Unique Million-Dollar 1926 Rickenbacker Eight Super Sport Back On Sale After A Decade — How Much Is It Worth Now?
Flying ace Eddie Rickenbacker was an American renaissance man. The auto racer-turned-fighter pilot shot down 26 enemy planes during World War 1, making him the most decorated American airman during the conflict.
His fame led to business success back home, where he worked in sales for General Motors, started Florida Airways, ran Eastern Air Lines and even owned the Indianapolis Motor Speedway form 1927 to 1945.
But in 1919, he was recruited by investor Byron F. Everitt to start a car company under the Rickenbacker name. Rickenbacker, of course, led the design and testing for the first car, which debuted at the New York Auto Show in 1922. The company logo used a version of the “hat in the ring” emblem from the 94th Aero Squadron he was in during the war.
The company would go on to offer a variety of mid-priced models on the chassis powered by straight-six and straight-eight engines. Innovations included dual crankshaft flywheels for smoothness and four-wheel brakes, the latter of which were uncommon and even controversial at the time.
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The Detroit-based company sold nearly 28,000 vehicles through 1927 when it went out of business, Rickenbacker having left the company the year before.
The model that best encapsulated Rickenbacker’s racing and aviation backgrounds was the 1926 Rickenbacker Eight Super Sport that was unveiled at the New York Auto Show that year.
The relatively sleek two-door featured a crisp streamlined style with a tapered rear end and front fenders that turned with the wheels.
It was powered by a 105 hp 315-cubic-inch straight eight and had seating for four in a cozy cabin. Copper-plated metal, mahogany and leather rich enough for a club room chair were among the materials used in its construction.
The hood ornament was an airplane mounted above the Rickenbacker logo on the grille. The exact number built is unclear, but is believed to be between 14 and 17. Only one is known to still exist intact, however, and it is the car from the show.
It was originally purchased by Rickenbacker dealer Richard Mellin for a reported $10,000, which is equivalent to $180,000 today. The car stayed in t the Mellin family until it moved to the Harrah’s Automobile Collection in Las Vegas from 1973 to 1983. It was later displayed at the Palm Springs Air Museum and was last sold at auction in 2014 for $946,000.
Larry Klairmont was the buyer and he put the car on display at his Klairmont Kollections Automotive Museum in Chicago. Klairmont died in 2021 at 94, however, and the museum is now closing and selling the collection for charity at a Mecum Auctions event at the museum on Sept. 20.
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The Rickenbacker is one of dozens of vehicles that will be crossing the block, which includes the famous Golden Sahara II custom. Mecum hasn’t put an estimated value on the Eight Super Sport, but all of the vehicles are being offered without reserve sale prices. Given the vehicle’s history, it will likely take an appropriately sky-high bid for a flying ace’s car to buy it.