Eiji Toyoda, the legendary president of Toyota Motor Corporation, died in Japan at the age of 100 at 4:32 a.m. today because of heart failure.
Toyoda started out as a loom maker in 1937, founded by Sakichi Toyoda, his father’s brother. Later the company was rebuilt into the car manufacturer.
Eiji Toyoda served as president from 1967 to 1982, engineering Toyota's growth into a global automaker. He led the development of Crown, the first absolutely Japanese motor car. He became a chairman in 1982, and the president of the company - in 1992. Toyoda has continued in advisory positions since 1999 up to his death.