Once upon a time, Americans were encouraged to dream big, go on adventures, and take risks. While we have become a society that has become adverse to those things, in the early 20th century, this was the goal of many. You can read about many of the heroes of that age, from Frank Lockhart to Nikolai Tesla. Yet nobody lived a more full life than Eddie Rickenbacker. This man crammed several unbelievable adventures into his long life, including manufacturing a line of automobiles, yet he is relatively unknown today and so is his car. Would you like to add a car with a story to your collection? If so, this 1925 Rickenbacker Sedan for sale on Craigslist in Garden, Michigan may be the car you want. This blue-on-black twenties cruiser is being offered for $15,000, and would surely be the only one of this marque at your next Cars and Coffee. Are you interested in refurbishing and showing such a car? Thanks to Henry R. for the tip on this seldom-seen classic.
Edward Vernon Rickenbacher was born on October 8, 1890, and lived until July 23, 1973. To say that he lived a full life would be a great understatement. His Swiss immigrant parents were in Columbus, Ohio, and Rickenbacker’s childhood was one of hard work in a family with limited means. He held many odd jobs as a kid to help put food on the family’s table. He also had a knack for finding trouble. Rickenbacker cheated death after falling in an open cistern, narrowly missing being hit by a coal car on two separate occasions, and barely escaping a school fire. It wasn’t long before he found himself as an adult cheating death again and again. In his life, he was a riding mechanic in the 1906 Vanderbilt Cup road race, a relief driver in the Indianapolis 500, got suspended from racing by the AAA for dangerous driving, raced again for the Duesenberg brothers, and was surveilled and arrested by British authorities for having a name similarly to a German noble’s son when arriving in the country to work for the British Sunbeam racing team during World War I.
It was in World War I that Rickenbacker achieved his greatest fame. Enamored with flying, he joined the war effort and eventually led the famed 94th Aero Squadron. During the war, he shot down an amazing 26 enemy planes to make him the ace of aces in WWI. His bravery was rewarded with the Distinguished Service Cross (eight times), the Legion of Honor, and the French Croix de Guerre. One of his DSCs was later upgraded to the Congressional Medal of Honor. Later in life, Rickenbacker owned the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, was in an Eastern Air Lines DC-3 crash outside of Atlanta that nearly killed him, and was the victim of a B-17 crash in the Pacific during World War II that left him and fellow survivors adrift in life rafts for 24 days. He credited his survival of that ordeal with a seagull that landed on his head when they had lost all hope of rescue. Rickenbacker quickly snatched the bird from his head, and he and the survivors ate it raw. Smokey Yunick said that Rickenbacker would repeatedly tell the seagull story in the pits to everyone he met at Indy when Smokey was a competitor. Later in life, Rickenbacker would also run Eastern Air Lines.
Somewhere in there, Rickenbacker got into the car business with the backing of millionaire Byron Everitt of Everitt-Metzger-Flanders (EMF), an early car manufacturer. The plan was to build a new car using the Rickenbacker name and his “hat in a ring” symbol from the 94th Aero Squadron. The car had several innovations, including twin flywheels, a suspension designed to provide an undisturbed ride, and, in 1923, the then-unusual feature of brakes at all four corners of the car. While such logic sounds ridiculous today, competitors such as Studebaker campaigned against the car on the premise that having four-wheel braking was unsafe. Rickenbacker left the company after it was brought to its financial knees by the malicious treatment. Increased competition in the upper middle end of the market ultimately drove the company into bankruptcy in 1927. Rickenbacker ended up on the hook for $250,000 of the company’s debt.
While an estimated 27,000 cars were produced, time and attrition have made these cars literal ghosts in today’s collector car market. According to the Rickenbacker Motors website, only a handful are known to exist. We know little about this survivor due to the seller’s close hold on verbiage. We are told that it is a 1925 Rickenbacker which is very rare with not many left. The seller also states that it is a cool car and everything is original. The term original in this case means either that the car carries all of its original parts, finishes, and upholstery or that it was restored to the same configuration it left the factory with. If it is a restoration, it is an old one. There was a time when collectors sought out rare and interesting cars to restore as a challenge and as sort of a reaction to the huge number of people restoring much more common cars. Regardless, a perusal of the photographs reveals a car that could use some refreshing but is intact enough that its hard-to-find parts could probably be replicated. Unfortunately, there is no mention as to the condition of the engine. The picture below shows everything to be there, and the spark plug wires look to be recent replacements. Perhaps that is a good sign that it has received some exercise in the past decade or so.
It seems sad that so few people today know who Eddie Rickenbacker was and the impact he had on aviation and racing. Tragically his attempt at automobile manufacturing met with failure. Setbacks like this were uncharacteristic for him but can be looked at positively as another example of his courage and determination to win against all odds. More important was that he kept going after the loss.
Hopefully, someone will purchase this seldom-seen sedan and bring it back to good condition. Perhaps asking about the car and its unusual logo may end up sharing the story of one of the most amazing Americans in history with a new generation of folks. Eddie Rickenbacker deserves to be remembered, as does the car that bears his name.
Have you ever heard of a Rickenbacker? Have you seen one in person? What would you do with this car if it were yours? Please share your thoughts in the comments.
There is an episode of The Twilight Zone that feature a Rickenbacker. Only time I’ve heard of or seen one besides here. What a life story. Thanks for all that info.
Mr. Bevis, starring Orson Bean.
I own a Rickenbacker but mine hangs in my guitar vault.
If I had the cash I’d buy it for the story right now.
If you are like me, and not from this time period, we have a lot of nerve saying all cars today look alike, when, to me, all THESE cars look alike. Heck, I can’t tell a Rickenbacker from a Hudson. These were VERY expensive. I read, a 1925 Rickenbacker cost almost $2grand. A hefty price when a Model T was $260, and may explain some of his money woes.
It’s a great piece of auto history that someone had the audacity to complain about. I’m here to learn something, something the authors are pretty good at, and I’ll never buy a 1925 Rickenbacker, but am fascinated learning the story of that guy.
You can charge more if you are telling rich customers that they are buying status.
I thought everybody knew about Pilot Eddie Rickenbacker! These ’20s early ’30s cars is what started me in the old car hobby more than 50 years ago. Unfortunately interest in this style vehicle has waned and as rare as it is that’s an appropriate price or maybe a tad high. You can buy a restored A for the same money, get in it and go.
So many fascinating things here! First, its location, Garden MI. That’s in the U.P.! How did this car ever get up there??
I don’t know much about this vintage car so forgive the dumb questions. Where’s the air cleaner? Is that a stomp starter or a round gas pedal? Is that open tube in the engine compartment a horn?? And a trip odometer?!
The seller is a man of few words. Newer hoses and those plug wires make me wonder if it runs.
My wife is a seamstress, I do some woodworking, and have access to some very skilled retired metal workers.
Go Fund Me?
Hey Craig, what looks like a horn is the air cleaner,there’s a tube from it down behind the exhaust to the carb. The can on the fire wall is a vacuum operated fuel pump. Throttle pedal next to the brake pedal, kick start button next to the hand brake. Sounds like you’ve got a crew ready to go, offer 10k and I bet you’ll take it home.
Rickenbacker and the other pilots in the hat in the Ring squadron went to fight for the allies after America entered the war in 1917. However the famed Lafayette Escadrille consisted of American volunteer pilots who fought for the French from the early days in 1914. It’s a bit hard to understand, but these pilots in 1914 were near living memory of the French fleet that had saved the USA in 1812. There view of history would have been much like we now think of the 1920’s.
Rickenbacker’s autobiography is well worth the read – he did indeed live an incredible (and charmed) life. He didn’t directly join the air service in WWI – if I recall correctly, he was originally in as a mechanic/chauffeur, and wangled his way into the air service from there. His other book, “Fighting the Flying Circus” details that time in his life, and is another interesting read.
Fascinating car, and a real piece of history!
Rickenbacker didn’t join the air service because it didn’t exist at that time.
A storage garage in my area has a Rickenbacker.
When I was in second grade, 1962, I was building a model of the Spad XIII and the Revell model company said the Spad XIII had a top speed of 130 mph.
This contradicted other published specs. My dad suggested I send Capt.
Rickenbacker a letter to ask him. At the time he was president of Eastern airlines and I doubted a response was going to show up. To my surprise, about a week later, a box showed up and it contained a letter and 2 books. The letter thanked me for my interest and that the Spad XIII would do about 120.
He went on to give me advice on life and
read the books he sent. The books are signed to me and my brother from Captain Eddie Rickenbacker. He had been promoted to Major later in life, but he was better known as Captain.
I exchanged 13 letters with Captain Rickenbacker. The letters covered people like Frank Luke, the Baloon Buster and Lothar Richthofen, Manfred’s brother.
He was an inspiring person.
I’m pretty sure most of us older BF readers could tell you that Mr. Rickenbacker was a WW1 ace. I also knew his name was associated with a car in the 1920’s. I remember reading history books about him and his exploits both in school and on my own. But this is the most I’ve ever seen of the car itself. One of the many reasons why I enjoy BF is for articles like this where you learn something new and interesting and are reminded of old memories. Great write up, Jeff.
There is an equivalent car in the Mahy automobile museum in Belgium.
I just checked on Rock Auto and they do list Rickenbacker for parts, 1922-1927, but the only parts listed are plugs and belts.
The Rickenbacker factory was a long narrow building built along the railroad tracks in Detroit. After Richenbacker went bust and the property changed hands several times it was bought by Shatterproof Glass, a manufacturer of replacement windshields. In the mid 80sI was flying for the company that leased them Peterbuilt trucks to deliver their products and built their trailers. Was in the factory with the boss, and saw odd shapes hanging from the rafters of the building. Asked what they were, and was told they were the dies used to stamp out the body panels for Rickenbacker automobiles. Shatterproof decided to move to North Carolina to get away from the unions, and it took them so much longer to do it than they expected they went bankrupt.
Great write-up! What an amazing individual!!
Chop it, bag it, and drop in a LS!! ; )
I have seen at least one Rickenbacker if not more going to Hershey car show since about 1966 or 1967. If there is ever a car you have not heard of or seen go to Hershey as there will be one show up there. Good article on this one.
Well whaddya know, this car looks familiar. I was the previous owner of it, I bought the car from the president of the Rickenbacker club a number of years ago as a project for my retirement. My health went to pot and I unfortunately decided to sell it as I felt I couldn’t give it the attention it deserved. I loved in Montana when I bought it and moved to Garden Michigan a couple years ago and brought the car out on a trailer as I had sold it to this fellow before I moved. He was excited about it and had all the stories about restoring it. I don’t know what happened as I have been trying to contact him, the battery is still in my garage and I found him a reprint of the owner’s manual which I have for him. The car does run, the water pump leaks, it’s aluminum and corroded, the shocks are off the car and need to be rebuilt and the headliner is shot but there is a bolt of new material to replace it. It’s a wonderful car and I wish I hadn’t had to sell it.
Someone is working on casting new water pump parts so there is hope. Another reason the company failed is in 1926 after the dealerships had bought their inventory the management (after Eddie left) announced a $200 drop in pricing effectively cutting profits for the dealers and a lot of them dropped out, no dealer network=no sales. I hope someone buys this piece of history and preserves it, there are roughly 100 left and about 25% in running order. Hope this helps and feel free to contact me
When I was about 12 I painted the hat and ring on my motorcycle helmet. Apparently my grandfather was offended on account of some altercation with Mr. Rickenbacker when my grandfather was a flying instructor in ww1.
I thought Captain Rickenbacker had a pretty amazing life, any one of those incidents would make someone famous. The fact that he survived them all and accomplished what he did is amazing.
My father and I built a Revell Spad XIII. Wish I still had it.
Growing up in the 50s and 60s he was a hero of mine and I built a few models of his plane including balsa flown with a 049 engine lol
A good friend was a pilot with Eastern Airlines which died as a result of a pilots’ strike and management’s unwilling to deal. He went on to a successful 2nd career as a banker. Same skill set, weighing risk, and good at math.
Howard Hughes had the same sort of story, only it was airplances, and movies, and TWA.
Twenty years from now it will be Musk who features on car sites like this, with stories of his rise and fall and sources for parts for 30 year old Tesla 3’s.
Now that I think about it, in a way I worked for Captain Eddy. I flew 727s for Eastern Airlines until they went out of business, but he was long gone when I got hired, Borman was running the place when I got there,
That looks a lot like my Dodge Brothers yard art. Body by Budd?
Rickenbacker was also Black Jack Pershing’s personal driver during the pursuit of Pancho Villa.
I’m surprised so few people know about him. I grew up in Owen Sound home of Billy Bishop VC Canada’s top scoring ace with 72 victories. I always found history interesting- even as a kid.