Chrysler Logo

Chrysler Group LCC is widely known for its luxury cars, sports cars, SUVs, and other sedans; you name it, and they have it. An American-based automaker, its current headquarters is in Auburn Hills, Michigan.

Brief History of the Chrysler

The company was founded by Walter Chrysler has originated from Maxwell Motor Company when the company was reorganized. Walter Chrysler came to this company during its lowest point; it gave birth to the now well established Chrysler automobile corporation. Its first product was a 6 cylinder car with unique innovations packed in it. Some of these developments were its hydraulic brakes which were chiefly developed by Chrysler himself but patented by Lockheed. He was also recognized for designing the ridges of the rims in the wheels which prevented flat tires from coming off the wheel. This was subsequently adapted by most of automobile companies worldwide. Additionally, what made the cars of Chrysler customer friendly was because of their surprisingly low reasonable price.

The Birth of the Chrysler Corporation and its Brands

In the year 1928, Chrysler began segregating its cars according to their functions as well as price. The Plymouth was born to serve low-priced automobiles. The DeSoto, back then was made to sell medium-priced cars. Also, the Dodge automobile company was bought from the Dodge brothers to serve with high-priced cars. However, today the DeSoto has been serving luxury cars; switching places with Dodge with some of its medium-priced cars.

Chrysler Logo

Chrysler Logo

Chrysler Logo

Chrysler Logo

Chrysler Logo

Chrysler Logo

Chrysler Logo

Chrysler Logo

Chrysler Logo

Chrysler Logo

Another brand division, the Imperial, was used to compete with certain top-of-the-line companies like Cadillac and Lincoln. It primarily made automobiles with V8 engines and automatic transmission. However, in 1973 Imperial was absorbed by Chrysler Corporation. Also, the brand Valiant was introduced in the 1960s. This was formerly a model of the Plymouth, and then the DeSoto made one of it too. All of these were the brands and divisions of Chrysler Corporation that reigned with superiority during the 1940s up to the 1970s.

Later brand acquisitions were made with American Motors. Jeep was acquired from them; this brand served off-road vehicles, pickup trucks, as wells as SUVs.

The Daimler- Chrysler Merger

In the year 1997, Chryslers then CEO Bob Eaton rendered a speech that would have consisted of some of the most worrying words. "... there may be a perfect storm brewing" this phrase caught the attention of every employee and crew in the auditorium. He figuratively said that there was a cold front of overcapacity; a nor'easter that conveyed retail revolution which empowered buyers; and a hurricane that represented a rise in the environmental awareness that consequently threatened the industry of combustible engines. These statements were somehow taken by Eaton from the book "The Perfect Storm", he also said that the lesson of the book told him that when there is a storm coming, you have to nowhere near the storm area, and you must not be alone. These were the wise words Bob Eaton uttered in front of the crowd.

Another automobile company, Damier-Benz, was also struggling in the U.S. Only 1% of cars in the United States belong to this company at that time. The company's CEO decided that they have to find another company to merge with. And the perfect match they found was Chrysler Corporation.

After some time, and a lot of discussions and business meetings, Bob Eaton announced that they were merging with Damier-Benz. Nearly reaching $37 billion, this was the largest trans-Atlantic merger ever made. Jürgen Schrempp, Damier-Benz's CEO coined the term "merger of equals" as they and Chrysler shared the same hardships during that time, and that it would be of an advantage if the merger materialized.

However, as time passed by, the merger was proven to be a failure. Chrysler was disappointed with the new company's performance and its fair profit. Certain differences emerged with the managers of both companies. They would throw words at each other; many Daimler-Benz executives said that they would never drive a Chrysler; while Chrysler managers uttered that the Jeep Grand Cherokee earned more than the Mercedes M-Class.

The president of Chrysler during the year 2000 described this feud as a 'marrying up, marrying down' situation. The company Damier- Benz was largely recognized by its luxury cars and was regarded as a company that sells fancy and stylish automobiles; while the Chrysler were especially made for medium to low level automobiles. This idea created an invisible tension between the American and the German employees of the merged corporation. Many German staffs would even argue that they were being given a salary less than the Americans were getting; they even described the salary of their counterparts as 4 times bigger than theirs. Even Chrysler's CEO Bob Eaton finally succumbed to the situation and began showing signs of withdrawal and depression; he would not talk to his employees when asked to, or would not initiate motivation when needed.

Chrysler Today- A Comeback

Today, Chrysler has performed well in the automotive industry. It has been ranked by the International Organization of Motor Vehicle Manufacturers as 2010s 13th largest vehicle producers in the whole world. Overall vehicle production by Chrysler in the year 2010 was estimated at 1.58 million. It was also hailed as one of Big Three Automakers in the United States alongside with Ford and General Motors.

Other Ventures

During the World War II, Chrysler has also manufactured several vehicles and other products to best serve the U.S. military. They made superior Chrysler tanks compared to Ford or General Motors. They also made engines for airplanes such as jet engines. Missiles were also manufactured through their company such as the medium- range ballistic missile called PGM-19 Jupiter.

With its new tagline "Imported from Detroit", Chrysler offers many innovative automobiles that would serve not only Americans, but everyone. Today, Chrysler still serves not only the U.S. community, but also the different countries that appreciate the long history of this automobile company. With its ups and downs, it managed to survive many economic busts and depressions. Chrysler has surely established its foundations; and it will definitely be staying in the automobile industry for many years.