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Twelve Wrecks With Flora Fords In Free DrivingFLORA, III. (AP) -A six-day test drive of 1,500 new model automobiles ended today for Flora motorists and a Ford Motor Oo. spokesman said there had been at least 12 wrecks including one total loss. No one was injured.M. D. (Pete) Bullard, coordinator of the Ford promotion, said 200 cars were returned Wednesday to the wheat field parking lot north of town.State Police Lt. Harold Crockett said troopers found new Fords being misused in a number of instances, mostly by teen-agers. “We have made quite few arrests,” he said.“There have been cases or irresponsible teen-agers racing the new cars on country roads,” Crockett said. “These kids, idiots [ call them, take risks with the cars with the attitude 'this is one time dad is not going to have to pay for damage/ ”Capt. Kenneth Moore, state police commander for the district, said there had been 21 arrests by troopers during the test period, 'five or six of which were drivers of the test cars.”He said state police investigated seven accidents involving test :ars. Both the arrest and accident ‘igure, Moore said, were consid-?red relatively small. He said 25 ■ state policemen have been as- isigned to the area on three shifts luring the test drive period compared to the normal complement )f two state troopers.Motorists in Flora, a town of ,700, drove the cars away from he field Saturday. The company )lans to use their reactions to the .961 models for an advertising :ampaign.The total loss involved a teen-Lge driver who attempted to soup ip a new car by removing thelir cleaner.Bullard said, “He was hot rod-ling west of town Tuesday night vhen the car left the highwayind overturned. With the airleaner off, gasoline spread to he engine and ignited. The carumed.Another wreck was a chain re-ction mishap involving three new ords. It occurred in downtown 'lora Tuesday during a rainform.Bullard said another test driver urned out a transmission by driv-ng his new convertible in low 5ear at high speeds.“Generally the cars are in fair hape,” Bullard said. “We'll wash nd repair them here before send-ng them to various places. None lt;t the Fords used in Flora will e sold as new automobiles.
Newspaper Details
Mt Vernon Register News
Mt Vernon, Illinois, US
Thu, Sep 29, 1960
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USA 22 Aug 2018
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