History of Chrysler, Plymouth, Dodge, Jeep, DeSoto, AMC, and Others
See our new section on Chrysler corporate facts and history, which covers factories, labs, culture, branding and sales, suppliers, recovery plans, acquisitions (e.g buying Dodge Brothers), and other “corporate” information.
Some key sections
- Chronology of Chrysler: year by year, from the 1800s to 1981
- Chrysler and its cars and trucks, by year
- Car and truck histories
- Chrysler corporate facts and history
- Ads
Full-brand histories
Ancestors of Chrysler: Alden-Sampson to Stoddard-Dayton- Chalmers (and E.R. Thomas)
- Jeep from Austin to Willys
- Jeffery Cars and 4x4s
- Maxwell: the company that turned into Chrysler
- Willys-Overland (and John Willys)
- American Motors Corporation
- Chrysler Industrial:
- Chrysler Brand
- Chrysler outside the US
- DeSoto
- Dodge cars
- Dodge trucks (including Karrier and commercial trucks)
- Fargo Truck
- Imperial
- Plymouth
- Rootes Group: Hillman, Humber, Singer, Sunbeam
- Simca, makers of the best-selling car in France
- Associated companies and suppliers:
Technologies
Alternative fuels and efficiency: turbines, hybrids, on-board computers, aerodynamics, and other interesting projects- Alternators
- Electric cars
- Railroad cars and railroad car trucks
- Lean Burn
- Chrysler technological innovations: work in transmissions, engines, and more.
- Chrysler’s CTC technology lab (1998)
- Electrojector: world’s first electronic-fuel-injection car ... from 1958
- Linen and velum drawings: history of a 1925 engineering drawing through 1985
- Torsion bar / leaf spring suspensions
- Fins and aerodynamic stability: 1957 report by Virgil Exner
- Prelubricated bearings
Vehicle types
- Fleet and squad cars: police cars, fire trucks, ambulances, and postal vehicles
Boats and marine engines- Campers and motor homes
- School buses
- Front-drive performance 1983-1993
- Military vehicles including tanks and aircraft engines
- Minivan including development information.
- Plymouth convertibles 1928-1971: concentrating on 1928-1955
- Plymouth delivery vehicles: sedan deliveries and panel trucks
- Plymouth wagons 1934-1954: from the woodies to the steel-bodies Suburban wagons
- Railroad cars
- Rockets (including the Moon rockets)
- Taxis and jitneys: Tough cars for tough duty
- 1928-1957 Model / Serial Number Guide
Historically significant vehicles and projects
- Chrysler military and space flight work (including the Moon rockets)
Racing: Some excellent articles on Chrysler's racing history, covering the Pettys, NASCAR, and much more- Plymouth Commercial Vehicles: vans, fleets, and trucks.
- The first Chrysler (1924)
- Aerodynamics: from the beginning to the Superbird.
- Plymocoupe ("the flying Plymouth") airplane.
- Scat Pack and Rapid Transit System: muscle car collections
- MasterTech: the filmstrip-and-record training system
- The best and worst of the Daimler Decade, 2000-2009
The Walter P. Chrysler Museum
- Virtual Guided Museum Tour
- Interview with the leaders of the museum
- Review of the Walter P. Chrysler Museum
- Allpar meet at the museum, 2006
- Final days of the Walter P. Chrysler Museum
Fame
- Mopars in movies
- Christine, the reason why non-Mopar folk know the 1958 Plymouth Fury
- Bluesmobile (Dodge Monaco)
- Celebrities' Chrysler, Plymouth, Dodge, and Jeep vehicles
- Johnny Cash's Plymouth, and the Johnny Cash Plymouth contest
- Franklin D. Roosevelt's Plymouths
- Statesmen and government leaders
- Mopars on television
- Mopars in music
- Biographies of famous Chrysler folk, racers, etc.
- Pioneers of the American Auto Industry
Engineering and design
- Styling and coloring cars in 1955
- Performance Vehicles Operations team (PVO)
- Vehicle Excitement Team (VXT)
- The platform team system: as described by Francois Castaing and Glenn Gardner; also see "Design of the LH series" below and the LH page itself (more in our Chris Theodore interview)
- Design and manufacturing of the LH series: innovations in the engineering and involvement process
- Cab forward: definition, how it was developed, and why it was important
- Auto development notes
- Using technology to engineer cars and trucks: see our technology page for more links
- Arizona Proving Grounds (2008) — both Wittman and Yucca
- Chrysler and the environment, 1993
- Chrysler Institute of Engineering
- Why Chrysler switched side marker light designs each year for three years
Engineering and design notes for specific cars
- Neon: innovations in engineering, assembly setup, and employee involvement
- LH series: innovations in engineering and employee involvement (see "the platform team system")
- Durango: Teamwork | Supplier partnerships | Simultaneous design and engineering
Memories and stories
- Biographies and interviews
- Cannonball Run Duster: One Lap of America in a Plymouth (1989)
- Insider's History of Chrysler: 1950-1964, including Plymouth, Dodge, Chrysler, DeSoto, and Imperial.
- Inside The National Automotive History Collection
- Running amok with a borrowed Hemi Satellite: Racing a Street Hemi in its prime
- Washer bags (short)
- Christmas in May: putting a 1949 Plymouth into emergency action
- Stories centering around particular cars:
Bits and pieces
- Car shows from CEMA to the Washington DC Auto Show
- Allpar meets
- Chrysler Momentos and Such
- Models and promos: model kits and promotional car replicas including reviews and assembly tips.
- Chrysler history books
- The first and oldest Plymouth
- Inside the National Automotive History Collection
- Repeating a historic cross-country trip in a 1909 Maxwell
- Chrysler auction scene, 2007
- 200 miles per gallon: The California Carburetor
- Toyota history (link) in case you were curious about how much they “borrowed” from Dodge, Chevrolet, and Willys ... or about how the US Army gave them their basic quality system
- Production numbers: Plymouth USA • Plymouth Canada • DeSoto
- Pre-production Lebarons (Richard Benner)
- Valiants, Darts, Dusters, Pacers, Chargers, and other A-Bodies are at valiant.org
If you are interested in the history of a particular car, please see the vehicles page. Also see our section on Chrysler corporate facts and history, which includes notes on culture, branding and sales, suppliers, recovery plans, acquisitions (e.g buying Dodge Brothers), and other “corporate” information.
Chrysler Heritage • History by Year • Chrysler People and Bios • Corporate Facts and History