Includes bibliographical references (p. 769-835) and index

In Wheels for the world, Douglas Brinkley reveals the riveting details of Ford Motor Company's epic achievements, chronicling the success of the Tin Lizzie to the beloved Model A through the glory days of the Thunderbird, Mustang, and Taurus, as well as the revolutionary plants where they were built-Highland Park and River Rouge. Brinkley tells of the amazing acquisitions of Volvo, Land Rover, Jaguar, and Mazda in the 1990s. His narrative also explores Ford Motor Company's darker aspects, from its founder's anti-Semitism, ill-considered wartime pacifism, and disloyalty-not only to the cohorts who made him the richest man of his time but also to his only son. Along the way, Brinkley introduces the whole cast of characters-from the early brains of the outfit, later U.S. Senator James Couzens; to CEO Lee Iacocca to the chairman and CEO of today, William Clay Ford, Jr

The Farm Boy -- Origins -- Starting Up -- Founding Ford -- Growing Successes -- Growing Pains -- Model T Mania -- Fordism -- The $5 Day -- The Forward March -- Alone at the Top -- Making an Impact -- Challenging Every Foe -- Withstanding the Downturn -- The Rouge -- Lincoln Motor -- Ford Aviation -- The Battle Joined -- Good-bye, Model T; Hello, Model A -- Model A and Trade Abroad -- Coping with the Great Depression -- Model Y: The Ford Americans Never Knew -- For Better and for Worse in Dearborn -- Mercury -- Building Up to War -- Willow Run and the B-24 Liberators -- The Modern Corporation -- Peaceful Revolution -- Death in Dearborn -- Human Engineering -- Fifty Years Old and Still Growing Up -- Grand Thunderbirds, Tough Trucks, and the Edsel Flop -- A Whole New Business -- Mustang Generation -- The Turnaround Years -- Jet Set -- Trouble All Around -- Financial Crisis -- The Quality Crisis -- Team Taurus -- New Horses -- Momentum