotive industry, Piëch was named "Car Executive of the Century" in 1999[4] and was inducted into theAutomotive Hall of Fame in 2014.
Piëch was born in Vienna, Austria, toLouise (née Porsche; daughter of Ferdinand Porsche) andAnton Piëch, a lawyer. He studied at theLyceum Alpinum Zuoz and graduated in 1962 fromETH Zurich in Switzerland with a degree in mechanical engineering, having written a master's thesis on the development of aFormula One (F1) engine. At the same time, Porsche was involved in F1, developing an eight-cylinder engine for thePorsche 804.
From 1963 to 1971, Piëch worked atPorsche inStuttgart, where he was involved in the development of thePorsche 906 and subsequent models, including the successfulPorsche 917. In 1972, he joinedAudi inIngolstadt. By 1975, he had become manager of technological engineering, where he was responsible for the design concepts behind many Audi models from the 1970s and 1980s, including theAudi 80,Audi 100, andAudi V8. He celebrated his 40th birthday on 17 April 1977 with a grand ball, attended by guests such asGiorgetto Giugiaro. At the event, the staff of the Porsche Hotel presented him with an Audi 80 constructed entirely out ofmarzipan and measuring just 40 cm (16 in) in length.[5] In the same year, he initiated the development of a car for theWorld Rally Championship, which led to the creation of theAudi Quattro with itsfour-wheel drive system. The Quattro model used aturbocharged inline-five-cylinder engine.
Between his departure from Porsche and his move to Audi, Piëch ran a small engineering company, during which time he developed a five-cylinder in-linediesel engine forMercedes-Benz. Upon joining Audi, he revisited this concept, as market demand for engines with more than four cylinders was rising. At the time, Audi (and the Audi-derived VW Passat/Santana model range) used longitudinally mounted inline engines and front-wheel drive. More conventional layouts with six cylinders, such as aV6 engine or astraight-six, were dismissed due to production costs or packaging limitations, as the latter would not fit with front-wheel drive configurations.
In 1993, Piëch moved to the parent company ofVolkswagen AG, becoming theChairman of the Board of Management, succeedingCarl Hahn. Volkswagen was on the brink of bankruptcy at that time, but Piëch played a central role in orchestrating a dramatic turnaround.[6] He oversaw Volkswagen's acquisition ofLamborghini andBentley and the establishment ofBugatti Automobiles, integrating them alongsideVolkswagen,Škoda,SEAT, andAudi into a hierarchical structure akin to that used byAlfred Sloan atGeneral Motors. In 2000, Piëch was appointed chairman ofScania AB.[7] He retired from the board of management in 2002 but continued to serve as chairman of the supervisory board.
Under Piëch's leadership, Volkswagen consolidated an array of mid-sized and premium vehicle brands such asAudi,Bentley,Bugatti,Ducati,Lamborghini,Porsche,Skoda,SEAT,Scania, andMAN under the VW Group umbrella. According to Piëch, this strategy aimed to enhance these brands' status and reputation by leveraging Volkswagen's engineering, design expertise, and commitment to quality.[8]
During his tenure, Piëch was known for aggressively pushing the Volkswagen and Audi brands upmarket with considerable success. He also made significant moves into acquiring othermarques, securingLamborghini for Audi and establishingBugatti Automobiles SAS. His acquisition ofRolls-Royce andBentley proved more contentious. While Volkswagen successfully obtained theCrewe factory, car designs, nameplates, and trademarks such as theSpirit of Ecstasy and the Rolls-Royce grille, it was denied the use of the Rolls-Royce name, as aBMW and Rolls-Royce joint venture producedRolls-Royce BR700 jet engines in Germany, and had licensed the name fromRolls-Royce Holdings. After negotiations, VW sold the Spirit of Ecstasy and the Rolls-Royce grille trademarks to BMW, allowing BMW to launchRolls-Royce Motor Cars. Although Piëch later claimed that his primary interest was in Bentley, as it sold better than Rolls-Royce by a ratio of two to one, many saw the loss of the Rolls-Royce brand as a significant failure.
However, Piëch's efforts to revive Volkswagen's fortunes in North America were a success. Unlike Hahn's earlier failed attempts, Piëch's decision to manufacture theVolkswagen New Beetle, which debuted in 1998, revitalized Volkswagen's presence in the U.S. market after years of stagnation.
In recognition of his continued influence in the automotive industry,Automobile Magazine awarded Piëch their Man of the Year accolade in 2011.[9]
At Porsche, Piëch initiated significant policy changes within the company. For instance, starting with the 1967Porsche 907, the driver's position intwo-seat sportscar racers was shifted from the left to the right, as this provided an advantage on predominantly clockwise race tracks. After focusing mainly on producing small 2,000 cc (120 cu in) race cars that were intended to share parts and features with road cars, Porsche in 1968 made a bold and risky move by unexpectedly constructing the Group 4 Sportscars minimum of twenty-fivePorsche 917s which allowed the use of 5,000 cc (310 cu in) engines instead of 3,000 cc (180 cu in) for prototypes, catching the rule makers at theFIA/CSI off guard. EvenEnzo Ferrari had been compelled to sell his company toFiat before making a comparable investment. Always inclined to think on a grand scale, Piëch began the development of a16-cylinder engine for theCan-Am series. It is perhaps no coincidence that his grandfather had designed a renowned supercharged 16-cylinder engine for theAuto Union racing cars in the 1930s. However, Piëch was not granted the opportunity to complete this project, as a turbocharged version of the existing 12-cylinder engine proved to be simpler, more powerful, and highly successful. Three decades later, as CEO of Volkswagen Group, Piëch championed the development of the extraordinarily ambitiousBugatti Veyron, featuring aturbochargedW16-cylinder engine with 1,001 horsepower (746 kW) and a top speed of 407 km/h (253 mph). Although some of these specifications do not exceed those of the Porsche 917/30, they are still superior to most current racing cars. Piëch was also the driving force behind theVolkswagen Phaeton luxury saloon, which was designed to compete with other German luxury cars and with Bentley/Rolls-Royce, although the model's sales were disappointing.
Piëch owned a significant share of Porsche, exactly 10%. In order to prevent discussions among the many family members, a policy was established in early 1972 that noPorsche family member is allowed to be involved in the management of the company. Even company founderFerry Porsche, Piëch's uncle, only held a seat on the supervisory board of Porsche after the company's legal form was changed from a limited partnership to a private legal company. This made Piëch move to Audi after the foundation of his engineering bureau.
Piëch reportedly had12 children from four different women,[9] though an obituary published byThe Detroit News mentioned him having13 children.[10] He was married to his second wife Ursula Piëch from 1984 to his death, he lived with her in retirement inSalzburg, Austria.[10] One of his sons, Toni Piëch, is the founder of car companyPiëch Automotive. Piëch wasdyslexic,[9] and he had a vast car collection that included twoBugatti Veyrons regularly driven by him and his wife.
Piëch collapsed suddenly on 25 August 2019 while having dinner with his wife in Aschau nearRosenheim,Oberbayern. He was rushed to hospital, where he was pronounced dead shortly thereafter. A specific cause of death was not released.[11]
BothLamborghini andBugatti paid tribute to Piëch, first with theLamborghini Sián FKP 37 that was unveiled in September 2019, whose name includes his initials and year of birth, and latest with theBugatti F.K.P. Hommage in January 2026, which also includes his initials.[6][7]
An engineer by trade, Ferdinand Piëch was both known for his intricate involvement in product development from a technical standpoint, as well as his domineering personality. Piëch has been behind the development of multiple significant and influential automobiles, including thePorsche 911, Third generation (C3)Audi 100,Audi Quattro andBugatti Veyron. Automotive blogJalopnik said of Piëch, "He is the mad genius behind much of Porsche and Audi's racing successes as well as VW's all-out engineering and luxury push from the early 2000s. That's what gave us cars like the Bugatti Veyron and the 12-cylinder VW Phaeton."[12] Piëch is both noted for turning theAudi brand from an also-ran economy car builder to one of the most respected luxury brands in the world, as well as rescuing Volkswagen as a whole from near-bankruptcy and overseeing its transformation into the massive conglomerate it is today.[13] Fellow automotive executiveBob Lutz described Piëch as "one of the most successful leaders in the automotive business"[14] and "the greatest living product guy" in the automobile industry.[15]Automotive News described Piëch as "a world-class eccentric but a figure of transcendent importance in the history of cars and car companies" who has had "The strangest and possibly most significant automotive industry career this side ofHenry Ford".[16] In their obituary,The Guardian said of Piëch, "His stewardship of VW has been indisputably successful. Piech will go down in history as an automotive legend, in the same class asGottlieb Daimler, Henry Ford andKiichiro Toyoda."[17]
Piëch has been described as being socially awkward and having an abrasive personality; some automotive journalists who have encountered Piëch described him as being uncomfortable to be around.[18][9]Automotive News once noted, "Many of his CEO peers said they could not hold a normal conversation with him. Discussions could be punctuated with long stretches of unexplained silence."[19] Piëch himself has acknowledged that he occasionally struggles to relate to other people and understand their feelings.[20] As Piëch rose to the top of Volkswagen in the late 1980s and early 1990s, then-CEOCarl Hahn took notice of Piëch's poor social skills and tried to position him as atechnocrat kept behind closed doors.[21] Hahn was particularly bothered by how Piëch behaved during a visit to theYasukuni Shrine; while aShinto priest was showing the shrine's collection of vintageswords, Piëch examined one and told the priest that it was a fake.[21][a] Subsequently, Hahn presented theAudi Avus quattroconcept car himself at the 1991Tokyo Motor Show and didn't allow Piëch to take part, which infuriated Piëch due to his extensive personal involvement in the Avus quattro's creation.[21]
Piëch was widely interested in pushing technological boundaries in automotive development, especially as the head of Audi.Automotive News noted of this, "The company's slogan "Vorsprung durch Technik" was the personification of Piech – the belief that technology was the answer to all problems in the auto business. Audi was the test bed to prove his theory and the springboard for his ambition."[16] Piëch often spearheaded the development of audacious vehicles or oversaw business decision and strategies that baffled analysts, but still proved beneficial for the company as a whole.[13] In recounting some of the extraordinary vehicles Volkswagen put in production under Piëch's watch,Wired noted that he alone pushed theBugatti Veyron supercar into production, despite objection from other executives as well as the fact that Volkswagen lost what is believed to be millions on every Veyron sold:[22] "Consider that for a moment. Long past the average retirement age, this gent greenlit one of the largest automotive losses in history and managed to keep his job. Moreover, he was hailed as a hero."[22]
An aggressive and demanding manager, Piëch was known for setting both lofty and extremely specific goals and standards for projects. An example of this is with the development of theVolkswagen Phaetonluxury car, in which Piëch laid out ten parameters the car had to meet, amongst them being that the Phaeton should be capable of being driven all day at 300 km/h (186 mph) with an exterior temperature of 50 °C (122 °F) whilst maintaining the interior temperature at 22 °C (72 °F).[23] Piëch requested this even though the Phaeton's top speed was electronically limited to 250 km/h (155.3 mph).[24] Another requirement was that the car should possess torsional rigidity of 37,000N·m/degree. Piëch would often become personally involved in vehicle development, such as how he oversaw the development of theAudi 100's aerodynamics himself, keeping it secret from even Audi's top engineers to prevent any crucial details of the car's aerodynamic capabilities from leaking to competitors.[17] Piëch often liked to ride along with automotive journalists during press test drives and would consider their critiques to improve Volkswagen's vehicles.Car and Driver writer John Phillips recounted how when he test drove theVolkswagen New Beetle during its launch in 1997, Piëch rode along and asked for his opinion on how its chassis and driving dynamics could be improved.[18] Similarly, Piëch once demanded that anAutomobile reviewer take the Volkswagen Phaeton up to its top speed while he rode along in the back seat.[9]
With a leadership style described as "old fashioned",[14] Piëch was known for his prolific firing of subordinates throughout his career, particularly how he engineered the ousting of former Volkswagen CEOBernd Pischetsrieder and Porsche CEOWendelin Wiedeking.[9] According to Piëch, he fired any subordinate who "makes the same mistake twice".[9]The Guardian noted, "Piech was known for his ability to outmanoeuvre competitors by stoking internal rivalries to his own advantage, even if it resulted in turning against his own managers, including the VW chief executive Bernd Pischetsrieder, to side with VW's labour leaders."[17] Piëch leveraged this reputation to use threats and intimidation to get subordinates to meet his lofty goals; during Piëch's induction into theAutomotive Hall of Fame in 2014, fellow automotive executive Bob Lutz recounted a conversation he had with Piëch at theFrankfurt Auto Show in the early 1990s, in which he remarked how he was impressed with the fit and finish and tight body tolerances on Volkswagen's new models. Piëch told Lutz that he achieved this by assembling Volkswagen's top body engineers in his office and telling them they would all be fired if all of Volkswagen's vehicles didn't have body tolerances of 3millimeters within six weeks.[14]Wired described Piëch as "Machiavellian" and "an autocrat's autocrat".[22] Bob Lutz said of his management style, "It's what I call a reign of terror and a culture where performance was driven by fear and intimidation[...]That management style gets short-term results, but it's a culture that's extremely dangerous. Look at dictators. Dictators invariably wind up destroying the very countries they thought their omniscience and omnipotence would make great. It's fast and it's efficient, but at huge risk."[25] He would also describe Piëch as a "mad genius" that while he respected, he would never want to work for or with at any capacity.[15] Lutz,CNBC, the Americandocumentary TV seriesDirty Money, among others, have claimed that theVolkswagen diesel emissions scandal is the result of the ruthless and tyrannical corporate culture Piëch installed at the company.[26][25][20] Although Piëch had tried a hostile takeover againstSuzuki in 2010 and threatened its management, Suzuki won the case to terminate its partnership with Volkswagen at theInternational Court of Arbitration of theInternational Chamber of Commerce after Piëch fell from power, and could dissolve the capital tie-up until September 2015.[27]
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A brand ofBugatti Rimac, a joint venture of Rimac Group andPorsche AG | |||||||||
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