Captured on a state trooper’s dashboard camera was a high-speed crash in Dayton, Ohio in a 1987 Pontiac Firebird. Reportedly witnesses saw the Firebird flying pass them on Interstate I-675 at 100mph previously before the crash. The cruiser’s camera was able to capture the Firebird literally flying into the air after hitting a guard rail then shattering into as many as 4 major pieces ejecting the driver. Unbelievably the driver survived the crash and was listed in critical condition at Miami Valley Hospital’s ICU. Talking about real dukes of hazard type stuff here!

Can you believe that? At least the driver is ok but that was totally insane!

It should be no surprise to you that this is the point where I tell you that you should be wearing your seat belt. It doesn’t matter if you are just driving around the block you should put your seat belt on the first second you sit down in the car.

Consumer Reports‘ Lisa Barth wrote a great article about how much money car accidents cost and I wanted to share it with you. Have you been in a car accident lately? How much did it cost you?

Every 10 seconds someone is injured in a car crash and every 12 minutes someone dies. Now, a new study by the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) finds that in a one-year period, the cost of medical care and loss productivity from motor-vehicle injuries is more than $99 billion. This averages to nearly $500 for each licensed driver in the U.S. That $99 billion breaks down to $70 billion for fatal and nonfatal injuries in motor vehicles, $12 billion for motorcyclists, $10 billion for pedestrians, and $5 billion for bicyclists. Medical expenses account for $17 billion of the total.

This data was based on 2005 numbers, which were the most current available on injuries and cost.

The study also found that more men were killed or injured (70 percent) than women (52 percent) in motor-vehicle accidents; injuries and deaths in men represented 74 percent of all costs. Teens represented 28 percent of fatal and nonfatal injuries and 31 percent of the costs. Motorcyclists represented six percent of fatalities and injuries, but accounted for 12 percent of the costs due to more severe injuries.

Overall, the number of fatalities caused by vehicle crashes has declined in recent years. In 2008, 37,261 people were killed, which was the lowest number in decades. And it looks like the number of fatalities will be even lower for 2009. Still, there is more that can be done to prevent motor-vehicle accidents, deaths, and injuries. The CDC notes a few policies that would help reduce costs and save lives, including:

• Improving teen driver safety with programs such as graduated driver licensing (GDL), which limits the time and conditions under which a teen can drive in the early stages.
• Increasing safety-belt use by making laws that mandate usage primary. This means that a driver or passenger can be pulled over solely for not buckling up. Currently the safety belt usage rate is 84 percent. The CDC notes that if the rate were to increase to 90 percent in all states, the country would save more than $5 billion in costs.
• Improving child passenger safety by strengthening the laws governing the required use of child seats, educating parents on their correct use and installation, and distributing seats to those who can’t afford them.
• Reducing drunk driving deaths by implementing stricter policies, such as increased sobriety checkpoints and the use of ignition interlock devices for those convicted of DUI.

Well, what do you think? Have you seen one better locally?

At Superior Kia we are very excited about getting the all new 2011 Kia Optima. This car will blow you away! It’s sleek, stylish and one of a kind. I came across a Consumer Reports story on the all new Optima today and I thought that you would like to get a first look at the Kia Optima. Check it out! You won’t be disappointed. When these new cars start arriving in your local Cincinnati Kia dealers lot you cab be rest assured we will let you know so you can come test drive one.

When we were in high school we built a birdhouse. It didn’t last the winter and almost certainly took the lives of a young family of Cardinals. The kids from DeLaSalle charter high school? Yeah, they took a 2000 Lola Indy chassis, put a lightweight plastic skin on it that would make the Mazda Furai blush and then made it electric. Oh, and then took it around Bridgestone’s proving grounds — using Bridgestone Ecopia EP100 low-rolling resistance tires– where they managed to get the equivalent of 300mpg. The Guinness Book of World Records is currently reviewing the claim.

Still think your game-winning touchdown junior year was cool? Right?

What do you guys think? Could you have made this when you were in high school? I’d like to see you try!!

In the world of WHY NOT, anything is possible. Paul Stender along side of the guys at Indy Boys, Inc. came up with a ridiculous idea of building a customized school bus with a 42,000-horsepower GE J-79 Phantom jet fighter engine to propel this monstrosity to over 300 mph.

One of the videos below shows the astonishing 80-foot flames coming out of the jet engine as the bus is sentracing down a runway. The school bus’ build incorporated metal structure parts normally found on a 747 jet. I am sure over 300-mph you want some type of stability.

I bet you are wondering what the purpose of all of this is. According to Cnet Stender says, “I built the bus for two reasons. The first is to entertain people because, come on, it’s a jet bus. The second, is to keep kids off drugs. Jets are hot, drugs are not.”

Here’s the story.

The more we look at this 1949 Delahaye 175 Roadster, the more we wonder: could this be the most beautiful car ever created?

Sure, the wheel skirts and perfect proportions help. But isn’t just a stunner from far. The tiny details are just as perfect as the outline. No wonder it is expected to fetch upwards of $4 million at the RM Auction in Monterey, Calif., next week during the weekend of cars.

The Delahaye stands apart for a number of reasons. As RM points out, it has “stunning one-off coachwork by Saoutchik.” It goes on to say, “this wildly extravagant, award-winning Delahaye is without question the most elegant, special and rare post-war coachbuilt motor car ever made. Built for the reemerging concours circuit following the war, it was shown in Paris, Monte Carlo, San Remo, and more recently, Pebble Beach.”

We take that to mean the auctioneers agree, this could be the single most amazing car ever.

Well, what do you think? I’d love it hear it.

What did you guys think?

A Minnesota man imprisoned after an accident involving a ruaway 1996 Toyota Camry — a model recalled for speed control issues, although his was not one of the ones recalled — will go free.

Earlier today, after a judge ordered Koua Fong Lee free pending a new trial, prosecutors said they will not seek to try Lee again. So he’ll be freed.

Since the day of the accident, Lee has said his car sped out of control. Three people died in the 2006 crash.

ABC News  said Lee rejected a plea agreement earlier today that would have set him free, but would have kept his conviction in tact and would have kept him from driving for 10 years. He rejected the plea agreement, maintaining he was innocent.

The four-day hearings to determine whether Lee should get a new trial attracted scores of demonstrators, who demanded he be released immediately.

Lee was convicted for a 2006 crash after his Camry sped up an exit ramp off the highway, and hit a Oldsmobile. The driver, Javis Adams, and his 10-year-old son died. Adams’ seven-year-old niece, Devyn Bolton, survived but died a year later from her injuries.

Lee told police at the time that he pressed the brakes repeatedly but the car would not stop.

His attorney, Brent Schafer, took up the case following Toyota’s sudden acceleration recalls this past fall and winter. An expert Schafer hired said the brake filaments in Lee’s car exploded during the accident, indicating the brake lights were on even though the car was accelerating.

– Sharon Silke Carty/Drive On

Well, did it pull at your heart strings too?