Nissan USA
Chrysler
Book

Chrysler

The Life and Times of an Automotive Genius

Vincent Curcio
Oxford UP, 2000
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Editorial Rating

8

Qualities

  • Innovative

Recommendation

Stop whatever you’re doing. Take a week off from work and read this book! Rarely is a massive biography a pleasure to read. Usually, even the most critically acclaimed biographies are long on tedious detail and short on page-turning storytelling and exquisite style. Vincent Curcio’s biography of automotive pioneer Walter Chrysler is the exception to all these norms. Fascinating, impeccably written and completely engrossing, this sweeping tale is more than just a biography. True to its title, it is also a panoramic view of Walter Chrysler’s times. Don’t be put off by the length, even though index and all, it is 699 pages long. Even if you don’t think you’re interested in the automotive industry, read this book anyway. getAbstract joins the ranks of critics and industry insiders who’ve praised it and promises you will not be able to put it down.

Summary

Working His Way Up

Walter Chrysler loved machines. An accomplished mechanic, he also had excellent management skills honed from years in the railroad industry. His success came from his deep understanding of engineering and his total commitment to the quality of his vehicles.

Chrysler began his working years as a locomotive wiper in a Kansas roundhouse and rose to the head of the Buick Division of General Motors. In a pivotal move he rescued the flailing Maxwell-Chalmers car company and developed the 1924 Chrysler, the world’s first modern car. He formed the Chrysler Corporation in 1925, establishing his New York City headquarters in the world’s most famous art-deco structure, the famed Chrysler Building, which he built and helped design. Chrysler, a colorful maverick, was very different from the other automotive pioneering giants of his day. His company prospered during the Great Depression because of his emphasis on "quality at popular prices." The Chrysler Corp. lost money only in the rock-bottom year of the Depression, 1932, and despite the "market fiasco" of their Chrysler Airflow (which was actually years ahead of its time), the company grew and remained profitable...

About the Author

Vincent Curcio is also the author of Suicide Blonde a biography of Gloria Grahame. He lives in Union City, New Jersey.

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