Time Capsule Plymouth

[Harry P.]

Are you guys familiar with this story?

In Tulsa, OK, a 57 Plymouth was buried in a vault in 1957, as part of a time capsule. It's scheduled to be opened Friday.

Some details:

http://kotv.com/news/local/story/?id=125292

And what they have found:

http://www.kotv.com/news/topstory/?id=129390

[Olle F]

I have seen a lot of threads on the car forums about this, and sad to say, I'm not surprised to see that there is water in the vault. Bury something under ground for 50 years and expect it to be nice and dry when you dig it up again? I don't think so. :wink:

Also heard that they will bring in the nation's leading engine expert Boyd Coddington to fire it up. :roll:

[Marc @ MPC Motorsports]

That's not good, but probably not totally unexpected either. My office is about 6 blocks south of the site. Weather permitting, might make a trek down there on Friday.

[Rob Hall]

A guy I know from another board is driving there for the event from Massachusetts...started out with a '59 Buick 2dr sedan, but switched to a Dodge Intrepid after the Buick had some problems..

[Marc @ MPC Motorsports]

Also heard that they will bring in the nation's leading engine expert Boyd Coddington to fire it up. :roll:

BC is supposedly already here in Tulsa. They were to begin filming today.

[JAFFA]

This is way cool!! Were can i see pics of the uncovered car??

[gasman]

judging by these pics. the car was completely submersed in water at some time. you can see the different water levels on the wall. odds are car is so rusted they won't be able to lift it out of the ground. and everything in it is unrecognizable. its really a shame, but they had no idea in 1957 what 50 years underground would do to a car. I'm surprised its still recognizable. i've seen cars pulled at of water after 10 years that are rusted all the heck and unrecognizable also. I doubt if even the great engine guy Boyd Coddington ( :?: )can make that car start. but, hey, it just may start.

EDIT:, after doing some reading, the car was wrapped in some special plastic that was supposed to protect it against water. if that claim is true, and the stuff actually worked. then maybe, just maybe, the car will be ok.

[Marc @ MPC Motorsports]

This is way cool!! Were can i see pics of the uncovered car??

http://www.kotv.com/special/buried-car/

The local CBS affiliate will be broadcasting the unveiling live this Friday evening at 7pm CST. The broadcast will stream worldwide at the above link.

[Jairus]

I'm taking bets that the top half of the car is in perfect shape once they scrape off the mold. The bottom half will be totally rusted away and the whole thing sold for scrap. Except for the Hemi engine which they will sell for 2500 on eBay!

[SoCalCarCulture]

It's a Plymouth - no Hemi in '57 - it's amazing how much publicity this has generated all over the web!

[gasman]

here's more pictures. water was deffinently over the trunk lid. you can still see it here.

and you can see here, it looks like the plastic covering has a come apart. and the water has a "rusty" Color to it

it is still recognizable as a 57 Plymouth, but, I don't think its going to be pretty underneath.

[bobss396]

Any takers on the action that the car is full of drowned earth worms and muck?

[W-Machine]

The visual evidence (water marks & pumping equipment) means that this car is likely gonna be a MESS! I'm still curious, and will be watching.

[Modelmartin]

Plastic is permeable so you can be certain moisture seeped through the plastic even if there was a good seal. I will bet any amount the car is totally rusted and decomposed without one single usable part! Not even the glass will be good!

[James W]

I know of a car. Over a 50 year period it raced, cruised, and idled. All the owners kids and a foreign visitor learned to drive in it. It traversed paved roads and dirt. It watched the Interstate Highway system be built traveling through many states. Once tired it was repainted and upholstered. Twice tired it spent time stored in garages, barns and finally a tent. Now it awaits its rebirth.

I wonder which car had more fun?

[gasman]

I think the car will be fairly rusted, tires will be rotted, and interior will be a mess. but the car will still be savable. all be the floors will need to be replaced. fenders will need replaced. but the car will be a good project for a restoration. If the car is a total loss I won't be surprised to see it end up in The Smithonean. I think anyway the car is pulled out of the hole its going to a museum.

I wonder what they would think in 1957 if people heard about the car.....on this crazy thing called the Internet :?

[Modelmartin]

James,

I have one of those. It's a 1960 Mini ( OK only 47 years old! ) That his raced, autocrossed, crashed, bashed, been bondoed, rebuilt and yet it still gives me a big-@ss grin everytime I drive it. It will likely give another individual some more joy pretty quick here as I have to sell it soon. That poor 57 Plymy is a very sad story. :cry: It never got to motor about!

[mikelo]

It does say they used three layers of protection. They obviously were concerned about it. I wonder how well it held up. Mark, I think its great you work so close to it. It would be neat to see it in person, even if it is all rusted up. The lady in charge of the raising said they were going to inspect it to see if they could lift it out and how. Any word on what they found yet? I guess we just have to wait till Friday night.

[bobss396]

Yeah, agreed that this is a waste of good old Detroit iron. You think they would have consulted the tide charts or where the local water levels were before they planted it?

[Harry P.]

Yeah, agreed that this is a waste of good old Detroit iron. You think they would have consulted the tide charts or where the local water levels were before they planted it?

When they buried the car they thought that what they had created was a waterproof vault. Ooops. Guess again.

Here's the latest:

http://kotv.com/e-clips/?id=6717

[gasman]

she's out of the water, and out of the hole, and surprisingly. they got it out and its still in 1 piece. so there is still hope for it. but notice the rear fender. notice the rear fender. looks like the covering came off, but it looks more muddy then rusty. oh well, guess we'll know at 12.00 P.M.

[Harry P.]

The plan was that they were going to pull it up today at noon. I was just watching a video clip on the local Tulsa TV news website, and they were talking as if the car was still in the hole. ??????

[Marc @ MPC Motorsports]

The plan was that they were going to pull it up today at noon. I was just watching a video clip on the local Tulsa TV news website, and they were talking as if the car was still in the hole. ??????

The pics and video that show the car out of the hole was from a test to see if they could actually lift the car out of the hole. The original steel beams were supplemented with new ones just in case the rusted originals could not support the weight of the car.

The car was placed back into the hole with the actual removal happening today at 12:30pm. It is my understanding that the car will be placed on the back of a truck and transported to the Tulsa Convention Center for the live unveiling tonight at 7:00 pm CDT.

www.kotv.com and follow the links.

[Rick]

Does anyone know if this will also be covered on Speedvision, Discovery channel or any others? We do have a CBS station here in Salt Lake, but if any member of of Utahs dominant religion sneezes more than twice today, it will pre-empt ALL other news stories...... :roll:

Thanks,

Rick

[Harry P.]

It'll be be running live on kotv.com this evening.