Comeback

After posting record operating losses of $7.5 billion in 1991, Detroit's ``Big Three'' automakers seemed headed for disaster. But the last three years have brought a dramatic turnaround. How Ford, Chrysler and General Motors transformed themselves from tottering dinosaurs turning out defect-ridden cars in the 1980s into efficient producers of popular automobiles is the theme of this riveting, juicy, optimistic report. Ingrassia, Wall Street Journal senior editor in Detroit, and White, the Journal's deputy bureau chief in Michigan, offer a familiar story-American plants adapted Japanese methods and technology learned from Japanese-U.S. joint ventures. But the authors also provide a candid inside look at Big Three decision-making, power struggles, arrogance and near-diasters, telling how a new cadre of managers replaced a stultifying status quo, along with withering profiles of Lee Iacocca, Roger Smith, Donald Petersen, Bob Lutz and other top auto executives. Photos. First serial to Wall Street Journal; author tour. (Sept.)