Chrysler president · 1932–
Robert “Bob” Lutz
Lutz was the executive at the wheel when the new Grand Cherokee crashed through Cobo Hall plate glass in January 1992.
“The stunt everyone attributes to Iacocca actually belongs to Lutz — a clean example of a flashy moment drifting toward the most famous name in the room.”
The Cobo Hall stunt
At the January 1992 Detroit auto show, Chrysler president Bob Lutz drove a new Grand Cherokee up a ramp from the Jefferson North Assembly Plant and through a plate-glass window onto the Cobo Hall show floor, with Detroit Mayor Coleman Young riding as passenger — one of the most famous launch stunts in auto-show history.
Why the record needed straightening out
The stunt is widely and persistently misattributed to Lee Iacocca, Chrysler's more famous CEO at the time. Wikipedia's Grand Cherokee article and independent secondary coverage both credit Lutz specifically. A primary photo or news clip from the actual event has not yet been located to close the loop with certainty.