1 comments about Life of an American Workman (American Biography Series).

1. Everyone knows about Henry Ford and his Model T. Many know of William Crapo Durant and his creation, the colossial General Motors Corporation. Romanced today are the stories of the Stanley brothers and their steamer and the Studebakers and their cars. But few know of the man who established the Chrysler Corporation from the ruins of the Maxwell-Chambers Auto Works, then bought out the much larger Dodge Brothers Motor Co. This book is a must-read for automotive enthusiasts. Walter Chrysler writes an anecdotal and easy-reading autobiography. He doesn't waste time defending himself against any rumors that may have persisted about him at the time of its writing. He doesn't needlessly spill ink on accusations of others. He merely tells his story about growing up, working on the railroads, turning around financially strapped American Locomotive, hired by Durant to turn Buick's fortunes around, then hired by the bancruptcy trustees to save Maxwell-Chambers. Soon, the cars this company put out bore Chrysler's own name and the rest is history. Chrysler writes about his belief that Research and Development are the vital elements to the success of any company (a section every corporate officer should read today). He also talks about the plans to build the Chrysler Building and, even, making his children work their way up in the company starting at the bottom--no doubt teaching his children that every job has a function and every individual has dignity and value. The best anecdote that Walter Chrysler tells is how he drove his first car--but I'll let you read that for yourself!

3 comments about Chrysler: Colt/Challenger/Conquest/Vista 1971-89 (Chilton's Total Car Care Repair Manuals).

1. I've found it very difficult to find Chrysler Conquest repair manuals. This was the first manual I found, so I bought it. I've bought Haynes manuals before, but one was not available for the Conquest. Haynes contains detailed photos of all the steps involved in a repair. Chilton relies more on "exploded view" illustrations without actually showing many of the repair steps. However, basic repairs like brakes, trim/bodywork, coolant system tasks, alternator replacement, and minor headwork is described and photographed well. Unusual repairs lack the same detail. For example, replacing a steering box is described in a curt, 7 step paragraph. An archaic looking pen and ink illustration of the steering system, not of the repair steps or even an exploded view, accompanies the description. As this is one of the repairs I wanted to make, I got a Chrysler factory manual. I found that many of the Chilton illustrations are in fact Chrysler illustrations. However, Chrysler adds numerous other illustrations (in clear pen and ink) showing every step (and the tools!) necessary to complete a repair. If you have a Colt or a Vista, I would recommend the Haynes manual. If you have a Conquest and are looking to do a lot of work on it, get a factory manual. But if you want to do normal maintenance (aforementioned brakes, trim, etc.) on a Conquest, or need electrical diagrams for the car, this book is sufficient.



2. I bought this book for Conquest repairs and I also did not find it to be the best companion. It included a lot of info on the Colt and Challenger and I believe the Conquest info belonged more of on it's own do the the vast differences in these cars. I bought it to rebuild the engine and found it fell short and left me looking elsewhere for more detailed info. If your buying it for the Colt or Challenger, I give it a 4. If you want the Conquest/Starion aspect, look to what the mechanics use and get a factory shop manual. much more detail.



3. This book is supposed to be for all Dodge Challengers from 71-89. WRONG!!! It only addresses the import 4 cylinder pseudo-challenger. If you have a REAL Challenger, this book does nothing for you. It doesn't even mention them. One star rating is over-rated, but the system won't let me give it none.

5 comments about The Birth of Chrysler Corporation and Its Engineering Legacy.

1. One of the trio of engineers that company founder Walter Chrysler dubbed his "three musketeers", Carl Breer offers an even-handed recounting of many of Chrysler Corporations's engineering triumphs.

   He spares no detail when describing any of a number of Chrysler's firsts, from sorting out the mysteries of the carburettor to perfecting the Lockheed hydraulic braking system. He offers no apologies for Chrysler's biggest flop, the 1934 Airflow, instead highlighting the revolutionary advance it made in the area of the quality of ride for passengers. But he tends to gloss over the negative effect the car's styling had on sales, pausing only to criticize production for adding needless weight to the design. Perhaps the Airflow was just one of those times when the three musketeers won the swordfight at the risk of losing the castle.

   There's a real feeling - more intense than in Walter Chrysler's own autobiography, or even in the just-released book by Robert Lutz - that Breer was one of the true pioneers in the automobile industry. Engineering detective work emerges as valuable history as he describes how various technical breakthroughs become possible after careful analysis of often conflicting customer comments and complex circumstantial evidence.

   Included also is his fascinating eyewitness account of his trek as a young university student from Stanford in Palo Alto to the devastated city of San Francisco during the great earthquake of 1906.

   This book is not light reading, but not only did it hold my interest, but I also find myself returning to it from time to time to refresh my memory of the steps taken in solving various engineering puzzles of the automotive age. For in these solutions one may find inspiration for resolution of technical challenges in any of a number of modern fields of endeavor.




2. I think the book is over priced. Finished it in two days. Interesting only from the standpoint that Chrysler was a pioneer on a few items. Since Mr. Breer died in 1960? the automotive technology has exploded, so many of his statements are now not relevant.



3. Some of the key inventions in early automobiles - modern engine mounts, modern hydraulic brakes, and more - are described along with the processes that led Chrysler, for a time, to consistently beat Ford in sales and to beat just about everyone in technology. Though much has changed since then, Breer's insights can help both historians and modern engineers and managers.



4. If you are at all interested in the development of the American auto industry this book is a must read. As insightful on the development of one particular manufacturer as this book is, it also gives views in to the competitors during the early days. As relevant to Detroit as "The Soul of a Machine" was to Silicon Valley and Boston.



5. This book details the many firsts in Automotive history that were developed by the Chrysler Corp. Sealed beam headlights, Fluid Drive, first unit body car in the 1934 Airflow, and many other things that we take for granted in modern cars today.

No comments about Reinforced Concrete Masonry Construction Inspector's Handbook.

No comments about Dodge Ram Truck Repair Service Manual 2001 2002 2003 (CD-ROM Format).

No comments about Chrysler: Aspen/Volare 1976-80 (Chilton's Total Car Care Repair Manual).

4 comments about Behind the Wheel at Chrysler: The Iacocca Legacy.

1. An interesting book that looks at the Iacocca era at Chyrsler. The book reads more like a series of articles (the author is also a journalist) than a novel, but is nevertheless an effective portrayal of Chyrsler, Iacocca and the American and Japanese auto industry of the late 70s thru the early 90s. Lots of background information on the auto industry with interesting historical tidbits as well. The book's only "flaw" is its tendency to tear apart the Iacocca legacy with nasty (but apparently true) stories that topple the former auto industry icon, thus providing a counterweight to Iacocca's own biographical portrayals. While not a tightly woven "can't put it down" book, it is nevertheless worth adding to your collection if you are an automotive buff or Chrysler buff.



2. I found this book provided a quite interesting history of not only Chrysler, but the entire auto industry between the years of '70-'80. I particularly enjoyed the author's insights in to Chrysler's main player Iacocca. The book did however seem to jump around from subject to subject with no clear tie-ins. I found it difficult during some portions of the book to figure out what time frame the author was speaking of, as he tended to bounce back and forth. All in all I found the book to provide some excellent information on Chrysler and the prevailing personalities and values that has kept the organization alive for so many years through so many triumphs and tragedies.



3. I really wanted to like this book, but was disappointed with the end result. When the author sticks to the facts of the story, it is a revealing look at the politics of running a struggling auto company. The biographical information of the main players in upper echelons was quite interesting, also.

   However, there is a sense of the author's bias lurking throughout the pages. He manages to imply that somehow, once Toyota introduced the Corona in 1966, there wasn't a marketing misstep to be made by the Japanese, particularly Toyota. Do the nameplates "Crown", "Cressida" and "Echo" ring a bell? I won't even mention some of the other sad cars that other manufacturers have coughed up in the ensuing years, and still do occasionally, from both sides of the Pacific.

   Every now and again factual errors will appear, but they're so glaring that somebody with even a moderate interest in the car industry will pick up on. For instance, Honda earned customer loyalty because they "never dropped a nameplate." Really? Where did one go in 1987 to purchase a new Honda 600 GT or Sports 800?

   More troubling was a hint of elitism that came up a couple of times. Was there (is there) really anything wrong with selling new cars to the blue-collar crowd? I know that some people are consumed by image, but most of us don't care what anybody else is driving, as long as they know HOW to drive it. People without a stratospheric income should be able to make a fully warranted purchase and get "that new car smell", too.

   Finally, too little of the book is spent explaining exactly what was wrong, quality-wise, with Chrysler vehicles. Aside from the Aspen / Volaré twins, there was precious little time given to specific examples of lax quality control or design deficiencies. Even the A/V cars were a major problem only in their first year. More detail would have been revealing as to why buyers were steering clear of Chrysler's showrooms in the late 70's, when the whole mess started.

   I've always had an avid interest in the auto industry, and have been waiting for somebody to write a book on the true Lee Iacocca to show the savior / charlatan that he really was. Unfortunately, somebody else is going to have to write it. This one falls short.

   In case anybody's wondering, I have owned several cars from both American and Japanese manufacturers, including an 80's era Chrylser product. I have enjoyed the majority of them, and the only lemon I ever picked was from a European make.




4. He takes many liberties in trashing Chrysler products of the early 80's. For instance, he states that chrysler's 2.2 engine was based on "twenty year old technology" yet he offers no evidence to back up this claim. Mr. Levin also carps about the lack of technology in Chrysler's cars such as using a "beam axle" while conveniently overlooking the fact that other cars of this time frame used solid rear axles quite frequently. Nor does he give much coverage to Chryslers lowest cost per unit, the VNT technology used in its turbo cars, the fact it had OHC engines on the market LONG before GM and Ford, the first domestic auto company to use airbags in its cars, the firs electronically adaptive transmission.
   Mr Levin admitted he got little in the way of cooperation from Iacocca and it appears he wrote this tome to vent against a good yet flawed man and a great company.

4 comments about Chrysler: Full-Size Trucks 1989-96 (Chilton's Total Car Care Repair Manual).

1. I have found that overall Chilton's auto repair manuals have more information and are easier to understand that any others I have come across. I always look for a Chilton's first.



2. I was very disappointed to find out that this book is only slightly more instructive than the owners manual. If you are looking for a "repair" manual that covers everything, look somewhere else. I purchased this book with hope of repairing 4 items on my 1996 Dodge Ram truck. The first was my mirror, it's not covered in the book. The second was my steering stabilizer, it's not in the book. The third was the replacement of my shocks. There is a section in the book, but it provides absolutely no pertinent information regarding the replacement. The last item was a glitch with my cruise control, again there is no useful information. All the book displays is how to replace the cruise control mechanism on the steering column. What if the problem is not in that module? There is no diagnostic information in the book period. Nothing like the Chilton's repair manual's from years ago. Again, this "manual" is only slightly better than the owner's manual that came with the truck. Save your money for something else!



3. I have a 1996 Dodge Ram Cummins 3/4 ton four wheel drive. I purchase this manual to help me do maintenance on the vehicle. The manual does not show my front or rear differental or brakes and believe me if you have a Dodge 4/4 you are going to need a manual that does.



4. For a reason I long ago forgot I have been buying Haynes manuals for years. I am trying to diagnose a problem in my ignition system sensors and relays. This book has little to no useful infomation on how to test the ignition coil, crankcase position sensor, camshaft position sensor, automatic shutdown relay, so on and so on except to tell you to take the vehicle to a shop. In fact some of the sensors and relays like the automatic shutdown relay aren't even mentioned in the manual at all that I can find.
   
   I now remember why I stopped purchasing Chilton manuals. They are absolutely useless and "you bet ya" I won't make this mistake again!

No comments about 1992 Mitchell Domestic Light Trucks & Vans Service & Repair: Chrysler Motors Ford Motor Co. General Motors Jeep.

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