Autoblog

What is it with Tulsa burying cars? By now, surely everyone has heard of Tulsa's buried Belvedere. Placed in its "watertight" cement coffin in 1957, it didn't do too well over half a century. But technology then was not nearly as advanced as it is now, right? So how would one go about burying a car today with the hopes of it surviving 50 years?

In 1998, Tulsa buried a preproduction Plymouth Prowler, and we'll find out how well it does when it's dug out in 2048. This time though, the city did it right. Instead of ancient 1950s technology of concrete and plastic wrap, Tulsa chose a "seamless plastic box" filled with an inert gas, which was then put into an above-ground mausoleum and partially covered with dirt. They also drained all the car's fluids and replaced them with synthetics. We can't help but wonder if in 2048, the world will again turn its eyes on Tulsa to see a badly-decomposed car pulled from the ground and laugh at the ancient 1998 technology used to preserve it.

And instead of the bobby pins, cigarettes and tranquilizers the Belvedere had in its glovebox, the Prowler is entombed with a pair of inline skates, a cell phone, the front of an ATM and a large collection of Beanie Babies. Yeah, that should age much better than smokes and drugs.

The buried Prowler did at least survive a few years longer than its nameplate.

[Source: Tulsa World via Hemmings]