Midyear Corvette destroyed,Tempe,AZ 10/01/12

[Tom N.]

A Midyear Corvette involved in an accident on 10/01/12 on Scottsdale Rd in Tempe,AZ
Driver was burned 70% of his body...I don't know much more then that..it had knock off
wheels and I do believed it was a convertible.

[Patrick T.]

Re: Midyear Corvette destroyed,Tempe,AZ 10/01/12

Here it is.

http://www.abc15.com/dpp/news/region...in-tempe-crash#

[Pat M.]

Re: Midyear Corvette destroyed,Tempe,AZ 10/01/12

Mon Dieu ... looks like a ravaged toy car. He's lucky to be alive.

[Michael J.]

Re: Midyear Corvette destroyed,Tempe,AZ 10/01/12

Looks like the fuel tank ruptured, old cars are not very safe in crashes, things have improved mucho over the last 45 years.....

[Kenneth B.]

Re: Midyear Corvette destroyed,Tempe,AZ 10/01/12

The one pet peeve I have when driving my mid years is that it seems like everyone follows so close. I guess they want a close look at the Corvette but it scares me to death. I hope the guy is OK.

[Mark D.]

Re: Midyear Corvette destroyed,Tempe,AZ 10/01/12

Prayers for the driver.

[Gary R.]

Re: Midyear Corvette destroyed,Tempe,AZ 10/01/12

The one pet peeve I have when driving my mid years is that it seems like everyone follows so close. I guess they want a close look at the Corvette but it scares me to death. I hope the guy is OK.

I noticed the same thing lately. Drive on any main road and it seems like there is someone drafting me! Sorry to see this happen.

[Tom N.]

Re: Midyear Corvette destroyed,Tempe,AZ 10/01/12

The News only had a quick clip on this story, they did mention the Corvette driver
was burned with 2nd degree burns but was expected to recover...the pick-up driver
was burned slightly also.

[Clem Z.]

Re: Midyear Corvette destroyed,Tempe,AZ 10/01/12

Looks like the fuel tank ruptured, old cars are not very safe in crashes, things have improved mucho over the last 45 years.....

didn't corvette put a fuel bladder in the tank a couple of years

[Duke W.]

Re: Midyear Corvette destroyed,Tempe,AZ 10/01/12

C2 and early C3 Corvettes are very vulnerable to fire if hit from the rear.

When I worked for Pontiac as a production engineer 1968, one of the production engineering staff engineers assisted the lawyers defending GM against product liability lawsuits by researching technical issues/details and testifying as an expert witness. He had some very interesting stories, and one of them was the problem with '63-up Corvettes. With the fuel tank mounted above the frame right behind the cabin and nothing but a thin piece of fiberglass separating the spaces, they can be death traps.

One landmark case in the mid-sixties resulted in the first ever million dollar plus judgment against GM. A '63 Corvette was rear-ended hard in California, caught fire and killed the occupants. The plaintiffs hired a professor (I recall he was from USC.) to duplicate the accident and document the results for presentation at trial.

He puchased a used '63 Corvette and filled the fuel tank to about half capacity with red paint. A remotely controlled car was used to hit it from the rear and the aftermath showed the interior to be thoroughly splattered with the paint.

Eerily, that night after hearing this story at work a '68 Corvette was rear ended in Detroit, and I recall the driver was killed in the ensuing fire.

In the mid-seventies a friend of mine's wife, a lawyer trained at Southwestern Law School in LA, said the '63 Corvette case was taught as a case study. This was about the time of the Pinto fuel tank controvery. We never heard much, if anything, about Corvettes because there were relatively few of them, and it was about this time that GM replaced the steel tank with a fiberglass tank containing a rubber bladder. This went a long way in protecting Corvettes from fuel spills and fire if hit hard in the rear.

We are particularly vunerable to "trucks" including SUVs because they do not have to meet passenger car bumper height standards. Most are higher which will override the bumper and frame.

It appears in the photo that the rear of the car, including the fuel tank is collapsed, and the truck in the background is probably what hit it.

I drive sports cars and small sedans and many trucks/SUVs often follow too close. They may think it is safe because they are above you and can see the car ahead of you. In fact, I think they tend to ignore small cars in front of them, thinking that they will see cars ahead of you hit the brakes before you do - assuming they are actually paying full attention to driving, which is often not the case.

Like fighter pilots always say: Watch your six!!!

It's better to change lanes and get out of the way. I always manuever in traffic to try to find a small car in front and a small car following.

Duke

[Clark K.]

Re: Midyear Corvette destroyed,Tempe,AZ 10/01/12

The one pet peeve I have when driving my mid years is that it seems like everyone follows so close. I guess they want a close look at the Corvette but it scares me to death. I hope the guy is OK.

Ditto on that!

[Clark K.]

Re: Midyear Corvette destroyed,Tempe,AZ 10/01/12

didn't corvette put a fuel bladder in the tank a couple of years

Yes, at some point GM put rubber bladders in Corvette fuel tanks but, they never recalled all those early Corvettes for a retrofit. We take our lives in our hands anytime we drive, but especially with our vintage cars. My wooden steering wheel, in a wreck, would act as multiple spears through my chest. My knees would be broken by the metal dash. My face would be lacerated from hitting the windshield. Etc. Etc.

Of course, anyone that hits you is liable, not you. Large vehicles are driven by incompetent drivers all the time. If you are dead, your family should sue the careless/drunk/texting moron that hit you.
-Clark

[Clem Z.]

Re: Midyear Corvette destroyed,Tempe,AZ 10/01/12

I noticed the same thing lately. Drive on any main road and it seems like there is someone drafting me! Sorry to see this happen.

this is true about all year corvettes.

[Joe L.]

Re: Midyear Corvette destroyed,Tempe,AZ 10/01/12

didn't corvette put a fuel bladder in the tank a couple of years

clem-----



Yes, for a LOT of years. 1975-77 Corvettes use a fuel tank with a separate bladder that can be removed and replaced. This tank has been reproduced for several years but the bladder was not. I believe I read somewhere that the bladder is now being reproduced.

1978-82 Corvettes used a fuel tank that had an integral (non-removable) bladder.

All 1984-96 Corvettes used a fuel tank with an integral bladder.

I believe C5 and C6 tanks are plastic but I would expect they have an integral bladder, too.

[Joe L.]

Re: Midyear Corvette destroyed,Tempe,AZ 10/01/12

C2 and early C3 Corvettes are very vulnerable to fire if hit from the rear.

When I worked for Pontiac as a production engineer 1968, one of the production engineering staff engineers assisted the lawyers defending GM against product liability lawsuits by researching technical issues/details and testifying as an expert witness. He had some very interesting stories, and one of them was the problem with '63-up Corvettes. With the fuel tank mounted above the frame right behind the cabin and nothing but a thin piece of fiberglass separating the spaces, they can be death traps.

One landmark case in the mid-sixties resulted in the first ever million dollar plus judgment against GM. A '63 Corvette was rear-ended hard in California, caught fire and killed the occupants. The plaintiffs hired a professor (I recall he was from USC.) to duplicate the accident and document the results for presentation at trial.

He puchased a used '63 Corvette and filled the fuel tank to about half capacity with red paint. A remotely controlled car was used to hit it from the rear and the aftermath showed the interior to be thoroughly splattered with the paint.

Eerily, that night after hearing this story at work a '68 Corvette was rear ended in Detroit, and I recall the driver was killed in the ensuing fire.

In the mid-seventies a friend of mine's wife, a lawyer trained at Southwestern Law School in LA, said the '63 Corvette case was taught as a case study. This was about the time of the Pinto fuel tank controvery. We never heard much, if anything, about Corvettes because there were relatively few of them, and it was about this time that GM replaced the steel tank with a fiberglass tank containing a rubber bladder. This went a long way in protecting Corvettes from fuel spills and fire if hit hard in the rear.

We are particularly vunerable to "trucks" including SUVs because they do not have to meet passenger car bumper height standards. Most are higher which will override the bumper and frame.

It appears in the photo that the rear of the car, including the fuel tank is collapsed, and the truck in the background is probably what hit it.

I drive sports cars and small sedans and many trucks/SUVs often follow too close. They may think it is safe because they are above you and can see the car ahead of you. In fact, I think they tend to ignore small cars in front of them, thinking that they will see cars ahead of you hit the brakes before you do - assuming they are actually paying full attention to driving, which is often not the case.

Like fighter pilots always say: Watch your six!!!

It's better to change lanes and get out of the way. I always manuever in traffic to try to find a small car in front and a small car following.

Duke

Duke-----


I've said this many times before: driving any 1963-74 Corvette has serious risks associated with it and a rear end collision with fuel tank rupture is right at the top of that list. Maybe that's why I've been so tardy in finishing up my 1969----as long as it's confined to the garage I don't run this risk.