[Big Dave]

My bad. Charles Nash was not the last guy to start a car company in the US. It was Walter P. Chrysler. Nash in 1917. Chrysler in 1925.

Actually neither man started from scratch. Both bought existing (struggling) firms a combined them and turned them around. Only two guys ever started car companies from scratch and made them work: Henry Ford and Billy Durant, and Durant only on his second try.

Starting car companies and getting them to stay in business is a tough game to play. A lot of smart cookies have lost mountains of money trying. This is why I have contempt for those who tell me Ford and GM are dying of "bad management." You cannot tell me anyone who could do it better. Even Jack Welch knew better.

Thecombination of legacy costs, excessive regulation, excessive litigation, and excessive taxation make starting a car company in the US mission impossible.