Here is the book that exposed the Daimler-Chrysler "merger of equals" as a bold German takeover of an industrial icon. Taken for a Ride reveals the shock waves felt around the world when Daimler-Benz bought Chrysler for $36 billion in 1998. In a gripping narrative, Bill Vlasic and Bradley A. Stertz go behind the scenes of the defining corporate drama of the decade -- and in a new epilogue chart its chaotic aftermath. "An excellent book."--"Washington Post"A fascinating, page-turning read."--Larry King, "USA Today"Superb."--"Newsweek"Filled with new information and gives a masterful portrait of all involved."--"Barron's Here is the book that exposed the Daimler-Chrysler "merger of equals" as a bold German takeover of an industrial icon. Taken for a Ride reveals the shock waves felt around the world when Daimler-Benz bought Chrysler for $36 billion in 1998. In a gripping narrative, Bill Vlasic and Bradley A. Stertz go behind the scenes of the defining corporate drama of the decade -- and in a new epilogue chart its chaotic aftermath. An award-winning business reporter with more than fifteen years of experience specializing in the automotive industry, Bill Vlasic is currently the Detroit bureau chief for the New York Times . The coauthor of Taken for a Ride , Vlasic is a winner of the Gerald Loeb Award for excellence in financial journalism and has been recognized for his reporting and investigative journalism by the Associated Press and the Society of American Business Editors and Writers. Bradley A. Stertz is an assistant managing editor of the Detroit News and a former reporter with the Wall Street Journal. He lives in Grosse Pointe, Michigan, with his wife and two children. Taken for a Ride How Daimler-Benz Drove Off with Chrysler By Vlasic, Bill HarperBusiness Copyright © 2004 Bill Vlasic All right reserved. ISBN: 0060934484 Chapter One The two men faced off in a dreary hotel room at the Detroit Metropolitan Airport, emissaries from different worlds at a dangerous intersection on the morning of April 10, 1995. Alex Yemenidjian laid a black-covered document titled "Project Beta" on the table. Darkly handsome with olive skin and slicked-back black hair, Yemenidjian was the protege of Kirk Kerkorian, one of the world's richest men and the owner of thirty-six million shares of stock in Chrysler Corporation. Born in Argentina, raised in Los Angeles, and fiercely proud of his Armenian heritage, Yemenidjian seemed coiled, tightly wound, a little nervous. "It is our understanding you are familiar with the model,'' Yemenidjian began stiffly, his accent an exotic mix of Spanish and Armenian dialect. Tom Denomme sized up the smooth-talking casino executive in the Hugo Boss suit across from him. He had to be very careful. "Yeah, we're familiar with it," Denomme replied. "What is the specific message you would like us to carry to Bob Eaton?" "Time is of the essence," Yemenidjian said. Denomme stared him in the eye. "Where is the money coming from?" he asked. "Don't worry about that," Yemenidjian said coolly. "Just tell Bob Eaton that we are going to do it." Denomme, the fifty-four-year-old vice chairman of Chrysler, was nicknamed "The Priest" for his serious, circumspect demeanor and measured counsel. Tall, with chiseled features, his thinning brown hair meticulously parted and graying at the temples, Denomme could have played the strong, silent Gary Cooper role of sheriff in an old Hollywood western. He wasn't about to reveal anything to this slick stranger from Las Vegas. A few weeks earlier Denomme had met in this same hotel with Gary Wilson, the high-flying financier who engineered the takeover of Northwest Airlines, Wilson had already laid out Project Beta for Denomme. Things were moving fast. It wasn't a matter of weeks anymore. The clock was ticking down. If Kirk Kerkorian had the money to buy Chrysler, the seventh-biggest corporation in America, Denomme couldn't stop him. But Denomme could not fathom how it had come to this. If Kerkorian thought Chrysler's management would join him in a leveraged buyout, he was sorely mistaken. Instead, Chrysler stood ready to fight him. Denomme and Gary Valade, Chrysler's chief financial officer, left the airport and drove to company headquarters in Highland Park, Michigan, a decaying industrial enclave on the edge of Detroit. They took the elevator to the fifth floor of the K. T. Keller Building, and Denomme called his boss. Chrysler Chairman Robert Eaton took the call in New York, where he was meeting with Wall Street investors before the 1995 New York Auto Show. "Bob, we can't be a party to any of this," Denomme said. "We've just been through this whole cultural thing, convincing everybody that this is such a different company. For us to jump on the side of a buyout would be just traumatic." Eaton didn't say much. He never did, He agreed with Denomme and hung up. Yemenidjian and his aide, Dan Taylor, flew back to Las Vegas and sped to a