To all of the Union Workers that work for Chrysler, ( Large Pics...56k warning)

[PJPhreak]

Chrysler and The Chrysler Safety Engineering Team...

Thank You.

Because of your hard work and commitment I am Alive Today.

To keep it short and simple,On May 6th,2011 I lost control of my car,shot thru the ditch,hit a Telephone Pole head on,reducing said pole to splinters and rolled the car three times I think,Two or three times...I'm not really sure it all happened within 4-5 sec.

I Walked away from THIS with nothing more than a broken rib and some minor scrapes and bruises...







This WAS a 2001 Plymouth Neon,Neons are rated by most Magazines and groups like Consumer Reports as "Poor to Marginal" as far as Passenger Safety is concerned.

I say they are Wrong. Dead Wrong.

All three of the major Safety Systems Performed Flawlessly. The Front Crumple Zones,The Airbags and the Rollover Protection.

Thank You...I owe you my Life.

Robert P Snyder,Virgil Ks.

[closeupready]

1. K&R

nt

[proud2BlibKansan]

2. Wow

How scary. Glad you survived.

[leveymg]

3. Glad you're okay (well, relatively).

Quick question: how is that the car rolled three times and the paint on the top doesn't appear to be even scratched? That's a durable finish! Did it bounce off the sides each time it rolled? I know you weren't exactly in a position to record the accident in slow-motion, but just wondering.

[PJPhreak]

5. From what I am Told...

By the witnesses,the car blew thru the pole,went airborne,landing on the right front fender (Hence all the sod packed in to the passenger side doorjam),bounced back up into the air,came down on the drivers side and rolled two or three times...Landing about 40 yards past where the pole was.

[leveymg]

7. Ya, I had an endo kinda like that once. Car died, I walked away with a cut.

Just damn lucky. The '75 Chevy Monza wasn't. I try not to use up or outrun too many of my angels, these days.

O8)

[Bigmack]

4. Are you old enough to remember the old Detroit..

iron monsters? Everybody thought they were safe. In a crash, the engines and steering columns came straight back into your lap... of course, you weren't there. You had been ejected from the car.. no seat belts.

Thank the engineers. By all means. But thank the government regulations that improved the safety of those cars.

The auto companies fought tooth-and-nail all the way, but they finally had to have their engineers add safety features.

Glad you are OK.

[PJPhreak]

6. Totally True!!

I am old enough to remember $500 Camaro SS's,396 Chevelles,454 C-10's ect

Graduating High School in 1976 and growing up in Southern Michigan...Think "Dukes of Hazzard" High on Weed!

[leveymg]

8. How I survived my teens, and that '67 Mustang Fastback, I don't know.

289 with Shelby pieces, 4-speed toploader w/Hurst, lowered, Koni shocks, dark center American Racing mags, 60 series tires . . . the "Bullitt" car but butter yellow. Lot's of axle tramp, but stable in the sweepers.


I used to give 911s a good run on back roads, but nothing compared to my friend who had a Bud Moore Boss 302 Trans Am car disguised as a '68 streeter - only that thing had four 48 Weber IDF carbs. Revved to 9000 rpm, just ran away laughing from the guy with the red Ferrari 365 GTB4 Daytona.

But, you could buy that Daytona for $25 grand back then, too.

[PJPhreak]

9. Hahahahah!

Mine was a Competition Orange '71 Nova,403 (.30 over 396) Rock Crusher,12 Bolt,4-link,Ladders,Minitubbed.

In a straight line...Stupidly Fast...Uhhh,Lets just NOT discuss "Cornering" LOL!

[leveymg]

16. I was Stupidly Fast in the corners. Now I realize the stupidity of that.

The rodders used to think I was a freak because the car had fat tires all around and wasn't jacked up. But, driving the thing with the power steering pump removed and a wheel out of a Formula Ford was great for upper body development - saved weight in the wrong places, I figured.

If you crossed the screenplay of "Two-Lane Blacktop" with "If" and "O Lucky Man" you had my adolescence.

[PJPhreak]

Mustangs have Always been GOOD handling cars,

Better than most in it class,but until recently (From 74 to 04 or so) They were plumb UGLY!

[LiberalFighter]

23. Those pesky regulations that Republicans want to do away.

[PJPhreak]

24. Not If I have anything to say about it! nt

[snooper2]

10. It could have been made in Toluca, Mexico or Valencia, Venezuela

FYI

[PJPhreak]

11. I know,

Lots of cars and parts are made (or Assembled) "Out of Country" a majority of them nowadays in fact.

That being said,the little bugger saved my ass.

The Data recorder in the car says I was travelling at 63 Mph at impact.

Works for Me!

[snooper2]

13. If you really like them get another, and now you'll have a parts car

:)

[JNelson6563]

12. And yet the $ comes back to an American company

Any idea how much of the economy is supported by that sort of thing? I can tell you, a great deal. For instance, I live in northern Michigan. The sort of place where people with enough money to buy summer homes come to. Their families flock to the north in the summer and they support all the local businesses, pay high non-homestead taxes on the property they own and all around contribute substantially to the economy in this region.

You know who doesn't do this stuff? Big wigs in foreign companies.

Julie

[PJPhreak]

17. My other car is the brand that has a hard time stopping,

and is 27 years old.

I won't compare the two as far as safety goes,it not possible to compare a 2001 against a 1986.

Saying this,Tillie the Toyota is up for sale,she has been a good car,relible as all get out...But a Chrysler saved my life.
I may not buy another Chrysler,BUT I WILL buy an American Car. I want my money to stay here in the hopes a couple of bucks from that purchase gets spent on Safety R&D...Next time it may not be a 52 year old telling this,It might be the mom of a 5 year old.

[Shagbark Hickory]

21. I'd rather give the money to a foreign company that creates more jobs in the US than to a US company

that ships more and more jobs overseas.

[JNelson6563]

32. You keep telling yourself that

whatever helps you sleep at night with a non-union car in your driveway. Rock on. Be sure to pay a lot of lip service to unions though, at least on the internets.

Julie

[Shagbark Hickory]

33. How would a union-made vehicle in my driveway help me sleep?

I don't hear any complaints coming out of the toyota plants.

[JNelson6563]

38. If our union brothers and sisters don't matter to you

than nothing I say will.

Julie--who remembers when DU was liberal, pro-union Democrats

[Shagbark Hickory]

40. Maybe that was before my time. If you don't educate me, who will? nt

[NutmegYankee]

34. You do realize that some foreign brands are Union as well right?

Many of the Volkswagen cars driving on US roads were union made in the Mexican plant. The German made models are also Union made.

[JNelson6563]

37. And yet those profits still go overseas.

Of course I'd rather buy a European car than Japanese and it is precisely because of working conditions and workers rights.

Still, I buy American to support American workers and American companies.

Julie

[NutmegYankee]

39. Agree.

If I needed a new car, I'd probably pick up a Ford. But I wanted to point out that foreign doesn't mean non-union.

[Shagbark Hickory]

14. Oh it's a NEON. Good thing you put it out of its misery. The repair bills on that car

would have eaten you alive eventually.
Glad you're alive. That's lucky considering neons are made from melted down paper clips.

[PJPhreak]

18. Good relible car,It was.

6 years,not a burp...ran like a champ.

and that little 16-Valve 2.0? Run like a scalded Gazelle!

[Shagbark Hickory]

19. You're lucky. They are very problematic for lots of people. nt

[PJPhreak]

20. 11 Years old,used but not abused,85,200 on this one,

Not a burp,nothing,ran perfectly.

[Shagbark Hickory]

22. Maybe it was defective.

According to the service reps at dodge dealerships, the neon is supposed to be (and I quote) "a throw-away car". Designed to be a disposable short term car for rental fleets.

[PJPhreak]

26. Yup,The Modern version of the Dodge Dart/Plymouth Vailaint,

Boring as hell those cars were and us "Gearheads" giggled at the "Worked Over Duce and a Quarter"

But Lot of people have fond memories of "Grandma's Car"....Go Figure.

[Shagbark Hickory]

30. But you survived the crash. And that's what's important. nt

[PJPhreak]

31. Yup,

And I'm gonna thank that little car and the In-Laws that gave it to us for the rest of my life.

[SidDithers]

15. Thanks for the post...

First, glad you're OK :hi:

Second, your post is most welcome to see. My wife has the same car (well, '03 version SX2.0, but basically the same).

Sid

[LiberalFighter]

25. Possibly made in Belvidere Illinois.

I drive past the plant at least 4 times a year. During the christmas holidays they would have a display of the Neons outside in Santa's sleigh mode with the cars being the reindeer.

[PJPhreak]

28. I live in Ks.,

So it possible that my car WAS made here! COOL!

[malaise]

27. Nice thread but please don't foget

Ralph Nader's seat belt. :D

[PJPhreak]

29. Among many other things..."Unsafe at Any Speed"

and yes I had a Covair as a Kid...That book is what made me install a rollcage in the Nova I spoke about upthread. (And a good fingerwagging by a NHRA Tech,LOL)

[Wait Wut]

35. Holy Moley...

Glad you're okay. Sure hope the world doesn't end on the 21st after you've been through this.

I had a (very) similar episode a few years back with my Pontiac Sunfire. The cops were in shock that I was not only alive, but walking around and comforting the poor idiot that caused the demise of my beloved Sunfire. They were totally perplexed (as was everyone that saw it or heard about it) because my front license plate somehow ended up on my dashboard...inside the car.

That car saved my life. I just wish the poor idiot's insurance company had saved my car's life.

[PJPhreak]

36. The term I heard was...

"I was pickin the gravel outta the bottom of my jaw when you climbed outta that car"

My glasses were embedded in the windsheild on the passenger side.

And regretfully I dont think there is any way to fix this car..The wreck shoved the engine/trans into the firewall,moved it and the drivers side tire rearward appox 20",crushed the footwell so hard the brake pedal is broken from the backside from the force of the impact.