Rickenbacker glory

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If Carroll Shelby may be described as the toughest man of America’s PostWar motoring scene, then Edward Rickenbacker may have been his PreWar equivalent. Rickenbacker raced at Indianapolis from 1911-on, competed in Duesenbergs with Barney Oldfield and became his country’s top flying ace in WW1 (with 26 confirmed kills…). He returned home as a celebrity, wrote a book, and decided in 1921, why not build a car?

The vehicles he came up with were sometimes described as a ‘cabin monoplane on wheels’ and were available with frivolities such as Edmund & Jones headlamps in copper, bumpers made from laminated mahogany; trim from teak and cycle fenders that turned with the front wheels. Rickenbacker’s logo of an ‘Uncle Sam’ top hat inside a planetary ring was American machismo at its best.

The downside of all that abundancy was that Rickenbacker’s cars were expensive. Too expensive, it seems, as the marque disappeared after just five years of production. Two 1926 cars are now offered for sale at the GAA Classic Cars Auction on Saturday, April 24. They are both part of the massive Ron Jones Collection and will all be sold at no reserve. With not many Rickenbackers around it makes you wonder what sort of price these cars will fetch. One particularly special 1926 Rickenbacker Super Sport – the car that was on display at the 1926 New York Auto Show - sold seven years ago for almost a million dollars. Another 1925 Brougham was sold that same year for $26,400…

1926 Rickenbacker

The duo offered by GAA Classic Cars are a two-tone green and black two-door Coupe of 1926-vintage that is said to be unrestored and comes with straight-eight, 3-speed manual transmission, lovely aeroplane radiator mascot and ‘Eisen windows’ – anyone who knows what the latter is about? The other car is a 1926 model two-door Coupe also with the eight-in-line and 3-speed ‘box, now all-black and with the cool cooper headlamps. A unique chance to have the choice between two of these cars?

Words by Jeroen Booij. Pictures courtesy of GAA Classic Cars.

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