Ouch! Wreck of the Week Part III

Perhaps no other Corvette lives up to the famous quote, “I wanna
live fast, die young and leave a beautiful corpse” than this small-
block 1967 convertible. The spanking-new Corvette illustrating
the famous quote from “Knock on Any Door” by Willard Motely
is pictured in a November 1966 accident in Hammond, Ind.
According to reader John Shanahan, “the car was being test-
driven by a prospective buyer, who managed to lose control on a
curve heading north on Calumet Avenue and broad-sided a utility
pole that literally sliced the car in half. The driver walked away
from the wreck not seriously injured, but the Corvette was
history.” Even though the Corvette would have carried a hefty
$4,141 base price, it’s unlikely this Sunfire Yellow model was
rebuilt to attend a drive-in movie. No word on whether the dealer
had a “you break it, you buy it” policy.

Making light of a serious wreck are a pair of youngsters on the
carcass of a 1938 Ford Tudor, once shaped very much like the
’39 Ford Tudor above. The young chaps on the Ford are reader
M. Mundorff’s brothers, Rene and Perry, who are pictured here
in the summer of 1950. According to Mundorff, the ’38 Ford
rolled several times in an accident just outside of Winner, S.D.,
and although the Ford was badly damaged, he does not believe
anyone was seriously injured.

The circumstances under which this 1941 Chevrolet Master

Deluxe sedan became wrecked have been lost, but we know how

the wreck was preserved to be shared with Old Cars Weekly

readers nearly 60 years later. In 1950, reader Roy Bergman’s

grandparents, Bea and Alfred Bergman, along with his uncle

Sheldon, spent the summer touring the American west. The

family’s stops at landmarks and major parks were

well-documented on film, as was this wrecked ’41 Chevy. Only

one photo appears here, but a second photo shows the Chevrolet

being retrieved from a ditch by a wrecker operated by Caldwell

Motor Co. Bergman’s grandfather noted the accident happened

on Route 91 in Salt Lake City during the month of August.

With a wrinkled roof, fenders and at least one door, it’s unlikely

that this Chevrolet saw Route 91 again.

The “running” ended early in life for this 1969 Plymouth Road
Runner coupe. This wreck was submitted by reader Herbert
Stewart with several others from the Pennsylvania area, but
particulars of the accident remain unknown. However, its obvious
the standard-equipped 383-cid V-8 muscle car was at least
decently optioned with a vinyl roof and bucket seats. One of the
owners added five-spoke, torque thrust-style wheels, and perhaps
even a few performance upgrades under the hood. The obvious
side damage and the bent roof are good indications this Road
Runner’s horn never “beep beeped” again.

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