INVITATION
TO INDIVIDUALS AND/OR CAR CLUBS
TO
SUBMIT QUESTIONS ABOUT AUTOMOTIVE HISTORY
(Limit Questions
To Vintage Cars From Early 50's Thru Late 70's)
One of our members, Dick Rowe, has an extensive library
of books pertaining to Classic British and American made automobiles. We are inviting you and/or your club, as visitors
to our website, to submit questions to Mr. Rowe relative to automotive history. He will research the information and
reply with the corresponding results to your questions. Thus, we can provide you and/or your club with a resource for
information on those many "unknowns" you might have concerning vintage (early fifties to late seventies) British
and American cars. We will post the questions and corresponding results on this page so that all visitors to our website
may benefit from this program.
QUESTION: Allen Rosoff, Las Vegas, NV 89183
During
my high school days in the late '40's, early '50's, my memory recalls some American automobiles that were
produced with a body know as "torpedo" style. This was a sloping, extended back end of the vehicle, but it
didn't open up like today's hatchbacks. I have questioned a few people and no one has a clue as to what I'm
talking about. I can picture the vehicles in my mind, but that's as far as my memory serves me. I cannot recall
any of the details, such as who was the manufacturer and what years they were produced. I am hoping you can shed some
light on this subject because it's bugging the hell out of me that I can't remember.
ANSWER:
With the end of WWII, America's
automobile manufacturers found themselves with an excess of manufacturing space that they were not able to use. In a
Dodge plant, where engines for the B-29 Bomber were coming off the production line only a short time ago, now this relative
newcomer to the automobile industry planned to build his "Dream Car". Patriotism did not die with the end
of WWII, as many of the famous automobile designers in the United States wanted to use design ideas developed during
the war, to be used now in peacetime applications. For example, General Motors, famous designer Harley Earl used the
tail of the Lockheed P-38 Lightning as his inspiration for Cadillac's first tail fin on their 1948 models.
Studebaker's Raymond Loewy's 1947 Studebaker earned recognition for what was called "A Work of Art" by the
New York Museum of Modern Art. They were also nicknamed the "Bullet Nose" Studebakers. Even the diminutive
Crosley offered a 2-Blade "Spinner" propeller on the grille. Which brings us to the man who wanted to build
his "Dream Car". That man was Preston Thomas Tucker and in 1946, he started the Tucker Corporation.
With cash in short supply, he hired Alex Tremulis on the condition that he design a prototype within 100 days. The official
name of the prototype was the Tucker Torpedo. It was a futuristic 2-door coupe, with a design that would later become
known as the "Torpedo Body". As this design progressed to the production stage, there would be many changes,
most notable, the 2-door coupe morphed into a 4-door sedan. When the 51 cars that were produced arrived at the dealerships,
they were only referred to as Tuckers. Even though the model name Torpedo was dropped from the manufacturer's name
Tucker, the fastback body would be forever known as a "Torpedo Body". Allen, you will note when you see the
pictures, how the fastback styling of the Buick Riviera was very similar to the prototype Tucker's design of 1946.
I hope this answered the question that has been bugging the hell out of you. (Click on pictures to enlarge.)
