Irv Rybicki

Irvin Walter Rybicki (September 16, 1921 – July 24, 2001^[1]) was an American automotive designer widely known for his career as a designer with General Motors and his tenure as the corporation's Vice President of Design from 1977–1986, succeeding Harley Earl and Bill Mitchell in that role.^[2]

Over a career spanning 43 years with GM, Rybicki contributed significantly: from his work on the 1953 Cadillac Le Mans; his forecasting the potential market for an inexpensive, sporty four-passenger car, what would become the first generation 1967 Chevrolet Camaro (i.e., a Ford Mustang before there was a Ford Mustang); his contributions to the successful 1973 Chevrolet Monte Carlo and, as Vice President, his design leadership on the 1982 Chevrolet Camaro, 1984 Chevrolet Corvette, 1984 Pontiac Fiero and the 1985–1990 GM C-bodies: the Buick Electra, Oldsmobile 98 and Cadillac Deville/Fleetwood among others.

Having served successfully as a styling director for each of GM's five brand divisions, Rybicki assumed the corporate design leadership just as the industry entered a period of tremendous pressure: in quick succession, the federal government mandated waves of increasingly strict and comprehensive automotive emissions, fuel efficiency and safety standards^[3] – severely hindering the industry's ability to adapt – a period that became widely associated with austere and ungainly design, referred to in retrospect as the Malaise era.

Rybicki's legacy is tied to his numerous innovations, his excellent design credentials, his collegiality and support of his designers, and yet simultaneously his acquiescence to corporate finance management and product engineers – and his limited success in elevating General Motor's styling direction during his tenure as Vice President of Design to the level of his predecessors.