Yahoo (with US News and World Report) has a rundown of 10 cars that helped sink Detroit. It's a good reminder of just how arrogant car executives have been.
I have been wondering lately if the Federal bailout of Chrysler back in 1979 was a good idea. The Heritage Foundation didn't think so in 1983. This is one of the few times I find myself intrigued by an argument coming from Heritage; normally I don't even bother listening to them. I'm not in a position to verify the arguments laid out in this article, but it sure is interesting.
One thing I learned from the Heritage article was that Chrysler was actually the second largest car company in the country, ahead of Ford, until after WWII. Then they started making management mistakes.
OK, hold on. Chrysler management has been making bad decisions for fifty years? Now I am really not sure if saving it was a good idea.
I know some good people who work for Chrysler. Of course, with family in Detroit, I pretty much have to know people at all of the Big Three. My cousin does PR for Chrysler. I have lots of nostalgic reasons to like Chrysler.
But I'm not sure I have any rational reasons to support Chrysler anymore. If Fiat doesn't buy it, I think it's time to bid adieu. Maybe Ford will buy Jeep. Other than that, tho, I don't see much reason for optimism.
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