Today is a sad day in the Automotive world in learning of the passing of Ferdinand Alexander Porsche at the age of 76. As many of you may already know, F.A. Porsche was the designer of the iconic Porsche 911 sports car. Within F.A. Porsche’s family, they fortified the sports car culture to distinguish what we recognize as one of the most popular sports car brands in the world.

“The creator of the Porsche 911 has founded a culture of design in our company that distinguishes our sports cars even today,” Porsche CEO Matthias Mueller said.

Ferdinand A. Porsche, son of former Porsche Chairman Ferry Porsche, became head of Porsche design studio in the early 1960s. This is when Porsche developed the 911 model, a bigger and more powerful replacement for the 4-cylinder Porsche 356. He was also credited with the design of the Volkswagen Beetle. In the early 70′s Ferdinand left the operational part of the family company and founded a design business creating eyeglasses, watches and pens.

The Porsche family started off with a design and engineering firm in the 1930s through F.A. Porsche’s grandfather, Ferdinand Porsche. Born in Stuttgart, Germany on December 11, 1935, F.A. Porsche was put to work as a young boy for the family business. He later studied at the Hochschule fuer Gestaltung in Ulm and joined the company in 1958. Later in life F.A. Porsche served as chairman of Porsche AG from 1990 to 1993 bringing the family firm out of a sales crisis.

“A formally harmonious product needs no decoration, it should be elevated through pure form,” he once said — a motto reflected in the lean lines of the 911. That very motto remains true today.

Today we celebrate the life and legacy of Ferdinand Alexander Porsche leaving behind his living inspirations in one of the most recognized automotive brands around. God Speed Ferdinand!