In 2005, Robert Bruner, dean of the Darden School of Business at the University of Virginia wrote a book of case studies of deal-making gone bad. The book, titled "Deals From Hell: M&A Lessons That Rise Above the Ashes," says failed deals can be measured by at least one of the following dimensions: Destruction of market value; financial instability; impaired strategic position; organizational weakness; damaged reputation; or violation of ethical norms and laws.

The following shows how the Daimler-Chrysler (No. 6 below) experience measures up to five of the "Deals From Hell" studied by Mr. Bruner.

1) Merger of Pennsylvania Railroad and New York Central Railroad, February 1968: The largest merger to date, this deal created the 6th largest corporation in the U.S. Investors in Penn Central lost $1.84 billion in stock market value. The merged company filed for Bankruptcy in June 1970.

2) The leveraged buyout of Revco Drug Stores, December 1986. At $1.4 billion, it was one of the largest LBOs to that point, a 48% premium to the stock price of 12 months earlier. Just 19 months later it filed for bankruptcy.

3) AT&T's acquisition of NCR, September 1991: A $7.48 billion deal that was a 132% premium to NCR's stock price of October 1990. Five years later, AT&T spun off NCR, leaving an entity with a market cap of $3.4 billion.

4) Quaker Oats's purchase Snapple Beverage Corp., December 1994: A $1.7 billion deal, but a 48% discount to the Snapple's highest stock price of that year. Quaker Oats stock price fell 9% the day the deal was announced, wiping out more than $1 billion of market value. Just 29 months later, Quaker sold Snapple for $300 million and took a $1.4 billion write off associated with the deal.

5) Merger of AOL Inc. and Time Warner, January 2001: A $165 billion "merger of equals," but the combined companies' market cap implied a deal of $350 billion. Within months, more than $200 billion of that market cap was gone. Two years later, AOL leader Steve Case was gone as chairman of AOL Time Warner and AOL soon was gone from the company's name.

6) Daimler-Benz AG buy of Chrysler Corp., May 1998: A $36 billion so-called merger of equals. In May 2007, DaimlerChrysler sells an 80% stake in Chrysler to private-equity firm Cerberus Capital Management LP in a deal that will cost Daimler $650 million.