Doug Gaffka

Last updated

Douglas Fredrick Gaffka is an American automotive designer who is best known for his work as the chief designer for the Taurus and Sable vehicle programs in 1994 and the Mustang in 1999. Since April 2001, Gaffka has been the design director of Ford Motor Company's Living Legends vehicle program, in which he oversees the development of classic Ford nameplates, like the Thunderbird and Mustang, as well as new vehicle design.

Contents

Education

He graduated from the Center for Creative Studies in Detroit, Michigan with a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree in 1978. He then joined Ford that same year.

Career at Ford

Since joining the company in 1978, he has held a number of vehicle design-related positions for Ford's North American operations and has worked in Ford's German and Australian operations. Gaffka was the chief designer for the Taurus and Sable vehicle programs in 1994, the Mustang in 1999, and the Thunderbird in 2001. [1] He was also the chief designer behind the 2008 Mustang Bullitt and 2010 Mustang. [2]

Ford's Living Legends

Since April 2001, Gaffka has been the design director for the Ford Motor Company's Living Legends vehicle program. Ford's Living Legends oversees the development of classic Ford nameplates, like the Thunderbird and Mustang, as well as new vehicle design.

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ford Taurus</span> Automobile manufactured by the Ford Motor Company

The Ford Taurus is an automobile that was manufactured by the Ford Motor Company in the United States from the 1986 to 2019 model years. Introduced in late 1985 for the 1986 model year, six generations were produced over 34 years; a brief hiatus was undertaken between 2006 and 2007. From the 1986 to 2009 model years, the Taurus was sold alongside its near-twin, the Mercury Sable; four generations of the high-performance Ford Taurus SHO were produced. The Taurus also served as the basis for the first-ever front-wheel drive Lincoln Continental (1988–2002).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mercury (automobile)</span> Automobile marque of the Ford Motor Company

Mercury is a defunct division of the American automobile manufacturer Ford Motor Company. Created in 1938 by Edsel Ford, Mercury served as the medium-price brand of Ford for nearly its entire existence, bridging the price gap between the Ford and Lincoln model lines. Competing against Buick and Oldsmobile from General Motors for decades, the brand also competed against Chrysler's namesake brand.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ford Five Hundred</span> Motor vehicle

The Ford Five Hundred is a full-size automobile that was manufactured and marketed by Ford from 2004 to 2007, and debuted as a 2005 model year vehicle. Deriving its nameplate from the ''500" suffix used by Ford on the Custom 500, Fairlane 500 and Galaxie 500 model ranges from the 1950s to 1970s, the Five Hundred was the larger of two model lines intended to replace the Ford Taurus. Within the Ford model line, the Five Hundred was slotted between the Fusion and Crown Victoria.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ford Fox platform</span> Motor vehicle platform

The Ford Fox platform is an automobile platform that was used by Ford Motor Company. Introduced for compact sedans in the 1978 model year, the Fox architecture was utilized for a wide variety of configurations for Ford and Lincoln-Mercury vehicles. In its original form, the platform was used through the 1993 model year; a substantial redesign of the Ford Mustang extended its life into the 21st century, ending production in 2004. Produced across 26 model years, the Fox platform is the second-longest car architecture ever designed by Ford Motor Company.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mercury Montego</span> Motor vehicle

The Mercury Montego is a nameplate that was applied to three separate generations of vehicles marketed by the Mercury division of Ford Motor Company. Taking its name from Montego Bay, Jamaica, the nameplate made its first appearance for 1967 in the Canadian market as part of the Mercury-derived Meteor model line. For 1968, the Mercury Montego made its debut across North America, becoming the Mercury counterpart of the Ford Torino intermediate-size model line for two generations.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mercury Sable</span> Motor vehicle

The Mercury Sable is a range of automobiles manufactured and marketed by the Mercury brand of Ford Motor Company. Introduced on December 26, 1985 as the replacement for the Mercury Marquis, the Sable marked the transition of the mid-size Mercury product range to front-wheel drive.

O. John Coletti is an American automobile engineer. He worked for the American automaker Ford Motor Company in the company's performance division, and later was the COO and president of EcoMotors International until his retirement on March 15, 2013.

Jack Telnack is the former global Vice President of Design of the Ford Motor Company from 1980 to 1997. He is best known for his work with cars like the 1979 Ford Mustang, the 1983 Ford Thunderbird, and the 1986 Ford Taurus that ushered in a new era of aerodynamic design to America's mainstream marketplace.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lincoln Mark series</span> Motor vehicle

The Continental Mark series is a series of personal luxury cars that was produced by Ford Motor Company. The nomenclature came into use with the Continental Mark II for 1956, which was a successor to the Lincoln Continental of 1939–1948. Following the discontinuation of the Mark II, Ford continued the use of the Mark series on Continental branded vehicles from 1958 to 1960. Following a hiatus, Lincoln-Mercury relaunched the Continental Mark series during 1968 and would produce six successive generations through the 1998 model year.

Peter D. Horbury is a British car designer who is Executive Vice President, Design of Geely Auto. He is widely known for his design work for Volvo and has worked in a variety of roles in the automotive industry, including as Executive Design Director, Americas for Ford between 2004 and 2009. He was named UK magazine Autocar's Designer of the Year in 1998 and during his 40+ year career has been actively involved in the design of more than 50 cars as well as trucks, buses, and motorcycles.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jeff Teague (automotive designer)</span>

Jeffrey William Teague was an American automotive designer and design consultant for Volkswagen, Ford Motor Company, Mitsubishi Motors, Hyundai Motor Group and Kia Motors — and known widely for his role as principal designer of the 1983-1992 Lincoln Mark VII.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ford Freestyle</span> Motor vehicle

The Ford Freestyle is a crossover utility vehicle that was sold by Ford from 2005 to 2009. Largely marketed as the successor to the Ford Taurus station wagon, the Freestyle was the CUV counterpart of the Ford Five Hundred and Mercury Montego four-door sedans. Sharing the Ford D3 platform with the Five Hundred and Montego, the Freestyle was produced with both front-wheel drive and all-wheel drive configurations and six or seven-passenger seating.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ford Mustang (fifth generation)</span> Motor vehicle

The fifth-generation Ford Mustang (S197) is a pony car that was manufactured by Ford from 2004 to 2014, at the Flat Rock Assembly Plant in Flat Rock, Michigan. The fifth generation began with the 2005 model year, and received a facelift for the 2010 model year. Originally designed by Sid Ramnarace through late 2001 and finalized in mid-2002, the fifth-generation Mustang's design was previewed by two pre production concept cars that debuted at the 2003 North American International Auto Show. Development began on the S-197 program in 1999 under chief engineer Hau Thai-Tang, shortly after the 1998 launch of "New Edge" SN-95 facelift. From the second half of 1999, design work commenced under Ford design chief, J Mays, and concluded in July 2002 with the design freeze. There have been several variants of the fifth-generation Ford Mustang that include the Mustang GT/California Special, Shelby Mustang, Bullitt Mustang, and Boss 302 Mustang.

In the context of the automobile industry, downsizing is a practice used to transition vehicles from one size segment to another. Commenced during the Malaise era, downsizing is done in response to consumer and government demands influencing vehicle design. As vehicle product lines completed their model cycles, automobile manufacturers developed the next generation of a vehicle with a smaller exterior footprint to allow for weight reduction and increased fuel economy, using a shortened wheelbase and body length.

Royston Charles Lunn was an engineer in the automotive industry. He had forty-one years in the design development and production of vehicles and most notably served as the head of engineering at American Motors Corporation (AMC) from 1971 to 1987. Lunn is credited as being the "father of the modern SUV" and "the godfather of the Ford GT40."

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ford Taurus (first generation)</span> Motor vehicle

The first-generation Ford Taurus and Mercury Sable are automobiles produced by Ford as the first of six generations of the Ford Taurus and Mercury Sable. Launched on December 26, 1985, as a 1986 model, the front-wheel-drive Taurus was a very influential design that is credited with saving Ford from bankruptcy, bringing many innovations to the marketplace and starting the trend towards aerodynamic design for the American automakers in the North American market. Ford of Europe had launched the 1980s move to aerodynamic design for the company with the 1982 Ford Sierra.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ford Taurus (fourth generation)</span> Motor vehicle

The fourth-generation Ford Taurus is an automobile that was produced by Ford for the 2000 to 2007 model years. While mechanically similar to its 1996-1999 predecessor, major revisions to the bodyshell of the sedan were done to alter its controversial styling as well as add interior room; it was available in four-door sedan and five-door station wagon models.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ford Taurus (fifth generation)</span> Motor vehicle

The fifth generation of the Ford Taurus is an automobile that was manufactured and marketed by Ford Motor Company for the 2008 and 2009 model years. Marking the return of the nameplate after a hiatus of less than a year, the revived Taurus is a midcycle revision of the Ford Five Hundred full-sized sedan. After its retail withdrawal following the 2007 model year, the Crown Victoria was replaced by this generation of the Taurus, making it the flagship Ford sedan for the first time.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ford Taurus (sixth generation)</span> Motor vehicle

The sixth generation of the Ford Taurus is the final generation of the model range manufactured by Ford. Introduced for the 2010 model year, the sixth-generation Taurus is the second generation of the model line produced as a full-size car; it was the heaviest sedan sold under the Ford brand worldwide. While sharing its D3 chassis underpinnings with the previous generation, the sixth generation marked the first North American use of Kinetic Design design language.

SecuriLock, also known as Passive Anti-Theft System (PATS), is Ford Motor Company's immobilizer technology. In 1996 the technology started showing up on select models of Ford, Lincoln, and Mercury vehicles. The keys have a radio frequency transponder embedded in the plastic head with a unique electronic identification code.

References

  1. Ford Motor Company. "Doug Gaffka." Ford Media. 2008. "Media.Ford.com: BIOGRAPHY: DOUG GAFFKA". Archived from the original on 2006-06-14. Retrieved 2008-11-22.
  2. Abuelsamid, Sam. "Officially Official: 2010 Ford Mustang!" Nov. 17 2008. Autoblog. http://www.autoblog.com/2008/11/17/la-preview-2010-ford-mustang-finally-unveiled/