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Mysteriously Buried Cars & Other Vehicles

@eburacum's story about the motorbikes reminds me of 'Babs', the record-breaking racing car that crashed in 1927 on the Pendine sands killing its driver. The car was later buried near the crash site. In the late '60s it was dug up and eventually restored.

I saw the remains of the car soon after it was recovered. It was being taken round the country and displayed to raise funds for the work being done on it. There was a very professional-looking portable exhibition, including large photos of the car in action, of the crash scene and of the excavation.
To my total fascination one could still read the name 'Babs' painted on the bodywork. It made the car look loved!

Babs (Wiki page)

Cars generally don't interest me but I liked Babs and was pleased to see it driven again.
 
The stories of buried excavators may have originated in the Appalachian coal country of the US. The excavators used in some of those strip mines are the size of an office block, transported in pieces and assembled on-site. The story is that, when the mine is depleted, the equipment has been fully amortized, and it doesn't make economic sense to disassemble and remove it. Ergo, bury it when the land is reclaimed.

So I am told by folks who work in the mining industry . . .

I've heard a similar story concerning one of the deep mines not too far from me. It closed towards the end of the 80s and some fairly new machinery/vehicles were left behind.
 
A Mercedes Benz stolen in 1992 has been discovered - buried 4 feet deep in a Silicon Valley mansion's yard.
Car reported stolen in 92 found buried at California mansion

Three decades after a car was reported stolen in Northern California, police are digging the missing convertible out of the yard of a $15 million mansion built by a man with a history of arrests for murder, attempted murder and insurance fraud.

The convertible Mercedes Benz, filled with bags of unused concrete, was discovered Thursday by landscapers in the affluent town of Atherton in Silicon Valley ...

Although cadaver dogs alerted to possible human remains on Thursday, none had been found more than 24 hours after technicians with the San Mateo County Crime Lab began excavating the car ...

Police believe the car was buried 4 to 5 feet (1.2 to 1.5 meters) deep in the backyard of the home sometime in the 1990s — before the current owners bought the home. The car was reported stolen in September 1992 in nearby Palo Alto ...

Atherton Police Cmdr. Daniel Larsen said ... the possible owner of the car is believed to be deceased but officials are waiting for DMV records to confirm that.

Larsen said the current homeowners were not under investigation.

The sprawling home with a pool and tennis court was built by Johnny Lew, a man with a history of arrests for murder, attempted murder and insurance fraud ...
FULL STORY: https://apnews.com/article/californ...urance-fraud-74ae8d8ce792987fc36096660cdc00ce
 
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