A Truly Modern Motor Car Descended From Race-Track Champions
In September, 1947 the Tucker car was announced to America. It was called the Torpedo and was a long, sleek, streamlined job described as "a truly modern motor car descended from race-track champions." Reports told of a car that would make all current cars obsolete. It would weigh 10 cwt. less than any other American car and its revolutionary rear-mounted engine would deliver 35 m.p.g. and give a cruising speed of 100 m.p.h.
The
prototype simply bristled with unconventional features. Apart from the flat six cylinder horizontally opposed rear-mounted engine, it 'had rubber independent suspension, disc type brakes, fuel injection, hydraulically actuated tappets and a torque converter unit on each end of the crankshaft. Other features included air cooling, special safety windscreen that fell away when necessary, crash-padded front compartment in case of accident and a centrally mounted headlight which turned with the wheels.
On paper the car was a miracle on wheels, and Preston Tucker, the designer, alleged engineer and associate of famous racing car designer Harry Miller, by presenting his theoretical dream car was able not only to collect leading automotive personalities around him, but by selling franchises, to inveigle almost thirty million dollars from the American public. Millions were convinced as a result of advertising that Tucker had a revolutionary car ready for production.
The Brochure That Convinced Millions
The brochure that convinced those millions was brilliant in concept. It read "Long recognized as an authority on design and building of racing cars Preston Tucker enters the passenger car field to offer the American public an automobile combining advanced engineering features never before used on a stock car, yet proved over years on the toughest of all testing grounds, the 500-mile Speedway at Indianapolis.
"From the Speedway have come the major improvements found in automobiles today - four-wheel brakes, rear view mirrors, aluminium pistons, silicon steel valves and individual wheel suspension. Now from the Speedway comes the Torpedo, first of a line of precision built, distinctive passenger automobiles to bear the Tucker trademark. Unhampered by obsolete design and production methods. Tucker has developed a modern, rear-engine automobile with the most advanced engineering principles in any automobile offered American motorists today.
"After finishing at Cass Technical school in Detroit, Preston Tucker studied engineering, commercial law and business management in college extension courses. He entered the automobile industry as office boy for D. McCall White, Vice-President in charge of engineering for the Cadillac Motor Car Company, under whose tutelage he learned engine and chassis design. About 1921, Tucker joined the Ford Motor Company and gained invaluable experience in major departments including traffic, inspection, foundry and production. Entering the sales field in 1925. he subsequently became sales manager for Studebaker. He was distributor and wholesale manager for Chrysler at Memphis; Pierce Arrow zone manager at Buffalo. and Packard distributor at Indianapolis, where his association with the late Harry Miller began 18 years ago.
"With Miller, Tucker helped design cars that won 14 out of 16 Speedway events in which they were entered, tough grinds equal to 50,000 miles of ordinary driving that could be survived only by the finest cars every built. But even as Tucker was building a reputation in the racing field he was looking forward to the day when he could produce a medium priced passenger car that would have built into it the same advantages in safety, design and engineering that have made racing cars superior.
"No engineer ever worked harder than Preston Tucker to apply the lessons learned on the Speedway and to bring greater safety, pleasure and comfort to the everyday motorist. For into the Torpedo is built safety in balanced design, road stability at all speeds ... positive brakes that stay in adjustment ... full vision unobstructed by corner posts ... safety in night driving with directional illumination and lights protected by every known means against failure ... power and accelerations to get out of tight spots. The Torpedo has all these and more.
"To build the revolutionary rear-engine Torpedo, Tucker has associated with him men from the top ranks of automotive industry, men who have held key positions with major companies and who now pool their experience, knowledge and skill to make the Tucker Torpedo the finest engineered car ever built. These men already have built a smoothly functioning organization to keep a constant flow of raw materials streaming to assembly lines. Now they are establishing a dealer organization to speed the delivery of finished Torpedoes to discriminating motorists. Today the Tucker leads the industry in offering, without competition, an automobile that will set new standards for the sheer pleasure of driving and pride of owning a distinctive car".
Quoting The Tucker Torpedo Brochure
'Where else but in the Tucker Torpedo is the relaxing roominess which only the engine-in-rear can provide? Where else that freedom from front-engine fumes, heat, vibration and noise? What other car can match its precision balance? Where else is the liquid-flow-ing ride - the result of new design that makes not only the clutch but transmission, drive shaft and differential obsolete? Where else but in the Tucker Torpedo is there the light weight - yet strength and safety - that is the standard of efficient performance. Where but in the Tucker Torpedo, is complete relaxation and peace of mind that comes from knowing you have the safest brakes and finger-tip control at all times?
"Where else but in the Torpedo is there the thrill of a new and exciting ride that permits such care-free enjoyment for driver and passengers alike. Only by discarding old fashioned ideas and starting with fundamentally different principles of planning and advanced engineering . . . only by utilizing the newest and best knowledge of metallurgy and mechanics could Preston Tucker design and build such safety, economy, comfort, performance and smart appearance into this distinguished new automobile . . . the car that looks ahead to tomorrow.
Tucker Torpedo Safety
The body built with welded steel tubing is designed like the fuselage of a fighting plane, integral with the chassis. This gives lightness without sacrificing strength, and a lower center of gravity for road stability at any speed. The top likewise is steel, and in front of the driver's compartment is a steel crash panel lined with a two inch layer of sponge rubber. The curved safety glass windshield provides full vision, and the clean sweep of the hood slopes down toward the front for a clear view of the road immediately ahead. The speedometer and other instruments are in plain sight, not hidden behind the steering wheel or spokes.
Tucker Torpedo Economy
Up to 35 miles per gallon of gasoline is expected of the engine, designed to obtain maximum efficiency from ordinary motor fuels. Large costly service departments will not be needed with "package service" direct from the factory There are no gears to shift in the Torpedo. Hydraulic torque converters transmit power directly to rear wheels for increased safety as well as economy. The driver can keep both hands on the wheel, eliminating the cause of many accidents. On the economy side are lower weight, fewer operating parts and far lower friction loss than with present day transmissions.
Dealers will carry spare engines in stock for replacement, like storage batteries arc exchanged today, while engines are rebuilt or serviced at the factory. Electrical connections, throttle, fuel and hydraulic lines fasten through a single airplane-type connector that can be unfastened with a single operation and the engine, fastened to the chassis by four bolts, can be removed in 15 minutes by a competent mechanic with standard tools. The only normal service operations required will be lubrication and perhaps occasionally checking the electrical system.
Tucker Torpedo Comfort
Doors open out and up to clear curbs when parked, and extend into the roof so passengers can get in and out without stooping. Floor space in the luxurious interior is unobstructed by the usual tunnel for the drive shaft, and the space-taking hump in the front compartment over the transmission case. The only controls on the floor are the foot throttle and brake. The luggage compartment is in front under the hood for quick easy access and maximum clean storage space. An almost equal spacc over the engine under the rear deck will hold baggage. Thermostats will hold engine temperature to around 200 degrees, slightly under the boiling point of water and found to be the most efficient operating temperature. No special radiator will be needed for hot climates, extreme cold or high altitudes. In winter fresh air drawn through the radiator heats the interior.
Tucker Torpedo Style
Because the Tucker Torpedo avoids the compromise that starts with front-engine design, new and graceful lines distinguish its streamlining. Lower centre of gravity gives it that sleek close-to-the-road appearance, but without sacrificing adequate head room even for the tallest people. Today the Torpedo has set a style that will not be dated for years, and that will give owners the pride and enjoyment of driving the smartest looking car in America.
The Public Investigation
By 1949 the Tucker car was still not in production. Stockholders began to smell a rat and a public investigation was demanded. The United States Government stepped in and found that of the twenty-six million dollars Tucker had promoted there remained by May of this year approximately only 69,000 dollars. The stockholders' money had been spent not in endeavouring to get the car into production, but wasted on ridiculous expenses beneficial mainly to Tucker and his family. For the vanished millions Tucker could only show forty-nine experimental hand-made cars.
A careful check on the cars showed that they merely consisted of a number of untested, unproved and highly questionable ideas in an early stage of development. In fact, the gearbox on the actual prototype Tucker car was merely an old Cord gearbox in disguise. By 1949 Tucker had been indicted by the United States Federal Court for fraud and the Tucker car, together with large amounts in stockholders' funds can be written off as a bad debt. The public then learnt that some of the thousands of dealers who paid for the franchise to sell the car had banded together under the title of Tucker Dealers' Association in an effort to take over production.
The Securities and Exchange Commission
The Securities and Exchange commission had been monitoring the Tucker Corporation from its earliest days. The SEC was embittered after small automaker Kaiser-Frazer was given millions of dollars in grants towards development of a new car, and subsequently squandered the money. While Tucker took no money from the federal government, small upstart automakers were under intense SEC scrutiny, and Tucker was no exception. One of Tucker's most innovative business ideas caused the most trouble for the company and was used by the SEC to spark its formal investigation. His Accessories Program raised funds by selling accessories before the car was even in production. Potential buyers who purchased Tucker accessories were guaranteed a spot on the dealer waiting list for a Tucker '48 car. Tucker also began selling dealerships before the car was ready for production, and at the time of the trial had sold over 2000 dealerships nationwide at a price of $7500 to nearly $30,000 each.
Feeling pressure from the SEC, Harry Aubrey Toulmin, Jr., the chairman of the Tucker board of directors, resigned and wrote a letter to the SEC on September 26, 1947, in an attempt to distance himself from the company. In the letter, Toulmin indicated that he quit "because of the manner in which Preston Tucker is using the funds obtained from the public through sale of stock." Describing Tucker as "a tall, dark, delightful, but inexperienced boy", Toulmin added that the Tucker '48 machine "does not actually run, it just goes 'goose-geese'" and "I don't know if it can back up." In reply, Tucker stated that he had asked Toulmin to resign "to make way for a prominent man now active in the automobile industry." The "prominent man" turned out to be Preston Tucker himself.
In late 1947, a radio segment on Tucker by popular journalist Drew Pearson criticized the Tucker '48, calling it the "tin goose" (referring to Toulmin's "goose-geese" comments) and noting that the first prototype "could not even back up". The first prototype lacked a reverse gear because Tucker had not had time to finish the direct torque drive by the time of the car's unveiling. This was corrected in the final driveline, but the public damage was done and a negative media feeding frenzy resulted. Tucker responded by publishing a full page advertisement in many national newspapers with "an open letter to the automobile industry", where he subtly hinted that his efforts to build the cars were being stymied by politics and an SEC conspiracy. Nonetheless, dealership owners began filing lawsuits to recover their money, and Tucker's stock value plummeted. By 1950 the dream was over.
