by Tuckeroo » Thu Oct 23, 2008 12:54 am
You would be correct in thinking that that is incorrect, if that page is indeed implying that Tucker #1046 left the factory on an Oldsmobile chassis. That Tucker was owned by Nick Jenin, who was believed to have owned 10 Tuckers at one point. When his daughter needed a daily driver, he placed 1950s Oldsmobile running gear in it (this was done well after the factory closed). He did this presumably to make it easier for her to get it serviced, though what happened to the original running gear seems to be a mystery (...any ideas, anyone?). The story goes that she rejected this gift shortly thereafter - it seems her dates were far too interested in the car, and refusing to be upstaged she adopted a more conventional vehicle (a convertible, I think). It's second owners deliberately picked it from the lot of Tuckers for sale for the same reason Mr. Jenin built it in the first place, feeling it would be more practical. This was around 1964-1965 and the new owners found a recently rolled 1964 Mercury wagon which donated the chassis which it presumably rides on today. When I rode in it in at the 2003 convention, it still had the control on the dashboard which would have rolled down the power window on the tailgate.