sleek, sexy and overprotective, the bricklin is trying to gull-wing its way into america's heart
Remember Preston Tucker? No, we don't mean Preston Foster or Forrest Tucker. Right after World War Two, Tucker attempted the impossible--taking on Detroit's Big Three with what was heralded as a revolutionary new automobile, the Tucker Torpedo. As it turned out, it was impossible: the Tucker was torpedoed almost before it was launched. Now, more than a quarter century later, 35-year-old Malcolm Bricklin, a fast-revving entrepreneur who looks like Richard Benjamin, dresses like Carroll Shelby and thinks like Dale Carnegie, is going to take a crack at it.
Bricklin began several years ago with an infinitesimal (by Detroit standards) bank roll he had put together by transforming Subaru of America into a legitimate contender in the imported-car field. The first design for the car was attempted by Bruce Meyers, of Meyers Manx dunebuggy fame. After much sweat, heartache and expense, Meyers and Bricklin came to a parting of the ways. Meyers' place was taken by a young designer. Marshall Hobart, who, in three days, whipped up a model that was received with enthusiasm. Bricklin says he thought then that he had something. But it turned out to be a long way from the final product. His initial investment has now ballooned to about $20,000,000. most of which has been supplied by banks and the Canadian province of New Brunswick (now a partner of Bricklin's), where production lines have been set up. Cars are coming off those lines in modest numbers, but eventually they are supposed to turn out 1000 a month of what Bricklin hopes will be the most talked-about car to come down the pike in a long while.
The Bricklin has a gutsy don't-tread-on-me look about it--somewhere between a Datsun 240Z and a Maserati Ghibli, with Mercedes 300 SL-like gull wings thrown in for good measure. In addition to the usual amenities found in a $6500-plus car, it sports a reliable AMC 360-cu.-in. V8 under its hood, which, given the car's 3600-pound weight, can really move it along, plus a raft of safety features: a bumper system 200 percent more efficient than minimum Government requirements (some insurance companies have offered a 20 percent discount because of it), a roll cage, enclosed engine and fuel tank and doughnut-wide radial tires. The car's 96-in. wheelbase and 178-in. over-all length should perk up the interest of a lot of city slickers who find on-the-street parking an urban hazard. Speaking of which, the body is a unique combination of molded acrylic bonded to an under-coating of fiberglass; it's tough but easily repairable.
Will Mal Bricklin make it? Well, Preston Tucker may be forgotten, but does the name Henry Ford ring a bell?
