Dave Lyon

As a designer for General Motors, Dave Lyon knows cars inside and out. Literally.

As a car designer for General Motors since 1990, Dave Lyon has experienced many different careers.

Born in Naperville, Illinois, in 1968, Dave always loved cars and went to many car shows and races with his dad, so his career choice was a natural one. He received a BFA in Transportation Design from the College for Creative Studies in Detroit, Michigan, and taught industrial and transportation design at both Wayne State University and the College for Creative Studies.

He’s worked on both exterior and interior design, overseen full-size truck production, and led the Asia-based team that’s bringing Chevrolet’s next generation of fuel-efficient cars to the market. As Executive Director of GM’s North American Interior Design team, he’s helping solve complex problems related to the next big challenges – the surprising twists in designing interiors for electric versus combustion engine cars, and making sure the new wave of human interaction with electronics results in a safer, more engaging driving experience.

As he points out, “There is no design project that doesn’t seem important at the time, but now vehicles such as the Cruze, the upcoming Aveo and the Chevy Spark are crucial to our future.“ Dave also oversaw the interior for the critically-acclaimed 2010 Buick LaCrosse and is fascinated with his latest assignment – the interior of the new electric plug-in Chevy Volt.