Chrysler

In January 1924, Walter Chrysler launched the well-received Chrysler automobile.

The Chrysler company was created by Walter P. Chrysler in 1925 when he renamed the Maxwell Motor Company.

Among the innovations in its early years were the first practical mass-produced four-wheel hydraulic brakes and rubber engine mounts to reduce vibration. Chrysler also developed a wheel with a ridged rim, designed to keep a deflated tire from flying off the wheel. This wheel was eventually adopted by the auto industry worldwide.

The 1,046 feet (319 m) Chrysler Building in New York City opened to the public on May 27, 1930. The Chrysler building was born out of a race between Walter Chrysler and General Motors executive John R Raskob to build the world's tallest skyscraper. The Chrysler was the tallest building in the world for just a few weeks in 1930, until Raskob added a few more stories to his Empire State building, pipping the Chrysler by 62 metres.

Chrysler Building 

Chrysler introduced the first commercially available passenger car power steering system on the 1951 Chrysler Imperial under the name "Hydraguide.”

The Chrysler Corporation launched high fidelity record players for their 1956 line-up of cars on October 12, 1955. In 1961 they discontinued them.

Chrysler built 55 turbine-powered cars from 1963-1964. they could run on any fuel that could burn with oxygen, including kerosene, jet fuel, perfume, tequila, peanut oil, soybean oil, and furnace oil, and produced 130 horsepower. Only nine still exist.

Corinthian leather is a term coined in 1974 to describe the upholstery used in certain Chrysler luxury vehicles. For years Chrysler advertised their luxury cars as containing 'Corinthian leather' with Ricardo Montalbán as the spokesman. On Late Night with David Letterman Montalbán playfully admitted that the term meant nothing and it was coined by advertising agency Bozell. The leather was actually sourced from New Jersey.

The 1973 oil crisis was a major blow to the American automotive industry, and Chrysler was one of the hardest hit. The crisis led to a sharp increase in gas prices, which made consumers less likely to buy large, gas-guzzling cars like those made by Chrysler. As a result, Chrysler's sales plummeted and the company began to lose money.

In 1979, Chrysler was on the verge of bankruptcy. The company had lost $1.7 billion in the previous year and was facing a cash shortfall of $2 billion. On September 7, 1979, Chrysler chairman Lee Iacocca asked the United States government for $1.5 billion in loans to avoid bankruptcy.

The government was initially reluctant to bail out Chrysler, but Iacocca was able to convince them that the company was worth saving. He argued that Chrysler was an important part of the American economy and that its collapse would have a ripple effect throughout the industry.

In May 1980, the government agreed to lend Chrysler $1.5 billion. The loans were conditional on Chrysler making a number of changes, including cutting costs, streamlining operations, and introducing more fuel-efficient cars.

Chrysler was able to turn things around and repay the government loans ahead of schedule. In 1984, the company posted record profits of $2.4 billion. The Chrysler bailout is considered one of the most successful government interventions in American corporate history.

In 1987, Chrysler acquired American Motors Corporation (AMC), which brought the profitable Jeep brand under the Chrysler umbrella.

Chrysler Headquarters in Auburn Hills, Michigan, United States

A $36 billion merger of the Chrysler Corporation by Daimler-Benz A.G.  forming DaimlerChrysler was announced on May 7, 1998. It was the largest industrial takeover in history at the time. 

The merger was intended to create a global automotive powerhouse, but it ultimately failed. The two companies had different cultures and management styles, and they were unable to integrate their operations effectively. The merger also came at a time when the global automotive industry was in decline, and DaimlerChrysler was unable to compete effectively with its rivals. The company eventually split up in 2007.

In 2009 Chrysler managed to stay in business after participating in a bailout from the U.S. government through the Troubled Asset Relief Program. On June 10, 2009, Chrysler emerged from the bankruptcy proceedings with the United Auto Workers pension fund, Fiat S.p.A., and the U.S. and Canadian governments as principal owners.