Auto industry icon Lee Iacocca died Tuesday, at the age of 94. His daughter, Lia Iacocca Assad, said he died of natural causes.
Iacocca, one of America's highest-profile business executives and the visionary credited with rescuing Chrysler from near-bankruptcy in the 1980s, was instrumental in the creation of the Ford Mustang and the Chrysler minivan.
Born Lido Anthony Iacocca in 1924 in Allentown, Pennsylvania, to Italian parents, Iacocca went on to head two major American car companies and was one of the most powerful and best-known executives in Detroit.
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Iacocca started working at Ford Motor Company in 1946 and was a major figure in the development of the Ford Mustang, which quickly became one of the most popular American cars in history. He was named president of Ford in 1970 but was fired by Henry Ford Jr. in 1978. Iacocca was then hired by Chrysler Corp., Ford's struggling rival Chrysler, and was able to win a federal loan that helped the automaker avoid a potential bankruptcy in 1980.
Iacocca led Chrysler during an era when Asian and European imports first started taking a significant bite of the US automakers' market share. He became famous not only as Chrysler's CEO but its TV pitchman, coining the iconic tag line, "If you can find a better car, buy it."
Iacocca also devoted his time to charitable work and spearheaded the efforts to restore both the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island, the immigration port in New York Harbor where his own parents came into the United States.
Fiat Chrysler Automobiles issued a statement Tuesday saying it was saddened by the news of Iacocca's passing.
"He played a historic role in steering Chrysler through crisis and making it a truly competitive force. He was one of the great leaders of our company and the auto industry as a whole. He also played a profound and tireless role on the national stage as a business statesman and philanthropist."
Ford Motor Executive Chairman Bill Ford said Iacocca was "truly bigger than life and he left an indelible mark on Ford." He said he appreciated Iacocca's encouragement during Ford's early career. "He was one of a kind and will be dearly missed."
Iacocca is survived by two daughters and eight grandchildren.
