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History of Chrysler, Plymouth, Dodge, Jeep, DeSoto, AMC, and Others

If you are interested in the history of a particular car, please see the vehicles page.

Chronologies

Full-brand histories

chrysler family tree

Technologies

 

Vehicle types

nc squads

Historically significant vehicles and projects

Chrysler military and space flight work

Kaiser-Jeep M35A2

  • Origin of the Jeep from an Austin reconnaissance vehicle to Bantam to the final Willys design
  • Chrysler and radar: SCR584 radar-guided anti-aircraft guns - delivered at 20% of the Army’s (and GE’s) estimated cost, in 1 trailer instead of 7, these innovative radar/gun units were part of a crash program that saved many soldiers’ lives.
  • B-29 Superfortress bomber: Chrysler's role in redesigning the Wright Cyclone engine so it would be durable and could be mass-produced; in cutting the cost of the engines in half while saving energy in testing and metal in production; and in producing aircraft components
  • Preparing for war, 1940-1942: Chrysler dedicates its massive resources to tanks, military vehicles, guns, and airplanes
  • Building tanks and the “arsenal of democracy:” Chrysler builds and helps to engineer the M3, Sherman, and Pershing tanks, voluntarily giving up all profits
  • Missiles and Space Flight: the Redstone missiles; the Saturn missiles and NASA
  • Chrysler and the atomic bomb: Had Chrysler not been called in, the United States may not have had the atomic bomb for a year or two longer - at the cost of all the nickel in the country. A full history of Chrysler’s role in building the first atomic bomb and the facility that refined the US’s weapons-grade uranium through 1985.
  • Wartime cars: sales and production of Chrysler and other vehicles during World War II.

The Walter P. Chrysler Museum

Fame

Factories and manufacturing

spider glass

Engineering and design

viper in test area

Engineering and design notes for specific cars

Suppliers

Branding and sales

Corporate information

plymouth road office complex

Memories and stories

Bits and pieces

Chrysler History | History by Year | Chrysler People and Bios


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