It was only about a year ago when Tesla Motors hired Mike Donoughe to help the startup electric carmaker tune up its manufacturing operation for mass production.

Donoughe, who came to Tesla with 24 years of experience at Chrysler, is now leaving to join St. Claire Consortium, a management consulting firm founded by another Chrysler veteran, John Miller.

A statement from Tesla's spokeswoman Rachel Konrad said Donoughe is due to become St. Claire's senior partner starting on Oct. 1 (via Autoblog Green).

San Carlos, Calif.-based Tesla announced Donoughe's hire as its executive vice president of vehicle engineering and manufacturing in July last year. The company had lost two executives in charge of manufacturing, and Tesla's co-founder and CEO Martin Eberhard was forced out in August 2007.

When Donoughe joined Tesla, the company had started manufacturing its first model, the sport Roadster that year, but the production pace was slow. The company was rolling out four Roadsters per week while having a waiting list of more than 1,000 customers.

"He will help us with the production ramp," said Darryl Siry, Tesla's vice president of sales and marketing at that time. "We knew from the beginning of production that we would be dealing with quality issues, and we need to resolve them before we ramp up."

By the summer, Tesla was producing 25 cars per week. The company has since delivered 700 Roadsters and unveiled a prototype of Model S, a four-door sedan designed for a broader appeal. Each Roadster starts at $109,000 while the Model S is priced at $57,400.

The company recently received a $465 million federal loan for building a powertrain factory and a Model S assembly plant in California. Tesla plans to launch Model S in the third quarter of 2011 (see Tesla Will Build Model S in SoCal).

Donoughe is leaving on good terms, Konrad said. Returning to Michigan would allow Donoughe to devote more time to a nonprofit he co-founded called Cornerstone Youth Development Fund, which is based in Rochester, Mich.

Donoughe will continue to be a Tesla shareholder. He also has put down a deposit for a Model S.

The company hasn't announced its plans for replacing Donoughe.