Riding the Roller Coaster: A History of the Chrysler Corporation - Paperback

by Charles K. Hyde (Author)

A comprehensive history of the highs and lows of the Chrysler Corporation and its lasting impact on the automotive industry.

Chrysler has had an impressive list of technological "firsts" throughout the years--including the Chrysler Six of 1924 and front-wheel-drive vehicles in the '70s and '80s, to name just two. While the company has catered well to a variety of consumers, it has also come to the brink of financial ruin more than once in its seventy-five-year history.

In Riding the Roller Coaster, author Charles K. Hyde takes readers into the board room and onto the factory lines to tell the story behind Chrysler's products, people, and performance. Outlining their history from the founding of the company through the major merger with Daimler-Benz, Hyde recounts the ups and downs of Chrysler's monumental success turned colossal financial failure and sharp recovery. He pays special attention to the company's leadership in automotive engineering, its styling successes and failures, and its changing management, including a special look at automotive powerhouses including Walter P. Chrysler and Lee Iacocca.

Author Biography

Charles K. Hyde is professor emeritus of history at Wayne State University. He has authored numerous books, including Arsenal of Democracy: The American Automobile Industry in World War II and The Dodge Brothers: The Men, the Motor Cars, and the Legacy (both Wayne State University Press), the latter of which was selected as a Michigan Notable Book by the Library of Michigan.