The History of Chrysler car maker & VIN decoder

Chrysler Corporation is America's No. 3 automaker, part of the 'Big Three of Detroit' along with General Motors and Ford. The company was formed by Walter Chrysler in 1925 on the basis of Maxwell company, which he bought. Until the end of the 20th century the corporation has kept its independence, producing cars of different classes under the brands Chrysler (1924-present), Dodge (1928-present), Plymouth (1928-2001), DeSoto (1928-1960), Imperial (1955-1983), Jeep (1987-present) and Eagle (1988-1998). From 1964 to 1978 it owned a subsidiary of Chrysler Europe, which included the Simca and Rootes Group, and from 1987 to 1993 it owned the Italian Lamborghini. - Italian company Lamborghini. In 1987, Chrysler Corporation absorbed American Motors Corporation. From 1998 to 2007. Chrysler was part of the DaimlerChrysler Group, and since 2014 it has been owned by the Fiat Chrysler Automobiles (FCA) consortium.

From the corporation's founding in 1925 until the mid-1970s, only full-size cars of the mid-price segment were produced under the Chrysler brand. The exception was the luxury model Imperial, which in 1955 was allocated as an independent brand. Initially Chrysler products were distinguished by quality and engineering innovations. In 1934, the revolutionary model Chrysler Airflow with aerodynamic body was launched, but the public has taken it skeptically, so until 1955, the leadership of Chrysler has avoided experiments with the style. That all changed with the arrival of the famous designer Virgil Exner, who developed a whole generation of cars in the style of 'Forward Look' (1955-1963), the most notable feature of which was high tail fins. During the same period, Chrysler produced a series of high-performance cars with Hemi V8 engines known as the Chrysler 300 Letter Series (1955-1965). From 1964-1968, the full-size Chrysler bodies, designed by Elwood Engel, had flat sides, and from 1969-1973, they had a fuselage shape. - fuselage shape.

During the fuel crisis in the 70's the financial situation of Chrysler Corporation worsened, but in 1978 the company was headed by Lee Iacocca, who managed to regain lost ground in the market through the introduction of medium-sized models with front-wheel drive and minivans, as well as cooperation with Mitsubishi Motors. Creation of DaimlerChrysler concern in 1998 meant the partial loss of its independence in exchange for access to financial resources and technologies of German carmaker Daimler-Benz AG. In 2007, Chrysler left the group, but another economic crisis led to the bankruptcy of the corporation in 2009 and the merger with Fiat.

Nowadays FCA US LLC, North American division of Fiat Chrysler Automobiles, sells more than 2 million cars per year, including 500,000 cars and together with Fiat is the seventh biggest car maker in the world. It owns Dodge, Jeep, Chrysler and Ram brands, as well as SRT (Street & Racing Technology) sports division. Collectively, the products of Chrysler's divisions are often referred to as Mopar (MotorParts). Since the 1930s, parts for Chrysler, Dodge, Plymouth and DeSoto have been sold under this brand, and today the Mopar division is also involved in tuning.

A new mid-size model Chrysler 200 has been launched, available in sedan and convertible bodies. It is an upgraded Chrysler Sebring on the JS front-drive platform. There are two gasoline engines to choose from: a 2.4-liter four-cylinder with 175 horsepower and a 3.6-liter V6 with 287 horsepower, both with a six-speed automatic transmission. The same year the Chrysler 300 flagship sedan was restyled.

Fiat bought the remaining shares of Chrysler Group LLC to form the global Fiat-Chrysler Automobiles group. The North American division was named FCA US LLC, and Sergio Marchionne was appointed CEO. The company invested about $1 billion to build a plant in Sterling Heights, Michigan, to produce the second generation Chrysler 200 (2015).

Three models are currently sold under the Chrysler brand in the United States: the Chrysler 200 midsize sedan, the Chrysler 300 full-size sedan and the Town & Country minivan. All are equipped only with gasoline engines and automatic transmissions. In continental Europe, the Chrysler 200 and Chrysler 300 are called Lancia Flavia and Lancia Thema, respectively. Annual sales of the Chrysler division are about 300,000 vehicles. Do not forget to use Chrysler VIN decoder in order to avoid potential problems when buying a used car.

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