Preston Tucker

Preston Thomas Tucker ( born September 21, 1903 in Capac, Michigan, † December 26, 1956 in Ypsilanti, Michigan) was an American automobile designer and manufacturer.

Early years (1903-1933)

Preston Tucker was born on a peppermint farm near Capac, Michigan. He grew up near Detroit in the suburb of Lincoln Park. Tucker was raised by his mother, a teacher, after his father died of appendicitis when Preston was 2 years old. He learned at the age of 11 years driving.

At age 16, Tucker began to buy various car models; he repaired it and prepared it and sold it at a profit. He attended Cass Technical High School in Detroit, but broke off the training. Then he began as "office boy" at Cadillac; there he was, inter alia, on roller skates, to make their work more efficient.

In 1922, he went to his mother's request, the police of Lincoln Park, Michigan. His wish was it directed to drive the rapid police vehicles (cars and motorcycles). His mother gave the supervisor a notice that Tucker is too young (minimum age was 19 for the service ), this ensured that he was dismissed from the service.

Tucker and his wife Vera, they married in 1923 at the age of 20 years, took a six-month lease for a service station near Lincoln Park. Vera worked a day job at the gas station, while Preston worked on the assembly line at Ford.

After the lease expired, Tucker announced at Ford and returned to the police service. In his first winter he was forbidden to drive police vehicles, because he had cut with a blowtorch a hole in the dashboard, to warm the interior of the vehicle with the heat of the engine.

Tucker Torpedo

The car named Tucker Torpedo, which he wanted to bring to the market in 1948, was very innovative and distinguished himself especially by some safety devices ( safety glass, seat belts, disc brakes, padded dash, Headlights ) that never built until then together in an automobile had been and were only in the following decades standard. The rear engine was a lightweight, but powerful 5.5 -liter six-cylinder four -stroke piston engine of light alloy and with fuel injection, which had driven a helicopter during the Second World War.

SEC proceedings and the demise of Tucker Corporation (1949-1950)

Due to certain clumsiness in his business conduct Preston Tucker was indicted for tax evasion. He was acquitted, but failed to maintain the production of his dream car, and so were only 51 Tucker Torpedo produced, making it today coveted collectors objects. 47 of the vehicles will still exist, they are very rarely seen. In the under-mentioned film could admire many of them.

It is believed that the three major brands, General Motors, Ford and Chrysler saw threatened by Tucker's innovations and with a vengeance sought a means to evacuate the small, unwelcome competitors out of the way.

Later life and death (1950-1956)

After the failure of his plans Tucker first moved to Brazil, where he again tried to build an innovative automobile. In Brazil, he suffered from exhaustion and after his return to the United States was with him, he was a heavy smoker, lung cancer diagnosed. He died in 1956 of pneumonia as a complication of his lung cancer in Ypsilanti. Tucker rests on the Michigan Memorial Park in Flat Rock, Michigan.

Film

1988 his story was titled Tucker - The Man and His Dream ( Tucker: The Man and His Dream) by Francis Ford Coppola filmed. The title role was played by Jeff Bridges. In the film, many of Tucker automobiles are seen.