'69 Z28 Wreck
 

This was my best attempt at moving a tree with my first '69Z in 1980. It was also a great seatbelt lesson, I flew out the passenger window and was found in the neighbor's yard. I was luckier than most, I only broke my back and jaw.
Mark

Re: '69 Z28 Wreck
 

Another pic...

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Holy Crap someone was watching over you!! I cant believe your here to say you were in that car.

Re: '69 Z28 Wreck
 

I love the for sale sign...

Re: '69 Z28 Wreck
 

Hopefully you saved the cowl tag to later affix to a Dynacorn body.

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I was at the junkyard in Arlington Heights 9 days later looking at the wreck. They couldn't believe I was driving the car. If the angle was different I would have shot into the tree, if I had a seatbelt on I would have walked away. The 3 days I don't remember that I'll never forget!
Mark

Re: '69 Z28 Wreck
 

[ QUOTE ]
I was at the junkyard in Arlington Heights 9 days later looking at the wreck. They couldn't believe I was driving the car. If the angle was different I would have shot into the tree, if I had a seatbelt on I would have walked away. The 3 days I don't remember that I'll never forget!
Mark

[/ QUOTE ]

C'mon mark,that car was very fixable. https://www.yenko.net/ubbthreads/imag...mlins/haha.gif

Re: '69 Z28 Wreck
 

Amazing you were able to walk after that.
Were you on a test drive about to buy the car, or was it up for sale by you?

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You do realize you were driving on those recalled Firestone 500 radials don't you? I think you should immediately call a lawyer and start suing Firestone. https://www.yenko.net/ubbthreads/imag...mlins/grin.gif

You were definitely a lucky man to survive that one. 99.9% of the poeple who are thrown from a wreck like that, don't live to tell about it.

Re: '69 Z28 Wreck
 

RE;
"Firestone 500's"

Back then we called them.... Killer tires.... https://www.yenko.net/ubbthreads/imag...emlins/eek.gif

Re: '69 Z28 Wreck
 

It appears you may be better off collecting them then driving them!

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YIKES...how fast were you going? It looks like a residental area?? You are a lucky man.

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------Firestone 500s = Firestone "Maypops"!!! May pop at any time https://www.yenko.net/ubbthreads/imag...thumbsdown.gif.........Bill S

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I had just bought the car a week earlier, the sign might have come out of the car and they put it back on the car. I remember slowing down in the 30 mph street earlier in the week. I don't remember anything about the wreck, the last I remember was the rain coming over the hood turning down the street I wrecked on. I had left Blue Island after taking a friend to pick up his 455 '76 TA after being repaired from an earlier accident. He tells me "now its your turn for an accident", thanks Bob! We both drove to his house in Arlington Heights, I crashed 2 blocks from his house. The car took a left turn off the road, I always wondered if the left front tire blew out. I do remember something about the Fireston 500's and the recall. The cops gave me something like 10 tickets, reckless driving, etc. I did get off those, as if they were there to see what happened. Years later I was talking to neighbors with a GT350 Shelby, they were the ones who took the pictures. It still doesn't seem real after all these years.
Mark

Re: '69 Z28 Wreck
 

Were was the wreck in Arlington? The guy in the blue shirt in your second picture looks like my friends Dad. He was a long time public works guy. He passed away recently but I'm sure would have recalled the accident and photo. The tow yard you mention is probably Hillside at Palatine and Arlington Heights Rd. They still tow for the village.
I grew up in Rolling Meadows and spent my days hittin the streets of town.
Amazing survival...

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From looking at the pictures, you were spared more serious injury because the car hit the tree and rotated around it versus hitting it dead on and stopping. This helped spread out the energy of the crash. Lucky for you that the tree hit the car on the passenger side versus the drivers side.Glad to hear that you recovered!!!

Re: '69 Z28 Wreck
 

Glad to hear you came out ok in that wreck Mark.

I was paged to a similar accident about 3 weeks ago at 3:00 in the morning. A 22 year old fell asleep at the wheel and impacted a traffic light head on at 60 mph. He hit the pole in the drivers front corner, spinning the car 180 degrees and slid to a stop 75 feet down the highway. The impact was so severe that the engine was in the interior about 1 foot and the front bumper was only a foot from the windshield. When we pulled up on the scene we fully expected an extracation but instead were greeted by a young man with a smirk. He did not even have a scratch on him though I am sure he was sore the next morning. I have no idea how he survived the crash as it was one of the more severe one sthat I had seen. If I had been more awake I would have brough my camera along with. From now on I am going to raust Ann's butt out of bed so she can photo document these calls! https://www.yenko.net/ubbthreads/imag...emlins/eek.gif

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That is one Wild Wreck https://www.yenko.net/ubbthreads/imag...emlins/eek.gif

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That sure is an ugly car and you are one lucky dude. The same sized impact in the middle of the passenger door took a buddy of mine at 19. They said the passenger seat crushed his internals, he was belted in.

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I remember a wreck that the kid brother of one of my high school friends had. It was a 68 GTO ragtop. The kid had a history of sleepwalking. One night he walked right into his GTO and drove off down the street, while still sleeping. He went straight instead of making the 90 degree turn 2 miles up the road. The car was completely destroyed. The only salvagable part was a 6" by 10" piece of the quarter panel that had the GTO decal on it. The kid survived without a scratch. He made that 6"x10" piece of metal into a vanity license plate for his next car.

Re: '69 Z28 Wreck
 

What's the back story leading up to the accident?

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Pretty bad wreck, glad you weren`t hurt too bad!
Years ago I watched a buddy roll his V8 Vega (perils of street racing!). He also broke his jaw & back!
When he crashed the car rolled & hit a steel gate post & we had to pull the roof up to get his head out of the passenger window!
Funny thing is he wanted me to ride with him when he raced but I refused.

Re: '69 Z28 Wreck
 

https://www.yenko.net/ubbthreads/imag...emlins/eek.gif

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The wheels and tires look like they were "take offs" from a 79 or 80 Z28. https://www.yenko.net/ubbthreads/imag...ins/3gears.gif

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Whoops....! https://www.yenko.net/ubbthreads/imag...emlins/ooo.gif

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The accident was on Thomas, 2 blocks west of Rt. 12 in Arlington Heights, Oct. 1980. I was traveling west and the car took a left turn off the road hitting the first tree and rotated around and continued west into the second tree in the photo. I think the left front tire may have blown, I have no idea, I wasn't racing thats for sure.
Hillside was the wrecking yard in Arlington Heights the wreck was towed to.
Mark

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Glad you made it out of that one OK Mark. And actually, I think those wheels look great on the car..