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Welp, That Sucks


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... I have a question, if the floor pan is seriously damaged would this just about total the Dart depending on condition???

Depends on how he's insured.

With special-interest-car "stated value" insurance, even if the "book" value of the car is say, $10,000, you can insure it for $25,000...or more. Higher premiums, but you'll get more towards repairing something like this, obviously. It's also much easier to retain a non-salvage title that way, too...in case there's not sufficient insurance but the owner wants to repair the car over time.

Repop, salvage and NOS structural parts are available for these cars, and drilling out all the spotwelds on the damaged bits, jigging the whole mess, and welding new stuff back in correctly is not overly expensive, really.

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I once witnessed a multi-vehicle chain reaction involving 3 contractor trucks, 1 with a compressor. I immediately stopped and pulled the driver of the offending truck out through his window. He had a broken leg and a bloody gash on his face. I then assisted the other drivers. As soon as I pulled the offender out, he told me he wasn't the driver and that the actual driver was running down the freeway :rolleyes: The first officers that arrived to assist was an LAPD SWAT team that happened to be rolling by in an armored Suburban.The highway patrol later got my statement.

So yeah, even when you're just trying to be a good Samaritan you can get caught up in some fishy stuff.

That was an interesting day, to say the least...

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Do Americans not stop and offer help, when someone just had a serious accident?

Some do and some don't; it would depend on circumstances, situations and personal mindset. Then, there's always the fear of seemingly rampant litigation. I wouldn't know if those factors come into play anywhere else. Do all peoples of all other nations stop and offer help in similar situations, every time :huh: ?

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if its a possibility someone is hurt I will stop to see if I can offer any help but I have passed people walking,etc. before...feel bad about doing it but one never knows these days. I have some medical experience plus my wife is a nurse...but I never take my eyes off them just in case. All countries have good and bad people...its just something we all have to deal with.

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Don't see what all the fuss is about....

1: remove glue from parts

2: toss body in purple pond for a long soak

3: sand away paint and rough patches

4: primer body

5: primer parts

6: apply several smooth coats of paint

7: polish body

8: glue chassis back properly

9: apply factory decals

10: clearcoat

11: snap pictures

12: post up build thread.

Good as new!

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Assuming nobody actually did stop and offer help (since the vid cuts off just after the car does its impersonation of The Wonderful One-Hoss Shay)....

1. The guy hit the gas and took off at a rather high rate of speed- he was doing a pretty good job gaining on the traffic in front of him. I'd be willing to guess he just blew through a red light.

2. He was passing on the right. That's just plain idiotic in pretty much any circumstance.

3. He didn't have enough sense to make sure he had the little things taken care of... like a properly installed rear axle, for instance.

So, in short... stopping to help someone like that would be interfering with natural selection.

:lol::P;)

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As you can see in the video, not everyone will stop. My personal experience has been that people do in fact stop and help. Case in point, my wife and I were on our way to a Jeep Jamboree last year in southern Missouri. We saw what looked like a dust storm on the other side of the 4 lane divided highway on the other side of the road. When we got there a semi truck had gone off the road and rolled on its side. We stopped and I ran across the highway and my wife was calling 911. By the time I got to the other side of the center divide several other cars were stopping. The driver was crawling out of the cab badly banged up and in shock. In total at least a dozen cars stopped and one of them was driven by a nurse. It was about 10 minuets before the State Troopers and Ambulance arrived. After the driver was loaded up and everyone gave their statements we all just went on about our way.

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In regards to no one stopping to render assistance. In the past two or three years on construction projects, we have had six or more serious accidents following the first when someone attempted to stop their vehicle and render assistance. The roadway here is at least four lane and turn lane, so it most likely is 35 MPH minimum speed limit possibly up to 50 MPH. Unless you have the training to work in live traffic it is better just calling the accident in, the likelihood of you getting injured is high.

The other observation, someone pointed out that there may have been rust issues. Unless the Dart was "Restored by Rattle Can" any competent person, even a home builder would have taken care of such an issue. Where roads are heavily salted most vehicles are inspected to weed out the truely dangerous rust buckets. Heat treated U-Bolts rarely rust through, they break but don't fail because of rust. I couldn't tell how much leaf spring if any was attached to the axle, either the leaf spring broke in half, U-Bolt or brackets broke causing a chain reaction. Might be why people use some sort of Traction Aid to prevent excessive wheel hop, even good old Slapper Bars would help control wheel hop to an extent that major suspension failure isn't going to happen. Years ago a friend broke the control arm on his '67 GTO causing the axle to turn sideways under the car while doing a burnout, so it happens.

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Heat treated U-Bolts rarely rust through, they break but don't fail because of rust. I couldn't tell how much leaf spring if any was attached to the axle, either the leaf spring broke in half, U-Bolt or brackets broke causing a chain reaction.

Ah yes, but hardware-grade or trailer-grade U-bolts can easily break in a high HP application. And if you watch the video carefully on the youtube link, post #25 (full-screen it and go frame by frame) it appears the right side of the axle comes adrift first, then tears itself out, not taking the leaf springs with it.

We don't see the sometimes characteristic "pole-vaulting" that often occurs with a front universal joint failure.

A structural failure of a rusty front shackle bracket attachment-point could have caused the same thing.

Edited by Ace-Garageguy
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Actually Americans are wary to stop and offer assistance anymore. Too many times the accident or break down is a ruse to rob you!

And now a days nobody is truly stranded. Everyone has a cell phone to call for help. Most folks have AAA cards with free towing. I make sure all my women folks carry the card.

Or get you killed! We hear on the news here all the time how a motorist stopped to help and then they were killed by either a drunk driver or someone just not paying attention!

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I belive the car was 4 linked...... no leaf springs.....

Then that makes matters even worse, either using cheap (junk) parts or improper installation and maintenance of a Proven Suspension/Traction System maybe even both! Probably bought the bolts at Home Depot out of the bargain bin or did all the welding with a Harbor Freight $99 "Wire Feed" welder!
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Happened in Canada as there is a Petro Canada station in the vid. Too short to tell if someone stopped.

Using the landmarks visible in the y/t version, it looks to have happened in Stony Plain; just west of Edmonton, right here in Alberta

Hope he found all the pieces to put it back together... :rolleyes:

mike

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Using the landmarks visible in the y/t version, it looks to have happened in Stony Plain; just west of Edmonton, right here in Alberta

Hope he found all the pieces to put it back together... :rolleyes:

mike

pretty sure the 1/4s buckled and driveshaft probably messed up the floor as It looks as though it stuck in the ground and launched the car upwards.....Im going to go on a limb here and say the car will be a total loss.......

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pretty sure the 1/4s buckled and driveshaft probably messed up the floor as It looks as though it stuck in the ground and launched the car upwards.....Im going to go on a limb here and say the car will be a total loss.......

yes, I agree that he's got hisself a parts car now... imagine, just got the dogsled parked for the summer, now this :wacko:^_^

mike

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