He's back! Kerkorian bids $4.5 billion for Chrysler

[Charles Brown <cbrown@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

"However, Chrysler tried to oust John Willys with an attempted takeover bid
that backfired when the shareholders resisted his move and Chrysler left the
company in 1921 following which he acquired a controlling interest in the
ailing Maxwell Motor Company."

So what's new  ?

Charles

P.S.

"Walter Chrysler's autobiography was titled The Life of an American Workman"

^^^^



 
 Walter Chrysler


Walter Percy Chrysler (April 2, 1875 ? August 18, 1940) was an American
automobile pioneer.

He was born in Wamego, Kansas and grew up in Ellis, Kansas. He also lived in
Oelwein, Iowa, where there is a small park dedicated to him.

His automobile career began when the American Locomotive Company (ALCO)
decided to diversify into the automobile business. Chrysler was the plant
manager. ALCO had some racing success but less in the way of sales success.
Chrysler saw the way things were going and took a job at the Buick Motor
Company in 1911, two years before ALCO quit the automobile business. He
resigned from his job as president of Buick in 1919 and was hired by John
Willys to run his Willys-Overland Motor Company in Toledo, Ohio, at a salary
of $1 million a year, an astonishing amount at that time. However, Chrysler
tried to oust John Willys with an attempted takeover bid that backfired when
the shareholders resisted his move and Chrysler left the company in 1921
following which he acquired a controlling interest in the ailing Maxwell
Motor Company. Chrysler phased out Maxwell and absorbed it into his new
firm, the Chrysler Corporation, in 1925. In addition to his namesake car
company, Plymouth and DeSoto marques were created, and in 1928 Chrysler
purchased Dodge. He financed the construction of the Chrysler Building and
built it in New York City. In 1928, Chrysler was named Time Magazine's Man
of the Year.

 
This plaque is located in the lobby of the Chrysler Building.The Chrysler
Corporation went through numerous changes over the years, with the Jeep and
Eagle brands coming from the acquisition of American Motors. Despite the
retirement of the Maxwell, DeSoto, AMC, Eagle, and Plymouth brands, Chrysler
continued to be a part of Detroit's Big Three until 1998, when the German
company Daimler-Benz, the makers of Mercedes-Benz automobiles, decided to
merge with the company to form a new car company, DaimlerChrysler. 

[edit] Thoroughbred horse racing
Walter Chrysler built a country estate in Warrenton in what is referred to
as the Virginia horse country and home to the Warrenton Hunt. In 1934, he
purchased and undertook a major restoration of the famous Fauquier White
Sulphur Springs Company resort and spa in Warrenton. Sold in 1953, the
property was developed as a country club, which it remains today.

On his estate, Chrysler established North Wales Stud for the purpose of
breeding Thoroughbred horses. Chrysler was part of a syndicate that included
friend Alfred G. Vanderbilt II who in 1941 acquired the 1935 English Triple
Crown winner Bahram from the Aga Khan III. Bahram stood at stud at
Vanderbilt's Sagamore Farm in Maryland then was brought to Chrysler's North
Wales Stud.

Walter Chrysler's autobiography was titled The Life of an American Workman.

He is buried at Sleepy Hollow Cemetery in Sleepy Hollow, New York.


[edit] References
History @ the Walter P. Chrysler Museum 
Walter P. Chrysler Boyhood Home & Museum 
Fauquier Springs Country Club 
"Chrysler: The Life and Times of an Automotive Genius", Vincent Curcio,
Oxford Univeristy Press, 2000 
"Life of an American Workman", Walter P. Chrysler in collaboration with
Boyden Sparkes, Dodd, Mead and Company, 1937 
Retrieved from "http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Walter_Chrysler";




Dodge is a brand name of automobiles and light to heavy-duty trucks. From
1914 to 1927, the company was named the Dodge Brothers Motor Vehicle
Company. The Chrysler Corporation acquired the Dodge company in 1928. In
1998, Dodge, along with all other Chrysler subsidiaries merged with
Daimler-Benz.

Contents [hide]
1 History 
2 Logos 
3 North American model lineup 
4 Military trucks 
5 European models 
6 Dodge concept vehicles 
7 See also 
8 External links 
 


[edit] History
In 1901, John Francis Dodge and Horace Elgin Dodge moved their Dodge
Brothers Bicycle & Machine Factory to Detroit, Michigan. Their bearings and
other parts were in demand with the early automobile industry, and they
helped design motor parts for early Oldsmobiles.

In 1902, the Dodge Brothers were approached by Henry Ford, who was looking
for help in financing his own automobile company. Dodge Brothers helped
finance the start of the Ford Motor Company as well as manufacturing parts
for early Fords, to Ford's and the Dodge Brothers' mutual financial benefit.

In 1914, the Dodge Brothers started their own auto company, which they named
the Dodge Brothers Motor Vehicle Company, choosing 50 dealers initially from
hundreds of applications, some of which remain successful today. In a boost
to their fortunes, the Dodge brothers brought a successful lawsuit against
Ford in 1917. In the same year, Dodge Brothers began building motor trucks
as well, at first for use by the United States Army during World War I, then
commercially after the war's end.

In 1925, the Dodge Brothers Company was purchased by Dillon, Read & Company
for US$148 million, said to be the largest cash transaction in history up to
that time. Dillon Read in turn sold Dodge to the Chrysler Corporation on
July 31, 1928.

Following Chrysler's takeover of the British Rootes Group, Simca of France
and Barreiros of Spain, and the resultant establishment of Chrysler Europe
in the late 1960s, the Dodge brand was used on light commercial vehicles,
most of which were previously branded Commer or Karrier (Rootes
subsidiaries), on pick-up and van versions of the Simca 1100, on the Spanish
Dodge Dart and on heavy trucks built in Spain. The most common of these was
the Dodge 50 series, widely used by utility companies and the military, but
rarely seen outside the UK, and the Spanish-built top-weight 300 series
available as 4x2, 6x4, 8x2 and 8x4 rigids and 4x2 semi-trailer tractors. All
of them were also sold in some export markets badged either as Fargo or De
Soto

Following Chrysler Europe's collapse in 1977, and the sale of their assets
to Peugeot, the Dodge British and Spanish factories were quickly passed on
to Renault Véhicules Industriels, who gradually re-branded to Renault the
range of vans and trucks through the 1980s, eventually dropping the products
altogether and using the plants to produce engines in the UK and some real
Renault truck models in Spain. Dodge would not return to the UK until the
introduction of the Dodge Neon SRT-4, branded as a Chrysler Neon, in the mid
2000s.

Dodge is now part of DaimlerChrysler AG, based in Stuttgart. As of 2005, the
Dodge brand has become known primarily for its trucks, which account for 78%
of the division's sales. Dodge is attempting to change this with the
introduction of the new Dodge Charger and the forthcoming Dodge Challenger.

The Dodge marque was reintroduced to Europe in 2006. Currently, the Dodge
Viper SRT-10 (sold as the Dodge SRT-10 in the UK), Dodge Ram, and the Dodge
Caliber are the only Dodge-branded vehicles in that market. The Dodge Nitro
and the Dodge Avenger will be released in mid-2007.

Dodge recently re-entered the Australian market in 2006 after a 30 year
absence. Dodge Australia plans to release a new model every six months for
the next three years, amid plans to re-ignite the brand's interest down
under. The first of such models is the Dodge Caliber, which was well
received at the recent 2006 Melbourne Motor Show.

Dodge vehicles are now available in many countries throughout the world. In
2006, Dodge sold more than 1.3 million vehicles in the global market.

In Mexico, the Hyundai Accent, Hyundai Atos, and Hyundai H100 are branded as
"Dodge" or "Hyundai by Dodge" and sold at Dodge dealers.


[edit] Logos