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The mkiv Supra Owners Club

Crash Safety - 1959 vs 2009 (Youtube)


michael

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Am I the only one wondering if there's actually an engine and gearbox in the 59? Feel free to say yes :)

 

No you aren't, the site I found it on also wondered this and did some digging. They contacted David Zuby, the senior vice president of the crash-test center in Virginia that carried out the test...

 

http://wheels.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/09/18/more-details-about-1959-bel-air-crash-test/?partner=rss&emc=rss

 

When the institute went looking for a 1959 Bel Air to crash-test there was one thing the organization didn't want and some things it did.

 

"We didn't want to crash a museum piece," Mr. Zuby said. "We were not looking for one that had been restored for museum or show quality." But the vehicle had to have a solid structure, although a little surface rust would be acceptable.

 

They found what they wanted in Indiana. "The frame was sound and all the body panels were sound," he said. It had a 3.9-liter 6-cylinder engine and was in driving condition.

 

The car was bought for about $8,500 and had about 74,000 miles on the odometer, which was broken. It was trucked to the test center in Virginia.

 

But what about those "clouds of rust?

 

"Mr. Zuby said the cloud that shows in the crash video wasn't rust. "Most of that is road dirt that accumulates in nooks and crannies that you can't get it," he said."
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I am still very sceptical about it having an engine in it. Maybe because I have a deep seated distrust of the insurance industry :) Any more detailed pics? It's either partly under or partly in the car, you can't hide a Yank straight six in the glove box ;) Otherwise it's out the back in a yard somewhere and a terrible fiddle has ensued.

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