Douglas “Doug” Donalson, a longtime pioneer in limousine manufacturing, passed away in July after a long battle with Parkinson’s Disease. He was 76.
Born in Texas in 1947, Doug was a military brat who moved several times during his childhood due to his father’s career as an Air Force pilot. He later enlisted in the Air Force himself, serving one year in Vietnam during his 6-year career. He eventually ended up laying roots in Missouri.
“He was simply a good man down to the core. He was a straight shooter, honest, dedicated, extremely loyal, disciplined, hard-working, and a very honorable man.”– David Bakkare of Executive Coach Builders
Doug is best known from his time at Executive Coach Builders, where he led the company’s production team during the heyday of the limousine industry. He joined Executive when it was first founded in 1977. Because coachbuilding was so new, Doug—who had bodywork, welding, and fabrication experience—was instrumental in honing the craft long before the industry introduced standards through Lincoln’s QVM or Cadillac’s CMC programs. Through trial and error, he learned one truth: make stretches stronger than they need to be. In fact, he was adding safety features like impact beams and heavy-duty brakes before they were required.
After working for some other manufacturers based in Springfield, Missouri, including founding his own company called Coachworks by Donalson, he returned to Executive in the 1990s when the company was purchased by current owner David Bakare, ultimately spending more than 40 years in the limousine manufacturing sector.
“He was simply a good man down to the core,” Bakare shared on Facebook. “He was a straight shooter, honest, dedicated, extremely loyal, disciplined, hard-working, and a very honorable man. He was a mentor, and he was also like a father to me—and I don’t say that lightly. I credit him for laying the groundwork for a lot of the success that ECB enjoys today. On behalf of ECB and everyone that has ever worked for Doug, I say THANK YOU! We honor you, we appreciate you, we love you, and we miss you dearly.”
Beyond his ECB family, Doug was well known and respected in the industry and received several awards and recognition for his contributions, including being inducted into the Limousine Digest Hall of Fame in 2007. His legacy still endures today through the engineering processes at ECB, and he even inspired his son Ryan to join the company where they worked together for many years.
Although Doug retired officially from ECB right before the pandemic, he continued to work with Bakare on special projects.
“Without Doug, there would be no Executive Coach as we know it today. He was so much more than just an employee to me. He taught me everything I know about production. He instilled in me the philosophy that if you cut corners now, you’ll pay twice later. Do it right the first time. That sticks with me,” says Bakare.
The self-professed tinkerer didn’t limit his talents to limousines—although his accomplishments were many, including his groundbreaking “wide body” limousine design that helped to put Executive on the map.
“The wide-body limousine was a phenomenal idea,” says Bakare. “I’m not sure how he conceived the idea, but he created the first one and it was the top of the line for the industry for years. Doug didn’t like to copy, he liked to innovate. He was a true innovator who consistently worked to improve his own craftsmanship.”
His family says besides being a longtime motorcycle enthusiast, his real passion was cars. His life’s work and hobbies evolved around building, customizing, designing, and owning countless vehicles that ranged from dune buggies to limousines.
According to his family, Doug also liked doing home improvements for his own home as well as those of his loved ones, and he was also a talented woodworker.
Doug is survived by his wife, Lynn; his son Ryan, wife Beth, and grandsons Brody and Jude; his daughter Becky Worthy, husband Nathan, and granddaughter Sydney and her husband Ian, and grandson Riley; his brother Sterling and his wife Marsha, nephew Drew, and niece Jocelyn and their families.
In lieu of flowers contributions can be made to South Gate Baptist Church (southgate.org/give), of which he was a charter member.
Chauffeur Driven extends our heartfelt condolences to the Donalson family as well as his loved ones, friends, and colleagues. [CD1124]
Photos courtesy of Executive Coach Builders