50 Facts About Preston Tucker

Preston Thomas Tucker was an American automobile entrepreneur who developed the innovative Tucker 48 sedan, initially nicknamed the "Tucker Torpedo", an automobile which introduced many features that have since become widely used in modern cars.

Production of the Tucker '48 was shut down on 3 March 1949 amid scandal and controversial accusations of stock fraud, of which Tucker was eventually acquitted.

Preston Tucker was born on September 21,1903, on a peppermint farm near Capac, Michigan.

Preston Tucker's father was a railroad engineer named Shirl Harvey Tucker, and his mother was Lucille Caroline Tucker.

Preston Tucker grew up outside Detroit in the suburb of Lincoln Park, Michigan.

Tucker was raised by his mother, a teacher, after his father died of appendicitis when Preston was three or four years old.

At age 16, Preston Tucker began purchasing late model automobiles, repairing and refurbishing them to sell for a profit.

Preston Tucker attended the Cass Technical High School in Detroit, but he quit school and landed a job as an office boy for the Cadillac Motor Company, where he used roller skates to make his rounds more efficiently.

In 1922, young Preston Tucker joined the Lincoln Park Police Department against the pleas of his mother, his interest stirred by his desire to drive and ride the fast, high-performance police cars and motorcycles.

Preston Tucker's mother had him removed from the LPPD, pointing out to police officials that at 19, he was below the department's minimum required age.

Vera would run the station during the day while Preston Tucker worked on the Ford Motor Company assembly line.

Preston Tucker met an automobile salesman, Michael Dulian, who later became sales manager for the Tucker Corporation.

Preston Tucker did very well, but the dealership was a long drive from his Lincoln Park home and so Preston Tucker quit and briefly returned to the LPPD for the last time.

Dulian was transferred a couple of years later, but Tucker stayed in Memphis and was a salesman for Ivor Schmidt and John T Fisher Motor Company, where he became general sales manager.

In 1933, Preston Tucker moved to Buffalo, New York, and became regional sales manager for Pierce-Arrow automobiles, but after only two years, he moved back to Detroit and worked as a Dodge salesman for Cass Motor Sales.

Preston Tucker moved to Indianapolis to be closer to the racing car development scene and worked as the transportation manager for a beer distributor, overseeing the fleet of delivery trucks for the company.

Miller and Preston Tucker, Inc continued race car development and various other ventures until Miller's death in 1943.

Preston Tucker was close friends with Miller and even helped Miller's widow pay for her husband's funeral costs.

In late 1937, while recovering in an Indianapolis hospital from an appendectomy, Preston Tucker was reading the news and, learning of looming war in Europe, he got the idea of developing a high-speed armored combat vehicle.

In 1939, Preston Tucker moved his family back to Michigan and bought a house and property in Ypsilanti.

Preston Tucker remodeled an old barn on his property and began and operated a machine shop called the Ypsilanti Machine and Tool Company, planning to use the facility to develop various automotive products.

However, the highly mobile, power-operated gun turret featured on the Combat Car, the "Preston Tucker Turret", earned the interest of the United States Navy.

In 1940, Preston Tucker formed the Preston Tucker Aviation Corporation, with the goal of manufacturing aircraft and marine engines.

However, this relationship did not work out and Preston Tucker severed his association with Higgins in 1943.

Preston Tucker saw his opportunity to develop and bring his "car of tomorrow" to market.

Studebaker was first with an all-new postwar model, but Preston Tucker took a different tack, designing a safety-oriented car with innovative features and modern styling.

Preston Tucker said he had been thinking about the car for 15 years.

The second advertisement described specifically many of the innovative features Preston Tucker proposed for his car, many of which would not make it to the final car.

Preston Tucker was put in charge of pursuing a United States Air Force development contract, hoping to use Tucker's huge Chicago factory to someday build more than just cars.

Campini and Preston Tucker began developing plans for a gas turbine-powered car to be produced by Preston Tucker.

Preston Tucker assembled a group of automotive industry leaders for Preston Tucker Corporation, including:.

Preston Tucker, thinking long-term, believed this large facility would fit his long-term goal of producing an entire line of Preston Tucker automobiles under one roof.

Preston Tucker signed the lease in July 1946, contingent on him raising $15 million in capital by March 1947.

Preston Tucker planned for 60,000 cars a year, with 140 per day produced for the first 4 months and 300 per day produced afterward.

Preston Tucker liked the engine so much he purchased its manufacturer, Aircooled Motors in New York, for $1.8 million in 1947, securing a guaranteed engine supply for his car.

Potential buyers who purchased Preston Tucker accessories were guaranteed a spot on the dealer waiting list for a Preston Tucker '48 car.

Preston Tucker began selling dealerships before the car was ready for production, and at the time of the trial had sold over 2,000 dealerships nationwide at a price of $7,500 to nearly $30,000 each.

The first prototype lacked a reverse gear because Preston Tucker had not had time to finish the direct torque drive by the time of the car's unveiling.

Preston Tucker responded by publishing a full-page advertisement in many national newspapers with "an open letter to the automobile industry" wherein he subtly hinted that his efforts to build the cars were being stymied by politics and an SEC conspiracy.

In 1949, Preston Tucker surrendered his corporate records to the SEC.

Preston Tucker publicly called the charges "silly and ridiculous" and hailed the indictment as "an opportunity to explain our side of the story".

At trial, the government contended that Preston Tucker never intended to produce a car.

However, on cross-examination, the defense used this witness to their advantage when Ehlenz testified that he still drove his Preston Tucker 48 given to him by Preston Tucker, and that the car had 35,000 miles on it and still cruised smoothly at 90 miles per hour.

Preston Tucker stated that Tucker had taken over $500,000 of the investors' money for himself, but never delivered a production car.

Kirby rebutted Turnbull's claims on cross-examination, asking for proof of the allegations of financial mismanagement from Preston Tucker's seized financial records.

Preston Tucker died from pneumonia as a complication of lung cancer on December 26,1956, at the age of 53.

Preston Tucker is buried at Michigan Memorial Park in Flat Rock, Michigan.

Preston Tucker was the first federal appellate judge in US history to be jailed.

The Preston Tucker family held on to Aircooled Motors until 1961, when it was sold to Aero Industries.

Over 10,000 such stock certificates were personally signed by Preston Tucker, making these the most desirable.