Cars Lead Singer Ric Ocasek Dies Of Heart Disease, Officials Say

GRAMERCY, NY — The lead singer of The Cars Ric Ocasek died of heart disease Sunday afternoon, the city's Medical Examiner announced Monday.

Ocasek died Sunday afternoon in his Gramercy townhouse on the east side of Manhattan, after his wife Paulina Porzikova found him, Patch previously reported.

He was 75-years-old.

The Medical Examiner's office said the singer, who's name was Richard Octasek, died of natural causes.

The cause of death was from hypertensive and atherosclerotic cardiovascular disease. A lung disease called pulmonary emphysema was a contributing factor, the city's Medical Examiner's office said.

The Cars became famous in the late 1970s with hits like "Just What I Needed" and "My Best Friend's Girl." He and his bandmates met in Cleveland before moving to Boston in the early 1970s before forming The Cars.

In 1988, the band split up. In 2018, The Cars was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, where Ocasek is pictured above.

Patch editor Colin Miner contributed to this report.