I think this was what really hurt them. Used models were all in poor shape due to this so the brand reputation was tainted. Also, the partnership with Chrysler sure didn’t help. Many shared mechanical systems between the brands.
As mentioned with the Mirage, a new car for $10,000 will often get neglected. I loved reading about how someone was so mad that their engine blew up at only 60,000 miles. Then it comes out that the engine jumped time, destroying it, because the oil had never been changed or checked.
I was impressed that the engine ran that long! How many other cars would run 60,000 miles without having the oil even touched? I am sure it wasn’t running well a lot of those miles though as the timing chain stretched and everything wore.