Cook Quits U.S. Porsche After Split With Board

John Cook, the president of Reno-based Porsche Cars North America is leaving the company after he disagreed with directors on organizational changes.

Company spokeswoman Martha McKinley said the management shake-up is not related to the lagging American sales of Porsche automobiles, down to about 18,000 cars a year following a peak of more than 30,000 in 1986.

Cook will leave immediately under a mutual agreement with the directors of the firm, who want “a directional change in marketing,” according to a statement released Wednesday.

“The board of directors decided the sales and marketing functions of the company should report directly to the president and Mr. Cook disagreed with that in concept,” McKinley said.

Senior Executive Vice President Frederick Schwab will serve as interim director of the U.S. subsidiary of West Germany’s Porsche AG until Cook’s successor is named, the company said.

Cook and Schwab could not be reached for comment.

Cook joined Porsche Cars North America as president and chief executive in 1985, the year Porsche AG took back distribution from Volkswagen of America and established headquarters in Reno.