170:, their captain and leader. The three engineers went to work on designing a new car, with a new engine, at Willys' engineering center in Elizabeth. Their assignment was to fix engineering problems on the Willys six-cylinder car then in production, while simultaneously designing a brand-new car from the inside out. The three engineers determined that the existing six-cylinder car was obsolete compared to the ones they had just designed at Studebaker. Their new design, to be released in 1920, was to be called a "Chrysler"; a colossal sign of incandescent lights spelling that name out was erected on top of the Willys plant.
20:
126:
136:
227:. The Chrysler Six was said to be the first modern automobile. Automobile historian Mark Howell remarked that this car was second only to Ford's Model T Ford in terms of its impact on the automobile industry. He said this car was the dividing line between the old style car and the modern automobile. Chrysler's first luxury car was priced at an affordable $ 1,565.
231:
194:
Zeder, Breer and
Skelton were embarrassed, as they had coaxed a complete team of engineers to go to Willys with them from Studebaker. Studebaker, at that time, had a plant in Detroit that was doing financially well. The three men, along with several Willys engineers, set themselves up as a consulting
173:
These plans were halted, however, when funds set aside for the
Chrysler Motors Division of the Elizabeth plant were discovered to have been depleted by Willys' Toledo branch. Willys was going bankrupt and heading for receivership. Chrysler himself quit his position at Willys in February 1922, in the
257:
In 1925, the
Maxwell car company became the Chrysler Corporation. The "lightning flashes" on the Chrysler logo were actually Zs, a tribute to Fred Zeder. This logo was used on the first Chrysler automobile built in 1924 and, off and on, for years thereafter. Zeder designed cars by a process of
159:
as vice president and general manager. He invited the three engineers, Zeder, Breer and
Skelton, to come over from Studebaker. They moved to Willys-Overland in New Jersey, taking a team of 28 Studebaker engineers with them, on July 14, 1920. The three engineers were compared by Chrysler to the
245:
on June 1, 1923. One of the first things he did as their new chairman was to ask engineers Zeder, Skelton, and Breer to close their consulting firm in New Jersey and come to
Detroit with him. They were to do all the engineering work for the Maxwell and Chalmers cars and design a new Chrysler
116:
as a transmission specialist. Zeder asked
Skelton to join him at Studebaker in 1916, which completed the trio; they became the Zeder, Skelton and Breer Engineering (ZSB) group. Breer went about fixing mainline engine flaws and high oil consumption. Skelton worked on a new transmission, after
97:
Breer, the oldest of the
Musketeers, was born in 1885 as the youngest of nine children; he worked in his father's carriage and blacksmith shop, and built his own steam-powered car in 1901; he would work at Toledo Steam Cars, Spalding, Northern and White, and designed a two-cylinder
117:
discarding their existing transmission design. Zeder was in charge of redesigning existing models, and creating designs for new models. The three designed
Studebaker's successful Light Four, Light Six and Big Six models.
487:
990:
78:
were two such students, picked in 1909; they became close friends during the course. Zeder, the "front man for the team", was born in 1886; he graduated from the
980:
363:
785:
861:
483:
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167:
759:
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975:
102:
car called the Duro. When Zeder became Chief
Engineer of Studebaker's Detroit operations, he asked Breer to join him in 1913.
985:
249:
There, in 1924, Chrysler launched his own version of the
Chrysler six-cylinder. The Chrysler car was financially successful.
720:
616:
67:
70:
selected twenty-five university graduates in mechanical engineering to go through their two-year apprenticeship course.
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experimentation, where designs were tested under controlled laboratory conditions before being put into production.
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in 1909 with a degree in mechanical engineering and became an erecting engineer for the
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Engineers Carl Breer (right), Fred Zeder (center), and Owen Skelton (left) in 1933.
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109:
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289:), with whom he observed numerous surgeries and studied the function of
75:
47:
35:
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to reduce vibration) came about in part from Zeder's friendship with
219:. The Chrysler Six prototype would be made larger, becoming the 1923
208:
125:
135:
24:
261:
The three continued to design cars for Chrysler; in 1927, Breer's
246:
automobile. They agreed and arrived in Detroit on June 6, 1923.
166:, Athos, Porthos, and Aramis; Chrysler himself adopted the role
86:
in 1910. Later, he would lead a consulting firm specializing in
215:
in a bankruptcy sale. The plant then built Durant's low-priced
890:
Chrysler, Ford, Durant: Founding Giants of Automotive Industry
360:"Changing Winds: The 1934-1937 Chrysler and DeSoto Airflows"
199:, under the name "Zeder Skelton Breer Engineering Company."
699:
697:
913:
The Birth of Chrysler Corporation - Its Engineering Legacy
112:
in Ohio, and later came to work as a design engineer with
108:, the third member of the team, had started his career at
66:
The nucleus of the engineering team initially formed when
961:
Zeder, Skelton and Breer: The Three Musketeers slide show
735:
717:"The 1931 Plymouth PA: Walter Chrysler's Fistful of Aces"
572:
538:
536:
241:
Chrysler negotiated a four-year management contract with
694:
548:
408:
50:. They would become instrumental in the founding of the
596:
334:
332:
319:
317:
939:(illustrated ed.). Wayne State University Press.
533:
936:
Maxwell Motor: the Making of the Chrysler Corporation
811:
799:
756:"Fred Zeder, Vice President in Charge of Engineering"
658:
635:
464:
991:
American chief executives in the automobile industry
682:
670:
584:
329:
314:
560:
58:to come with him when he started the new company.
502:
452:
302:
269:cars. In 1931, Zeder and Skelton's design of the
967:
916:. Society of Automotive Engineers. p. 146.
207:The Elizabeth Willys plant and the Chrysler Six
484:"Carl Breer, one of Chrysler's Three Musketeer"
476:
654:The Beginning of it all: The 1924 Chrysler Six
614:
514:
265:studies would advance the state of the art in
94:(which was taken over by Studebaker in 1912).
981:American founders of automobile manufacturers
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608:
753:
431:
383:
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351:
349:
347:
836:Chrysler: The Life & Times of a Genius
521:Devon Frances (1967). "Three Musketeers".
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293:and connective tissue in the human body.
130:Chrysler sign 1920 on top of Willys plant
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34:is a nickname given to a team of three
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490:from the original on 26 November 2020
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366:from the original on 23 February 2013
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273:Plymouth (which used advanced rubber
178:automobile, to focus on managing the
859:
762:from the original on 2 November 2012
508:
440:from the original on 31 October 2012
396:from the original on 2 November 2012
68:Allis-Chalmers Manufacturing Company
893:(illustrated ed.). McFarland.
782:"Chrysler Institute of Engineering"
202:
151:, in January 1920, was working for
13:
434:"Owen Skelton, Executive Engineer"
189:
120:
14:
1012:
954:
723:from the original on 7 April 2014
390:"Carl Breer, Executive Engineer"
826:
788:from the original on 2012-11-27
774:
647:
1:
976:American automotive engineers
615:Kulchycki, T.L. (2000–2007).
296:
174:turmoil of producing the new
986:American automotive pioneers
868:Wayne State University Press
754:Wright, Kelsey (2001–2012).
486:. Allpar; allpar.com. 2020.
432:Wright, Kelsey (1998–2000).
7:
252:
10:
1017:
933:Yanik, Anthony J. (2009).
910:Yanik, Anthony J. (1995).
234:Chrysler 1924 emblem with
61:
54:, and were hand-picked by
887:Weiss, H. Eugene (2003).
863:Riding the Roller Coaster
860:Hyde, Charles K. (2003).
388:Zatz, David (1998–2000).
243:Maxwell Motor Corporation
114:Packard Motor Car Company
833:Curcio, Vincent (2001).
358:Severson, Aaron (2011).
841:Oxford University Press
72:Frederick Morrell Zeder
40:Frederick Morrell Zeder
758:. Allpar; allpar.com.
436:. Allpar; allpar.com.
392:. Allpar; allpar.com.
238:
184:Chalmers Motor Company
145:
132:
84:Allis-Chalmers Company
80:University of Michigan
28:
285:(the founders of the
233:
180:Maxwell Motor Company
157:Elizabeth, New Jersey
138:
128:
90:design, and join the
32:The Three Musketeers
22:
744:, pp. 125, 126.
52:Chrysler Corporation
16:Studebaker engineers
996:Chrysler executives
706:, pp. 157–158.
617:"The Flint Catalog"
581:, pp. 281–282.
557:, pp. 119–124.
23:Three Musketeers -
623:on 21 January 2013
605:, pp. 71, 72.
417:, p. 271–272.
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197:Newark, New Jersey
149:Walter P. Chrysler
146:
133:
29:
1001:Studebaker people
545:, pp. 65–70.
473:, pp. 60–69.
236:lightning flashes
213:William C. Durant
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203:Maxwell-Chalmers
163:Three Musketeers
106:Owen Ray Skelton
100:opposed-cylinder
44:Owen Ray Skelton
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225:Flint, Michigan
217:Star automobile
205:
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190:Consulting firm
153:Willys-Overland
144:
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123:
121:Willys-Overland
64:
56:Walter Chrysler
17:
12:
11:
5:
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978:
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955:External links
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946:978-0814334232
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719:. 2000–2007.
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827:Bibliography
813:
801:
790:. Retrieved
776:
764:. Retrieved
749:
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725:. Retrieved
711:
684:
672:
660:
649:
637:
625:. Retrieved
621:the original
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504:
492:. Retrieved
478:
466:
454:
442:. Retrieved
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398:. Retrieved
368:. Retrieved
311:, p. 1.
304:
283:William Mayo
267:streamlining
260:
256:
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240:
235:
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193:
176:Chrysler Six
172:
161:
147:
142:Chrysler Six
104:
96:
65:
31:
30:
818:Curcio 2001
806:Curcio 2001
766:13 December
727:13 December
665:Curcio 2001
642:Curcio 2001
627:13 December
579:Curcio 2001
444:13 December
415:Curcio 2001
400:13 December
370:13 December
339:Curcio 2001
324:Curcio 2001
287:Mayo Clinic
263:wind tunnel
223:, built in
110:Pope-Toledo
92:EMF Company
88:power plant
38:engineers,
970:Categories
923:1560915242
900:0786416114
850:0195147057
792:2012-12-17
742:Weiss 2003
704:Yanik 2009
689:Yanik 2009
677:Yanik 2009
603:Yanik 1995
591:Weiss 2003
567:Yanik 1995
555:Weiss 2003
543:Yanik 1995
494:7 December
471:Yanik 1995
459:Yanik 1995
309:Yanik 1995
297:References
168:d'Artagnan
160:fictional
76:Carl Breer
48:Carl Breer
36:Studebaker
509:Hyde 2003
291:cartilage
209:prototype
786:Archived
760:Archived
721:Archived
488:Archived
438:Archived
394:Archived
364:Archived
253:Chrysler
195:firm in
25:Chrysler
279:Charles
62:History
943:
920:
897:
874:
847:
46:, and
529:: 23.
140:1924
941:ISBN
918:ISBN
895:ISBN
872:ISBN
845:ISBN
768:2012
729:2012
629:2012
496:2020
446:2012
402:2012
372:2012
281:and
182:and
74:and
155:in
972::
870:.
866:.
843:.
839:.
784:.
696:^
535:^
525:.
422:^
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331:^
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186:.
42:,
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880:.
853:.
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770:.
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404:.
374:.
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