Bizarre 1948 Tucker Convertible Pops Up for Sale Again, Nobody Knows Where It Came From

It is always the same dealer that tries to sell it and can't seem to get things right. The same car dealership tried to sell it in 2021 and 2020. The reason why it just can't seem to sale is probably because it comes with quite a controversy. All production cars that Preston Tucker's company built were sedans.

But this is supposedly the prototype of a never-produced convertible model. However, there are no official documents to confirm its background but rumor has it that it was affectionately called "Vera" when it was in development.

The development of the Tucker started right after World War II. The prototype first showed up online back in 1946. It was yet unfinished and, according to Hemmings,

Tucker historian Jay Follis issued a statement that stated that the Tucker Automobile Club of America had found no evidence that the factory has ever built such a car. Therefore, there is no proof that the convertible "was planned for or started at the factory."

Playing Hide and Seek with the Tucker Convertible

Every word of the story is like a game of Hide and Seek. While the Tucker historian, who checked the facts, said the car was never an actual Tuckr product,  the dealership trying to sell it claimed to have an affidavit from a Tucker employee, which confirms the authenticity of the prototype.

However, the dealership that has been trying to sell it for years claimed, back in 2022, that the car is one of the several unfinished Tuckers that the car company, plagued by controversy and trials, was working on when it shut down. The vehicle bears chassis series 57. But how come nobody doing research found anything about it?

The first design previewing a production model appeared in Science Illustrated magazine in December 1946. It was one of the super futuristic and innovative models of its era, sporting a hydraulic drive system, designed by George Lawson.

It came with a laminated safety windshield and a swiveling third headlight, which was synchronized to the movement of the steering wheel. It also sported a quick-swap powertrain, a procedure that was only supposed to take 15 minutes.

The Tucker prototype rocks a General Motors-sourced modified convertible top. It is painted in Waltz Blue over a tan leather interior.

The Tucker is not a Torpedo

Science Illustrated also published a photo of a 1/8 scale model oversized to look like the real deal and referred to as the "Torpedo on Wheels." That is why the production model was commonly but incorrectly referred to as the Tucker Torpedo.

The car was produced in Chicago, Illinois, for a very short period of time, in 1948. Only 51 cars rolled off the production line and only 47 survived to this day, which makes them super exclusive. The car company was planning to build north of 60,000 cars, but it was forced to declare bankruptcy. All the 1,900 employees were sent home.

It was March 3 when Tucker ceased all operations following the trial with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The automaker was acquitted but the financial damage was huge.

The Tucker reportedly sports a reinforced version of the sedan's chassis, developed with Lenki Engineering, which is the company that built the first-ever Tucker sedan prototype.

The vehicle allegedly remained with Lenki and was eventually sold to an employee of the company after he insisted to be allowed to complete it. But he never went all the way, because he sold it himself years later. The Tucker Convertible prototype is with its current owner since 2010.

The vehicle still features several original components and the rear-mounted air-cooled flat-six Franklin-Tucker engine and the Cord-supplied four-speed manual transmission are on the list. Tucker was originally planning to fit a massive 589-cubic-inch powerplant under the hood of the model.

Helicopter engine and 10 miles on the clock

But it eventually had to resort to a modded 334-cubic inch Franklin aircraft engine. The prototype was completed in 2010 and has had a single owner since then. It only has 10 miles (16 kilometers) on the clock, which makes this 1948 prototype seem brand-new.

Two years ago, when the car last showed up on eBay, it came with a Buy It Now price of $2.1 million or an asking price of $2.24 million. Now it is back and the listing shows the exact same photos from the previous listings.

While its authenticity remains unconfirmed, it surely is unique. And despite not selling in the previous years, it is even more expensive than before: it now costs $2,375,000 on eBay. A production version Tucker sedan was sold for little under $2 million back in 2021.

So, here you have it. A prototype with a shady background and costing a fortune. Who wouldn't want to take it home? If so, bring a platform, because the Tucker Convertible is not street-legal.