Rudolf Caracciola - War, Comeback and Later Years

War, Comeback and Later Years

Caracciola and his wife Alice returned to their home in Lugano. For the duration of the war he was unable to drive; the rationing of petrol meant motor racing was unfeasible. The pain in his leg grew worse, and they went back to the clinic in Bologna to consult a specialist. Surgery was recommended, but Caracciola decided against that option, deterred by the minimum three months it would take to recover from the operation. He spent much of the last part of the war—from 1941 onwards—attempting to gain possession of the two W165s used at the 1939 Tripoli Grand Prix, with a view to maintaining them for the duration of the hostilities. When they finally arrived in Switzerland in early 1945, they were confiscated as German property by the Swiss authorities.

He was invited to participate in the 1946 Indianapolis 500, and originally intended to drive one of the W165s, but was unable to have them released in time. Nevertheless, he headed to America to watch the race. Joe Thorne, a local team owner, offered him one of his Thorne Engineering Specials to drive, but during a practice session before the race Caracciola was hit on the head by an object, believed to be a bird, and crashed into the south wall. His life was saved by a tank driver's helmet the organisers insisted he wear, in spite of which he suffered a severe concussion and was in a coma for several days.

Caracciola returned to racing in 1952, when he was recalled to the Mercedes-Benz factory team to drive the new Mercedes-Benz 300SL in sports car races. The first major race with the car was the Mille Miglia, alongside Karl Kling and his old teammate Hermann Lang. Kling finished second in the race, Caracciola fourth. It later emerged that Caracciola had been given a car with an inferior engine to his teammates, perhaps because of a lack of time to prepare for the race. Caracciola's career ended with his third major crash; during a support race for the 1952 Swiss Grand Prix, the brakes on his 300SL locked and he skidded into a tree, fracturing his left leg.

After his retirement from racing, he continued to work for Daimler-Benz as a salesman, targeting NATO troops stationed in Europe. He organised shows and demonstrations which toured military bases, leading in part to an increase in Mercedes-Benz sales during that period. In early 1959, he became sick and developed signs of jaundice, which worsened despite treatment. Later in the year he was diagnosed with advanced cirrhosis. On 28 September 1959, in Kassel, Germany, he suffered liver failure and died, aged 58. He was buried in his home town of Lugano.