Auto industry / Business & brands
Semon Knudsen
1912–1998 · automotive executive, head of Pontiac and Chevrolet, president of Ford
Son of GM president William Knudsen who turned stodgy Pontiac into a performance brand, ran Chevrolet, then had a stormy 19 months as Ford's president.
- Born
Buffalo, New York- Died
Royal Oak, Michigan
aged 85- Birth name
- Semon Emil Knudsen
- Also known as
- Bunkie Knudsen · Semon E. Knudsen
- Detroit years
- 1910s–1998
01 / The Detroit story
The Detroit story
Nicknamed 'Bunkie' by his father, William S. Knudsen, he grew up in the Detroit area as his father rose at Ford and General Motors. He joined GM's Pontiac division in 1939, ran Detroit Diesel from 1955 and in 1956 became Pontiac's general manager, then the youngest in GM history. He set out to shake off Pontiac's staid image, bringing in engineer Pete Estes and hiring John DeLorean from Packard; the Bonneville, the 'Wide-Track' Pontiacs and a NASCAR program followed, and by 1962 Pontiac was third in U.S. sales. He headed Chevrolet from 1961. Passed over for GM's presidency, he stunned Detroit in 1968 by jumping to Ford as president, but clashed with Lee Iacocca and was fired by Henry Ford II in 1969. He later led White Motor and served as NASCAR commissioner. He lived in Bloomfield Hills and died in Royal Oak in 1998.
Highlights
- General manager of Pontiac, 1956–1961
- Pontiac rose to third place in U.S. sales by 1962
- General manager of Chevrolet from 1961
- President of Ford Motor Company, 1968–1969
- NASCAR national commissioner, 1978–1998
02 / Their Detroit places
Their Detroit places 2
Where they lived, worked, performed and liked to hang out. Closed and demolished places stay here too, because they are part of the city's history.
Worked here · 1950s–1968
Cadillac Place (former General Motors Building)
GM's headquarters during his years as a division chief and corporate vice president.
Worked here · 1968–1969
Ford World Headquarters (Glass House)
Closed · 1956–2025
Ford's headquarters during his short presidency; vacated in 2025 and slated for demolition.