Preston Tucker’s long-lost project found in design sketches?

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Tucker Carioca Sketch

Preston Tucker was one of the great iconoclasts of the post-war automotive industry, and his Tucker 48 attempted a look unlike any car seen before (or since). However, a trial brought by the US Securities and Exchange Commission sunk the company, despite it being found not guilty. Tucker never gave up on the auto business though and went to Brazil in the 1950s to restart things with an all-new sporty design. Now, some newly discovered photos might shed more light on that almost-forgotten model.

Dubbed the Tucker Carioca (possibly pictured above), the car was designed by Count Alexis de Sakhnoffsky and featured a semi-open wheel design with cycle fenders to cover them. A headlight was mounted on the front wheels, plus one in the center, like the 48, and the rear tapered to a boat-tail point. The concept was featured on the cover of Car Life magazine in 1955, but much more information about the Carioca has been scarce for years. It's hard to call the vehicle beautiful, but you can't really look away, either.

The recently discovered photos might be giving us a whole new look at the Carioca's design process showing sketches from multiple angles. However, it isn't clear whether these depict the actual car. With no dates or signatures, it's difficult to establish a link to the past, and some claim they're really from designer Raymond Loewy for a possible Studebaker concept.

Head over to the blog Gyronaut X1 where the writer digs into the back story and tries to unravel the strands whether these new images are new views of the Carioca. It's some fantastic automotive archeology and well worth the read.

Preston Tucker's long-lost project found in design sketches? originally appeared on Autoblog on Mon, 13 Oct 2014 19:03:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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