Preston Tucker and His Battle to Build the Car of Tomorrow

Preston Tucker and His Battle to Build the Car of Tomorrow PDF Author: Steve Lehto
Publisher: Chicago Review Press
ISBN: 1613749562
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 306

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Book Description
A 2017 Michigan Notable Book After World War II, the American automobile industry was reeling. Having spent years building tanks and airplanes for the army, the car companies would need years more to retool their production to meet the demands of the American public, for whom they had not made any cars since 1942. And then in stepped Preston Tucker. This salesman extraordinaire from Ypsilanti, Michigan, had built race cars before the war, and had designed prototypes for the military during it. Now, gathering a group of brilliant automotive designers, engineers, and promoters, he announced the creation of a revolutionary new car: the Tucker '48, the first car in almost a decade to be built fresh from the ground up. Tucker's car would include ingenious advances in design and engineering that other car companies could not match. With a rear engine, rear-wheel drive, a safety-glass windshielf that would pop out in case of an accident, a padded dashboard, independent suspension, and automatic transmission, it would be more attractive and aerodynamic—and safer—than any other car on the road. But as the public eagerly awaited Tucker's car of tomorrow, powerful forces in Washington were trying to bring him down. An SEC commissioner with close ties to Detroit's Big Three automakers deliberately leaked information about an investigation the agency was conducting, suggesting that Tucker was bilking investors with a massive fraud scheme. Headlines accused him a perpetrating a hoax and claimed that his cars weren't real and his factory was a sham. In fact, the Tucker '48 sedan was genuine, and everyone who saw it was impressed by what this upstart carmaker had achieved. But the SEC's investigation had compounded the company's financial problems and management conflicts, and a superior product was not enough to keep Tucker's dream afloat. Here, Steve Lehto tackles the story of Tucker's amazing rise and tragic fall, relying on a huge trove of documents that has been used by no other writer to date. It is the first comprehensive, authoritative account of Tucker's magnificent car and his battles with the government. And in this book, Lehto finally answers the questions automobile aficionados have wondered about for decades: Exactly how and why was the production of such an innovative car killed?

Preston Tucker and His Battle to Build the Car of Tomorrow

Preston Tucker and His Battle to Build the Car of Tomorrow PDF Author: Steve Lehto
Publisher: Chicago Review Press
ISBN: 1613749562
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 306

Get Book Here

Book Description
A 2017 Michigan Notable Book After World War II, the American automobile industry was reeling. Having spent years building tanks and airplanes for the army, the car companies would need years more to retool their production to meet the demands of the American public, for whom they had not made any cars since 1942. And then in stepped Preston Tucker. This salesman extraordinaire from Ypsilanti, Michigan, had built race cars before the war, and had designed prototypes for the military during it. Now, gathering a group of brilliant automotive designers, engineers, and promoters, he announced the creation of a revolutionary new car: the Tucker '48, the first car in almost a decade to be built fresh from the ground up. Tucker's car would include ingenious advances in design and engineering that other car companies could not match. With a rear engine, rear-wheel drive, a safety-glass windshielf that would pop out in case of an accident, a padded dashboard, independent suspension, and automatic transmission, it would be more attractive and aerodynamic—and safer—than any other car on the road. But as the public eagerly awaited Tucker's car of tomorrow, powerful forces in Washington were trying to bring him down. An SEC commissioner with close ties to Detroit's Big Three automakers deliberately leaked information about an investigation the agency was conducting, suggesting that Tucker was bilking investors with a massive fraud scheme. Headlines accused him a perpetrating a hoax and claimed that his cars weren't real and his factory was a sham. In fact, the Tucker '48 sedan was genuine, and everyone who saw it was impressed by what this upstart carmaker had achieved. But the SEC's investigation had compounded the company's financial problems and management conflicts, and a superior product was not enough to keep Tucker's dream afloat. Here, Steve Lehto tackles the story of Tucker's amazing rise and tragic fall, relying on a huge trove of documents that has been used by no other writer to date. It is the first comprehensive, authoritative account of Tucker's magnificent car and his battles with the government. And in this book, Lehto finally answers the questions automobile aficionados have wondered about for decades: Exactly how and why was the production of such an innovative car killed?

Design and Destiny

Design and Destiny PDF Author: Philip S. Egan
Publisher: On Mark
ISBN:
Category : Technology & Engineering
Languages : en
Pages : 200

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Book Description


The Indomitable Tin Goose

The Indomitable Tin Goose PDF Author: Charles T. Pearson
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Automobiles
Languages : en
Pages : 296

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Book Description


Two Ways Out of Stockton

Two Ways Out of Stockton PDF Author: Axel Gearman
Publisher: Axel Gearman
ISBN: 1737990652
Category : Biography & Autobiography
Languages : en
Pages : 227

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Book Description
A gritty, real-life adventure of a young boy who grows into a troubled, yet functioning, man determined to forge a different path than his estranged father. A story of love and loss; life and death; perception and reality; and betrayal and forgiveness. When five-year-old Axel Gearman’s parents divorce, he is made to tell his father he no longer wants to see him. Wanting to be a good boy, he obliges and spends the next several decades not seeing or knowing his dad. Now an adult, Axel has become a loving father and husband with a good job, a nice home, and some deep-seated issues. After receiving an unexpected phone call informing him of his father’s impending death, Axel makes a cross-country journey to reunite with him, settle his affairs and find closure. Two Ways Out of Stockton provides a candid glimpse into the hard complexities of family and regret with a dash of humor. The musical and pop culture references bring life to the often relatable, and sometimes heartbreaking, moments throughout this touching memoir. Add to the reading experience with the "Two Ways Out Of Stockton (Soundtrack)", available on Spotify.

Chrysler's Turbine Car

Chrysler's Turbine Car PDF Author: Steve Lehto
Publisher: Chicago Review Press
ISBN: 1569767718
Category : Transportation
Languages : en
Pages : 257

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Book Description
In 1964, Chrysler gave the world a glimpse of the future. They built a fleet of turbine cars--automobiles with jet engines--and loaned them out to members of the public. The fleet logged over a million miles; the exercise was a raging success. These turbine engines would run on any flammable liquid--tequila, heating oil, Chanel #5, diesel, alcohol, kerosene. If the cars had been mass produced, we might have cars today that do not require petroleum-derived fuels. The engine was also much simpler than the piston engine--it contained one-fifth the number of moving parts and required much less maintenance. The cars had no radiators or fan belts and never needed oil changes. Yet Chrysler crushed and burned most of the cars two years later; the jet car's brief glory was over. Where did it all go wrong? Controversy still follows the program, and questions about how and why it was killed have never been satisfactorily answered. Steve Lehto has interviewed all the surviving members of the turbine car program--from the metallurgist who created the exotic metals for the interior of the engine to the test driver who drove it at Chrysler's proving grounds for days on end. Lehto takes these first-hand accounts and weaves them into a great story about the coolest car Detroit ever produced.

Gideon's Sword

Gideon's Sword PDF Author: Douglas Preston
Publisher: Grand Central Publishing
ISBN: 0446564338
Category : Fiction
Languages : en
Pages : 326

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Book Description
Introducing Gideon Crew: trickster, prodigy, master thief At twelve, Gideon Crew witnessed his father, a world-class mathematician, accused of treason and gunned down. At twenty-four, summoned to his dying mother's bedside, Gideon learned the truth: His father was framed and deliberately slaughtered. With her last breath, she begged her son to avenge him. Now, with a new purpose in his life, Gideon crafts a one-time mission of vengeance, aimed at the perpetrator of his father's destruction. His plan is meticulous, spectacular, and successful. But from the shadows, someone is watching. A very powerful someone, who is impressed by Gideon's special skills. Someone who has need of just such a renegade. For Gideon, this operation may be only the beginning . . .

Disaster in Dearborn

Disaster in Dearborn PDF Author: Thomas E. Bonsall
Publisher: Stanford University Press
ISBN: 9780804746540
Category : Transportation
Languages : en
Pages : 252

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Book Description
Tells the disastrous story of the design and development of the Edsel, with insights into this spectacular failure of the automobile industry to sell a car that it had marketed extensively.

Lost Car Companies of Detroit

Lost Car Companies of Detroit PDF Author: Alan Naldrett
Publisher: Arcadia Publishing
ISBN: 1625856490
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 144

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Book Description
Among more than two hundred auto companies that tried their luck in the Motor City, just three remain: Ford, General Motors and Chrysler. But many of those lost to history have colorful stories worth telling. For instance, J.J. Cole forgot to put brakes in his new auto, so on the first test run, he had to drive it in circles until it ran out of gas. Brothers John and Horace Dodge often trashed saloons during wild evenings but used their great personal wealth to pay for the damage the next day (if they could remember where they had been). David D. Buick went from being the founder of his own leading auto company to working the information desk at the Detroit Board of Trade. Author Alan Naldrett explores these and more tales of automakers who ultimately failed but shaped the industry and designs putting wheels on the road today.

Porsche 911 Forever Young

Porsche 911 Forever Young PDF Author: Tobias Aichele
Publisher:
ISBN: 9780929758114
Category : Transportation
Languages : en
Pages : 0

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Book Description
With the aid of previously unpublished material and in-depth interviews author Aichele presents this endless and fascinating 911 history. Beautifully written and filled with hundreds of photographs portraying the true essence of the 911. Aichele also describes the all-new 911. A must-have piece of automotive literature for every Porsche enthusiast.

Dodge Power Wagon Photo History

Dodge Power Wagon Photo History PDF Author: Monty Montgomery
Publisher: Iconografix
ISBN: 9781583880197
Category : Dodge trucks
Languages : en
Pages : 0

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Book Description
Dodge's most famous trucks from WWII through the '80s; military and civilian versions with mechanical specifications and production figures.