John Manoogian II

Manoogian contributes regularly online at Driven to Write, recounting his design career under the byline JM2.

• Name — John Manoogian II • Born — July 23, 1947 • Occupation — * Automobile designer • industrial designer • adjunct faculty member • automotive industry expert • Notable Works — * Cadillac Cimarron • Cadillac CTS, 2nd Generation with Bob Munson (lead designer) and Paul Scicluna (lead sculptor)

Manoogian was born in Detroit to Rose Violet Manoogian (1922–2018) and John Albert Manoogian (1921–2016), a former Marine in World War II — and later, manager of the Alpha Project, Ford Motor Company's advanced manufacturing program. Manoogian grew up in Michigan and after working as a designer/clay sculptor for Ford Motor Company, returned to school and received a B.A. in Transportation Design from the Art Center College of Design, Los Angeles— and subsequently an M.B.A. from Oakland University, Rochester, MI.

• Illustration — 1982 Cadillac Cimarron, front • Illustration — 2012 Cadillac CTS coupe After joining the General Motors Design Staff in 1976, Manoogian acted as Assistant Chief Designer at Saturn Exterior, Pontiac Exterior, Cadillac Exterior; Chief Designer at Pontiac Exterior; Executive Vehicle Chief Designer at Buick, Chevrolet, Pontiac Exterior; and Director of Design at Cadillac Exterior. He designed two presidential limousines, 2006 and 2009; and interviewed and hired college graduates for design positions at GM Design. He has served as a Sheet Metal Subject Matter Expert and holds 3 design patents. Manoogian had the task of proposing which vehicles to sell and which to keep from the more than 900 in the GM Heritage Center's pre-bankruptcy collection. Manoogian formed a design consultancy, Forzablitz, and has acted as an automotive design patent expert witness. He taught for seven years at the College of Creative Studies. As an industry speaker, he has addressed the Industrial Designer's Society of America Annual Michigan conference on Transportation and the Portland Art Museum and has participated with numerous car clubs; appeared in the documentary "Detroit in Overdrive;" and acted as a design judge at the La Jolla, California Concours d'Elegance, Meadowbrook Concours, and EyesOn Design Automotive Design Exhibition. In 2020, Manoogian served as Director of Design for Quadrobot Corporation, founded in 2017 by Mike Tianye Wang, a former student of Manoogian. The company is developing an autonomous, electric last mile delivery vehicle. As an industry insider, Manoogian continues to participate in automotive discussions and roundtables, often sharing his personal experience as a designer. On the YouTube Rare Classic Cars & Automotive History channel, he has conducted a series of interviews on the process of designing cars and his experience designing particular models.

• 1981 Cadillac Cimarron • 1985 Cadillac Deville, • 1992 Pontiac Grand Am • 1996 Pontiac Grand Prix, • 2004 Pontiac Grand Prix • 2005 Cadillac DTS • 2006 Chevrolet Impala, Buick Lucerne • 2008 Cadillac CTS • 2006 and 2009 USA Presidential Limousines