Tucker 48
Tucker Torpedo brochure, c. 1947. This concept drawing includes a centrally positioned steering wheel, doors that wrap up into the roof, and front fenders that turn when the car is cornering. These features did not reach production.
The Tucker 48 (named after its model year) is an automobile conceived by Preston Tucker and briefly produced in Chicago in 1948. Only 51 cars were made before the company ceased operations on March 3, 1949, due to negative publicity initiated by the news media, a Securities and Exchange Commission investigation and a heavily publicized stock fraud trial (in which the allegations were proven baseless and led to a full acquittal). Speculation exists that the Big Three automakers and Michigan Senator Homer S. Ferguson also had a role in the Tucker Corporation's demise.[citation needed] The 1988 movie Tucker: The Man and His Dream is based on the saga surrounding the car's production. The film's director, Francis Ford Coppola, is a Tucker owner and displays his vehicle on the grounds of his winery.[2] The 48's original proposed price was said to be $1,000, but the actual selling price was closer to $4,000.[3] A 1948 Tucker sedan was featured in the July 26, 2011, installment of NBC's It's Worth What? television show. The car's estimated value at that time was US$1,200,000. The car is commonly referred to as the "Tucker Torpedo". This name was never used in conjunction with the actual production car, and its name was officially "Tucker 48".
from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Tucker 48
Tucker Torpedo brochure, c. 1947. This concept drawing includes a centrally positioned steering wheel, doors that wrap up into the roof, and front fenders that turn when the car is cornering. These features did not reach production.
The Tucker 48 (named after its model year) is an automobile conceived by Preston Tucker and briefly produced in Chicago in 1948. Only 51 cars were made before the company ceased operations on March 3, 1949, due to negative publicity initiated by the news media, a Securities and Exchange Commission investigation and a heavily publicized stock fraud trial (in which the allegations were proven baseless and led to a full acquittal). Speculation exists that the Big Three automakers and Michigan Senator Homer S. Ferguson also had a role in the Tucker Corporation's demise.[citation needed] The 1988 movie Tucker: The Man and His Dream is based on the saga surrounding the car's production. The film's director, Francis Ford Coppola, is a Tucker owner and displays his vehicle on the grounds of his winery.[2] The 48's original proposed price was said to be $1,000, but the actual selling price was closer to $4,000.[3] A 1948 Tucker sedan was featured in the July 26, 2011, installment of NBC's It's Worth What? television show. The car's estimated value at that time was US$1,200,000. The car is commonly referred to as the "Tucker Torpedo". This name was never used in conjunction with the actual production car, and its name was officially "Tucker 48".
from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia