Buried Treasure

[jager]

On June 15, 1957, a new gold and white 1957 Plymouth Belvedere Sport Coupe was buried in a time capsule in downtown Tulsa, Oklahoma. The time capsule was part of Golden Jubilee Weekand was buried under the sidewalk in front of the Tulsa County Courthouse.

The citizens of Tulsa were asked to guess what the population of Tulsa would be in the year 2007. The guesses were then recorded on microfilm and sealed in a steel container buried with the car. When the car and artifacts are excavated, the person whose guess is closest to Tulsa's 2007 population is to be awarded the Belvedere.

http://www.buriedcar.com/tulsarama.asp

[BIGJIM]

Amazing!! Will be interesting to see how the beast looks when finally uncovered on the 15th.

[Hey Charger]

its condition & how much it'll be worth...if its in mint condition, its value is going to be a cool million imo

cheers

[1370]

"an advanced product of American industrial ingenuity with the kind of lasting appeal that will still be in style 50 years from now."


ROFLMAO

[ferrari fan]

PLymouth Belverdere Sport Coupe, YES, YES, YES!.
What a car ad the styling is still much admirred.
It has style, class, exclusivity and will stop the traffic anywhere in the world!

[FPR FAN]

There is a chap here in Brisbane who is a keen Plymounth fan and he is going over to Tulsa to watch the car get dug up. That would be a fairly awesome thing to see. It will be interesting to see if the car has suffered in any way from moisture etc. 50 years is a long time under the ground!

Cheers
John

[ferrari fan]

It looks like the web techno will make this a worldwide event.
I will follow it as well and all over the world it creates webtraffic and hits.

[fordmad17]

On June 15, 1957, a new gold and white 1957 Plymouth Belvedere Sport Coupe was buried in a time capsule in downtown Tulsa, Oklahoma. The time capsule was part of Golden Jubilee Weekand was buried under the sidewalk in front of the Tulsa County Courthouse.

The citizens of Tulsa were asked to guess what the population of Tulsa would be in the year 2007. The guesses were then recorded on microfilm and sealed in a steel container buried with the car. When the car and artifacts are excavated, the person whose guess is closest to Tulsa's 2007 population is to be awarded the Belvedere.

http://www.buriedcar.com/tulsarama.asp

I wonder if the person who guesses right to win the car is still alive, might be a few re-draws I think

[trustme]

I can see the draw in my mind now.

Bueller? ------------------------- Bueller?-------------------Bueller?

[monarocveightz]

Very interesting.

Would love to see the car now. I wonder how much has changed in it.

[brchi17]

.....It has style, class, exclusivity and will stop the traffic anywhere in the world!

fortunately now we have multi lane roads, so this no longer happens :D lol !!!

[ferrari fan]

Not long to go now, anybody any idea of the time differences?

[ferrari fan]

just googled and 6 more hours to go!

[no1holdenfan]

http://www.tulsachevys.com/Images/buriedcar/index. html

[ferrari fan]

Thanks for the link.
It looks like it is going to be a fully rusted wreck with so much water in the hold, sadly!

[215i]

Well, I wasn't expecting that! What a shame :(

[ferrari fan]

Yep, my sentiments as well.

[monarocveightz]

Such a pity, i would have loved to have seen it in ok condition. Does anyone know if they actually lifted the car out of the hold?


I spose we know now that if we want to bury a car and dig it up again in 50 years time, to make sure that the hold is waterproof.

[Footy]

Such a pity, i would have loved to have seen it in ok condition. Does anyone know if they actually lifted the car out of the hold?


I spose we know now that if we want to bury a car and dig it up again in 50 years time, to make sure that the hold is waterproof.

Just been reading on another site that the car is going to be uncovered at another venue ,members of the community are outraged as the authorities have turned it in to a money grapping fiasco,charging to have a look.

[Footy]

Local news.
http://www.kotv.com/e-clips/?id=6709.

[athol]

The car was covered in grease before it went into the vault, and Boyd Coddington and his team are there to clean the car up, they should have it fully restored and painted by teatime.



Athol.

[ferrari fan]

anybody got an adress where you can see it without all the BS buffeting and interuptions?

[Chev_350]

And its a rust bucket

http://img186.imageshack.us/img186/9595/belvederem n3.jpg

[monarocveightz]

Such a pity, I guess it is beyond repair, what will they do with it now?

[Nate07]

Would that go to a museum, even in the state its in?

[gab73]

It actually looks like its in good condition from the photo considering where it was and what was found with it. I actually didnt expect that there would be any lower 1/4 panels, seal panels etc.

[HDTHSVHRT]

LOL that is in such poor condition, I guess someone will buy and repair it to look like new, nothing is impossible these days is it???

[KiwiRallyFan]

That looks like Boyd Coddington standing in the background of that photo. Perhaps it will become one of his projects (or is that what Athol said earlier?).

[Road Runner 72]

So anyone want one in 1:18? ;)

[Nate07]

I wonder if there are any interior shots. :toilet:

[monarocveightz]

I wonder if there are any interior shots. :toilet:


Yeah and all of the documents, and other things they put inside her.

Also who won the car, and are they going to keep it?

[athol]

That looks like Boyd Coddington standing in the background of that photo. Perhaps it will become one of his projects (or is that what Athol said earlier?).

I found a 41 minute video of the whole fiasco, Coddington and his whole crew are there doing the unveiling, the interior is a mess, the key is rusted into the ignition lock. they were peeling the plastic off the car, so it is as it came out of the tomb, the bonnet lock was rusted shut, but they managed to open it. The panels seemed to be in fair nick, I rekon Coddington will do a full resto on the car.


Athol.

[monarocveightz]

I found a 41 minute video of the whole fiasco, Coddington and his whole crew are there doing the unveiling, the interior is a mess, the key is rusted into the ignition lock. they were peeling the plastic off the car, so it is as it came out of the tomb, the bonnet lock was rusted shut, but they managed to open it. The panels seemed to be in fair nick, I rekon Coddington will do a full resto on the car.


Athol.


Athol, can you post the link for the video?

Cheers

Codie

[Road Runner 72]

Athol, can you post the link for the video?

Cheers

Codie

This is what I found.

http://www.kotv.com/e-clips/?id=6761

[BIGJIM]

nice work RR, thanks for that.

[monarocveightz]

This is what I found.

http://www.kotv.com/e-clips/?id=6761


Thanks mate,

will have a look now

[Road Runner 72]

No Problem,
Its great to see it hey, so thats how she is going to stay, hope is get's a wash tho, Also the vid stops about 1/4 of the way through, as I wanted to see what the inside is like.

[gab73]

Personall i beleive they should leave it as it is, Restoring the car would ruin its significance, they could purchase it of the owner and display it in a museum for future generations.

[monarocveightz]

No Problem,
Its great to see it hey, so thats how she is going to stay, hope is get's a wash tho, Also the vid stops about 1/4 of the way through, as I wanted to see what the inside is like.


Ah i thought it was something to do with my computer stopping it from showing the rest.

Athol seems to have seen the whole things, is yours the same link athol?

I'm glad they are going to keep it as it is.

I wonder what a car would look like in 50 years time if we buried it now?, do we have the technology to stop it from turning out like the Belvedere?.

[Road Runner 72]

I wonder what a car would look like in 50 years time if we buried it now?, do we have the technology to stop it from turning out like the Belvedere?.

Yeah it's called a holden ;)

[monarocveightz]

Yeah it's called a holden ;)

Fair enough.

I wonder what cars there will be in 50 years time.

I presume they will no longer use petrol, the way we are using it these days

[KiwiRallyFan]

There's another clip on that KOTV site called "Hot Rodder Boyd Coddington in Tulsa for Belvedere Unveiling". The woman interviewing him has absolutely no idea who he is, and appears to know very little about cars....:rolleyes:

[athol]

Ah i thought it was something to do with my computer stopping it from showing the rest.

Athol seems to have seen the whole things, is yours the same link athol?

I'm glad they are going to keep it as it is.

I wonder what a car would look like in 50 years time if we buried it now?, do we have the technology to stop it from turning out like the Belvedere?.

Yes thats the one, if you lurk around that site there is other bits and pieces on the car, also just google ''buried car".

Athol.

[monarocveightz]

Thanks mate,

will have a look

[ferrari fan]

This lady might be "Christine" from the same cultmovie "Christine" where the Belvedere got it's fame from, a bit like the XB Fairmont from "Madmax"

[lukey73]

I did a search last night and found a site with a few photos of the car. The exterior doesnt look to bad just covered in mud, the interior on the other hand looks very second hand as it seems the mud has seeped into the interior and eaten away the fabric on the seats & dash.

Me thinks Boyd has a bit of project on his hands :D

[monarocveightz]

Here is 2 links to some photo's of the Belvedere

http://www.buriedcar.com/photo_gallery_new.htm

http://flickr.com/photos/47422262@N00/sets/1320520/ ?page=2

Some of the things incased inside it survived intact, due to being in a sealed up tube thing.

All though the car seems to be in pretty bad shape, there is one photo, which sugests it's not as bad as it looks, the reason the outside looks rusty, is of course some rust, but also dirt and and the spray stuff they put on it before sealing it.

The interior looks pretty much beyond repair, but with a lot of work the Exterior may be able to be restored. You can't really be sure until they car is cleaned, to see what it really wrong with it.

[lukey73]

I wonder who the aussie bloke is in this picture?

http://flickr.com/photos/47422262@N00/sets/1320520/ show/

The guy in the FPR jacket middle of frame.

[ferrari fan]

I have an inkling that the restorers of USA will get this one rebuild and parts will come from everywhere, hopefully.
Looks like the rot on the outside panels is not that bad as there are no holes or frayed edges and the bit of chrome came up like new.
In time when cleaned it will be revealed.
Anybody know of a 1/18 scale Plymouth Belvedere to be avaiable?

[monarocveightz]

The Plymouth Belvedere was not the only car buried in Tulsa according to this article off Wikipedia


In 1998, a Plymouth Prowler was sealed in a mausoleum (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mausoleum) as a time capsule (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Time_capsule) in Tulsa, Oklahoma (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tulsa%2C_Oklahoma). While similar in concept to the Buried 1957 Plymouth Belvidere (http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Buried_ 1957_Plymouth_Belvidere&action=edit) that formerly resided near the courthouse, the buried Prowler was sealed in Centennial Park in an above-ground vault and sealed with a plastic "box" instead of plastic sheets that covered the Belvidere. Experts believe the Prowler has a better chance of looking how it did when it was sealed when the time capsule is opened in 2048.


Also
http://www.tulsaworld.com/webextra/content/2007/bu riedcarunearthed/articles.aspx?articleID=070616_1_ A8_hOffi67475

[T4799]

Are there any other buried cars?

[Webbie75]

Are there any other buried cars?

Mine, if it keeps giving me the ....

[texan]

Are there any other buried cars?


Apparently, when the Japanese invasion of Australia (the WW2 one that is) was looking like a reality, a whole bunch of Jeeps, GMC 6x6s & other equipment was supposedly buried somewhere at North Head in Sydney. They were supposed to be still in their shipping crates, ie unassembled & packed in grease. I imagine this could have possibly occurred all around the country but I have only heard about the North Head stuff.

[GOBBO]

Mine, if it keeps giving me the ....

ha ha ha ha ha i know that feeling

[GT40]

I read an artical (must be over 20 years ago now) about some Spitfire Fighter Planes that were also, apparently, buried during the war, still in thier shipping crates, un-assembled and packed in grease, somewhere in either QLD or the Northern Teritory.
Never heared about them again but have often wondered if it was true.

[singer]

Apparently, when the Japanese invasion of Australia (the WW2 one that is) was looking like a reality, a whole bunch of Jeeps, GMC 6x6s & other equipment was supposedly buried somewhere at North Head in Sydney. They were supposed to be still in their shipping crates, ie unassembled & packed in grease. I imagine this could have possibly occurred all around the country but I have only heard about the North Head stuff.


Several y/o my nextdoor neighbour told me that when he was in Darwin, he went out off Darwin somewhere & salvaged 36 Jeeps. When he arrived back in Darwin Harbour he was greeted by Customs. As the Jeeps were LendLease the Jeeps belonged to the USA :mad: & if they don't want them, they all would be subject to customs duty:(.

My Friend turned his vessel around, left Darwin Harbour & pushed 36, 1943
Jeeps, back over the side back to the depths whence they came.:(

[texan]

There is a doco that is regularly played on the History Channel about the fall of Saigon, where the yanks were ferrying what civilians they could onto aircraft carriers using their Iriquois Helicopters. As the carriers started to fill up with people they would just push the choppers overboard to make room. They ended up pushing quite a few over.

[2quietlycollect]

A friend of mine from my RAAF Days told me that when he was restoring his Spitfire ( which is now in a QLD Museum ) that he went to the Top End to look around for Spitfire parts , while he was there he came across an old guy driving a WW2 Willies Jeep complete with 50 calibre machine gun on it , he told the old fellah that he like the jeep and that it must have cost a packet to restore - to cut a long story short he was asked to get in the jeep and to cover his eyes ( which he did - i wouldnt have ) .

The guy drove for about an hour out of Darwin and then went over a hillock and into an old hanger that was full of jeeps ( some still in containers ) and the walls where full of petrol cans ( also full ) - the other part of the hanger had aircraft engines and military harley davidsons in it .

At the end of a few beers the old guy gave him some spitfire parts and the offer of a harley davidson but he could only take the spitfire parts as he had no room for the harley - the next time he was in the Top End he tried to find the old guy but had no luck

Cheers

[wayno]

I love Spitfires. just about the most beautiful machine mankind has ever buitl.

[Road Runner 72]

I love Spitfires. just about the most beautiful machine mankind has ever buitl.

They sure come close ;)

[XU-123]

The guy is dead now , but he rode a WLA Harley as an everyday ride. He bought 3 of them in some sort of a surplus sale years before. He had the one he rode , 1 he used for spares and 1 was still in the crate..
After he died his brother sold them off...

[Leigh]

When Jeff Kennet got into power in Vic a few years ago, he found a document in the back of his new office referring to a vault built into the foundations of the West Gate Bridge...upon opening it they found several dozen public transport buses, trams and other vehicles from the 70's in perfect condition along with some surplus military vehicles...word is they catalogued what was there and resealed the vault with everything still in it...

[CowboyMatt]

Hey Leigh,

How come you've changed your name?

[wayno]

Lol! I was wondering how come we had a new member with 7000+ posts! :eek:

[Leigh]

Because they took away my signature that had my name in it LOL

Hey Wayne, I thought you didn't take notice of post counts:p

[wayno]

I do when I'm trying to work out who the hell someone is! :D

[Leigh]

Anybody would think I went from one obscure name to another:p:D

[sleepy]

Apparently, when the Japanese invasion of Australia (the WW2 one that is) was looking like a reality, a whole bunch of Jeeps, GMC 6x6s & other equipment was supposedly buried somewhere at North Head in Sydney. They were supposed to be still in their shipping crates, ie unassembled & packed in grease. I imagine this could have possibly occurred all around the country but I have only heard about the North Head stuff.
when i was working in Papua New Guinea 86-89 3 or so jeeps were discovered in a cave somewhere with spares all grease packed.... locals used to get the plane wrecks from the jungle and sell them for scrap.. a guy used to drive around lae in a jeep with a machine gun mounted on it lol it didnt work..

[hobby]

Hey Leigh,

How come you've changed your name?

somehow this newish name seems appropriate

[monarocveightz]

Here is some info on the winner of the Plymouth Belvedere

http://www.buriedcar.com/downloads/media%20coverag e/Tulsa%20World,%20Miss%20Belvedere,%20you%20have% 20a%20winner%20-%206.23.07,%202%20pages.pdf

[Chev_350]

Are there any other buried cars?

Yes, a pre-production Plymouth Prowler in Tulsa, Oklahoma, sealed in above ground vault...it is to be opened in 2048

[athol]

Yes, a pre-production Plymouth Prowler in Tulsa, Oklahoma, sealed in above ground vault...it is to be opened in 2048


Looks like they will be opening my vault for me to see that one, I will be 103.


Athol.

[Road Runner 72]

Looks like they will be opening my vault for me to see that one, I will be 103.


Athol.

LOL I'll take photos for you then & bring em with me when I leave ;)

[biante 3605]

The Spitfires were aparently buried in old disused coal mines at Acland QLD. which is near Oakey Army Aviation base. rumours have been doing the rounds for years about whats been buried and where, but nothing has ever been dug up, which is not to say that there is nothing buried. also the yanks dumped heaps of surplus planes, jeeps and equipment off the sunshine coast after the war, there was somebody doing salvage work on it a few years ago but have heard nothing lately.

[Welby]

Between 98 and 02, i know that the army was still burying stuff in the Tanami.

We used to take all sorts of things in there on a variety of diffrent schedules to check the longevity of packing and methods of storage.

The unit in control of these tests was based in Tasmania.

The story of spitfires in the desert is a well worn one here too.

Welby