Chrysler's very first brush with bankruptcy was way back in the 1930s with the Airflow. Walter Percy Chrysler almost lost everything. "It was a very innovative car, with an aerodynamic modern design and hydraulic brakes," says Holstrom. "Chrysler wanted it to market fast, so he cut some corners and quality suffered and the cars got a bad reputation. And to top that off, the design wasn't well accepted--people just thought it was a spaceship or something." Sales were slow, and Chrysler suffered.
