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Robert Carl Stempel (July 15, 1933 – May 7, 2011) was chairman and CEO of
General Motors The General Motors Company (GM) is an American Multinational corporation, multinational Automotive industry, automotive manufacturing company headquartered in Detroit, Michigan, United States. It is the largest automaker in the United States and ...
(GM) from August1990 to November1992. He joined GM in 1958 as a design engineer at
Oldsmobile Oldsmobile or formally the Oldsmobile Division of General Motors was a brand of American automobiles, produced for most of its existence by General Motors. Originally established as "Olds Motor Vehicle Company" by Ransom E. Olds in 1897, it pro ...
and was key in the development of the
front-wheel drive Front-wheel drive (FWD) is a form of engine and transmission layout used in motor vehicles, where the engine drives the front wheels only. Most modern front-wheel drive vehicles feature a transverse engine, rather than the conventional longitu ...
Toronado. He was also involved with the team that created the first
catalytic converter A catalytic converter is an exhaust emission control device that converts toxic gases and pollutants in exhaust gas from an internal combustion engine into less-toxic pollutants by catalyzing a redox reaction. Catalytic converters are usual ...
.


Background and personal life

Stempel was born July 15, 1933 in
Trenton, New Jersey Trenton is the capital city of the U.S. state of New Jersey and the county seat of Mercer County. It was the capital of the United States from November 1 to December 24, 1784. He graduated from Bloomfield High School in New Jersey in 1951. During his teen years, he worked as a mechanic in
Bloomfield, New Jersey Bloomfield is a township in Essex County, New Jersey, United States. As of the 2020 United States Census, the township's population was 53,105. It surrounds the Bloomfield Green Historic District. History The initial patent for the land that w ...
to earn his college tuition by fixing his fellow students' cars. He received a bachelor of science degree in mechanical engineering from
Worcester Polytechnic Institute Worcester Polytechnic Institute (WPI) is a Private university, private research university in Worcester, Massachusetts. Founded in 1865 in Worcester, WPI was one of the United States' first engineering and technology universities and now has 14 ac ...
in 1955 where he had been a tackle on the football team. He attended night classes and earned an MBA from
Michigan State University Michigan State University (Michigan State, MSU) is a public land-grant research university in East Lansing, Michigan. It was founded in 1855 as the Agricultural College of the State of Michigan, the first of its kind in the United States. It ...
in 1970 and later received an honorary doctorate from Worcester Polytechnic Institute. Stempel was a member of the
National Academy of Engineering The National Academy of Engineering (NAE) is an American nonprofit, non-governmental organization. The National Academy of Engineering is part of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine, along with the National Academy of ...
, the
Society of Automotive Engineers SAE International, formerly named the Society of Automotive Engineers, is a United States-based, globally active professional association and standards developing organization for engineering professionals in various industries. SAE Internatio ...
, the
American Society of Mechanical Engineers The American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME) is an American professional association that, in its own words, "promotes the art, science, and practice of multidisciplinary engineering and allied sciences around the globe" via " continuing ...
, and the
Engineering Society of Detroit The Engineering Society of Detroit (also known as ESD) is a regional engineering association, headquartered in Southfield, Michigan, serving engineers and related technical professionals in Southeast Michigan. The Society was founded in 1895 by a ...
. He was the first chairman of the American Quality Foundation, developed by the
American Society for Quality Control The American Society for Quality (ASQ), formerly the American Society for Quality Control (ASQC), is a society of quality professionals, with nearly 80,000 members. History ASQC was established on 16 February 1946 by 253 members in Milwaukee, ...
. He was a member of the board of directors and chairman of the National Industrial Advisory Council to the
Opportunities Industrialization Center Opportunities Industrialization Center (usually shortened to “OIC” and doing business as OIC of America, Inc. and OIC International, Inc.) is a nonprofit adult education and job training organization headquartered in Philadelphia, Pennsylv ...
s of America, Inc.; the National Minority Supplier Development Council; and the Motor Vehicle Manufacturers Association; the Highway Users Federation and the United Way of Southeastern Michigan. He was a member of Detroit's Conference Board, The
Business Roundtable The Business Roundtable (BRT) is a nonprofit lobbyist association based in Washington, D.C. whose members are chief executive officers of major United States companies. Unlike the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, whose members are entire businesses, B ...
, and The Business Council and he was a trustee of Worcester Polytechnic Institute, Detroit Renaissance, and New Detroit, Inc. In November 1975, Stempel's son Timothy, 13, had been kidnapped. Stempel received a ransom demand of $150,000, which he paid. His son was later freed and kidnappers were apprehended and convicted. Stempel enjoyed attending auto races and motorsports events, and working on his cars, including his 1974 Corvette. He also enjoyed skiing and surf-casting. Prior to his death, the Stempels lived and raised horses in
Loxahatchee, Florida Loxahatchee is an unincorporated community in Palm Beach County, Florida, United States, located north of Wellington, and west and northwest of Royal Palm Beach, approximately west of West Palm Beach. Loxahatchee is also the name of the Post Off ...
and
Oxford, Michigan Oxford is a village in Oakland County in the U.S. state of Michigan. The population was 3,436 at the 2010 census. The village is located within Oxford Township. Located about north of Detroit, it is a northern suburb of the Metro Detroi ...
. Stempel died in
West Palm Beach, Florida West Palm Beach is a city in and the county seat of Palm Beach County, Florida, United States. It is located immediately to the west of the adjacent Palm Beach, which is situated on a barrier island across the Lake Worth Lagoon. The populati ...
on May 7, 2011 at the age of 77. With his wife Pat (née Patricia Bachmann), he had three children, a daughter Barbara and sons Timothy and Peter.


Early career at General Motors

After serving two years in the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Stempel joined GM's Oldsmobile Division as a senior detailer in the chassis design department in 1958, later serving as senior designer (1962); transmission design engineer (1964); motor engineer (1969); and assistant chief engineer (1972). Stempel subsequently worked on the team that developed the 1966 Toronado, the first modern American front-wheel-drive car. According to a GM biography, Stempel designed the Toronado's front suspension and its engine and transmission mounting system. Stempel joined the engineering department of the Chevrolet Division as chief engineer in 1974 and was named Chevrolet's director of engineering in 1975. In 1978, Stempel was appointed general manager of the Pontiac Motor Division where he worked on the
Fiero The Pontiac Fiero is a mid-engine sports car manufactured and marketed by Pontiac (automobile), Pontiac for model years 1984-1988. Designed by George Milidrag and Hulki Aldikacti as a sports car, it was the first two-seater Pontiac (automobile) ...
– which used a plastic-body/space frame technology that became integral to GM's subsequent minivans and the Saturn lineup. In 1980, he was moved into the Managing Director position at Adam Opel AG, the German subsidiary of GM. In 1982, he returned to Detroit as General Manager of
Chevrolet Chevrolet ( ), colloquially referred to as Chevy and formally the Chevrolet Motor Division of General Motors Company, is an American automobile division of the American manufacturer General Motors (GM). Louis Chevrolet (1878–1941) and ou ...
. In January 1984, he was promoted to the dual responsibility of Vice President and Group Executive in Charge of the Buick-Oldsmobile-Cadillac group. He was elected to the board of directors (February, 1986) and became CEO (August, 1990) where he served until he was voted out in 1992 – shortly after a recession when GM had closed a dozen plants, lost 74,000 jobs and lost $7 billion. Though he suffered a heart attack soon after leaving GM in 1992, Stempel continued to visit the
North American International Auto Show The North American International Auto Show (NAIAS), also known as the Detroit Auto Show as of 2022 and prior to NAIAS, is an annual auto show held in Detroit, Michigan, U.S., at Huntington Place. The show was held in January from 1989 to 2019. ...
and continued to maintain his interest and passion for automobiles and the automobile industry.


Later career

In 1993, Stempel joined
Stanford Ovshinsky Stanford Robert Ovshinsky (November 24, 1922 – October 17, 2012) was an American engineer, scientist and inventor who over a span of fifty years was granted well over 400 patents, mostly in the areas of energy and information.Avery Cohn, "A ...
, founder of
Energy Conversion Devices Energy Conversion Devices (ECD) was an American photovoltaics manufacturer of thin-film solar cells made of amorphous silicon used in flexible laminates and in building-integrated photovoltaics. The company was also a manufacturer of recharg ...
(ECD) as an adviser. Stempel was named chairman in 1995. Shortly after Stempel became chairman, ECD partnered engineered and provided the nickel-metal hydride batteries powered the EV-1. In 1999, ECD partnered with
Intel Intel Corporation is an American multinational corporation and technology company headquartered in Santa Clara, California. It is the world's largest semiconductor chip manufacturer by revenue, and is one of the developers of the x86 ser ...
in a joint-venture called ''Ovonyx'' which developed nonsilicon-based memory for electronic devices for Intel,
Samsung Electronics Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd. (, sometimes shortened to SEC and stylized as SΛMSUNG) is a South Korean multinational electronics corporation headquartered in Yeongtong-gu, Suwon, South Korea. It is the pinnacle of the Samsung chaebol, acc ...
and
BAE Systems BAE Systems plc (BAE) is a British multinational arms, security, and aerospace company based in London, England. It is the largest defence contractor in Europe, and ranked the seventh-largest in the world based on applicable 2021 revenue ...
. Subsequently, ECD formed joint ventures with Texaco Energy Systems Inc., GE Plastics and Belgium-based N.V. Bekaert S.A. The promising technologies were unfortunately met with losses. Before retiring in 2007, Stempel was chairman of Energy Conversion for almost 12 years. Ovshinsky called Stempel "a visionary who saw the need for the U.S. to be independent of foreign oil." Before retiring in 2007, Stempel was chairman of Energy Conversion for almost 12 years. At the time of his death, Stempel served on the board of directors of ''Envia Systems'', a
Newark, California Newark is a city in Alameda County, California, United States. It was incorporated as a city in September 1955. Newark is an enclave, surrounded by the city of Fremont. The three cities of Newark, Fremont, and Union City make up the Tri-City ...
-based company that provided GM's battery engineering team with access to advanced lithium-ion cathode technology delivering higher cell energy density and lower cost. In March 2010, he joined the board of directors of Genesis Fluid Solutions Holdings, a water purification company in
Colorado Springs, Colorado Colorado Springs is a home rule municipality in, and the county seat of, El Paso County, Colorado, United States. It is the largest city in El Paso County, with a population of 478,961 at the 2020 United States Census, a 15.02% increase since ...
. He died in May 2011.


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Stempel, Robert 1933 births 2011 deaths Bloomfield High School (New Jersey) alumni General Motors former executives Worcester Polytechnic Institute alumni Michigan State University alumni People from Bloomfield, New Jersey Businesspeople from Trenton, New Jersey American chief executives in the automobile industry People from Loxahatchee, Florida 20th-century American businesspeople