What appears to be a Buick Regal Grand National in its characteristic dark, gleaming exterior paint job nearly plunged into a pit when water from a broken water main ate out a sinkhole beneath the asphalt and caused part of the roadway to collapse in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania in early February.
The Buick Regal was left hanging partly in space after the pavement on Covington Avenue collapsed, creating an open pit both in the roadway and in part of the vehicle owner’s driveway, as reported by WFMZ 69 News.
Fortunately, the Buick Regal didn’t fall entirely into the sinkhole, with its front end still on solid ground and the vehicle caught by the edges of the pit. The sinkhole opened up early in the morning on Tuesday, February 4th, and the Buick Regal wasn’t rescued from its precarious position until Tuesday evening.
Neighbor Nancy Winslow had difficulty getting out of her house because of a jammed door caused by the slumping of the ground, which cracked her home’s foundation. Once she exited her house, she said “I came out and saw that big hole in my front lawn and my neighbor’s car halfway in his driveway.” The vehicle was gradually inched out of its predicament over the course of several hours using tow straps and a truck.
City workers repaired the pipe and filled in the hole, but officials noted this is just the latest in a series of broken pipes and resulting sinkholes in the Bethlehem area this winter. Ed Boscola, director of the municipality’s Department of Water and Sewer Resources, said the cycle of freezing and thawing this season is responsible. He also said residents should boil their water for several days since contamination potentially got in through the broken pipe.
The Buick Regal Grand National is a rare car, with only a few thousand units in total produced between 1984 and 1987, when production ceased. The last-ever unit to be built was sold at auction in early 2022 with only 34 miles on its odometer and its engine still covered with the signatures of the assembly line workers and wrapped in its pre-delivery plastic sheeting.
The Buick Regal rescued from the sinkhole has likely been driven much more, but is still a rare and valuable car, making its fortunate escape from the unexpectedly gaping pit all the more heartening for fans of classic vehicles.
Comments
My first reaction was why was it sitting in the driveway when it appeared to be outside a house with multiple garages? But, on reflection, I think those are connected row townhouses with one garage per.
Good thing it wasn’t a GNX
Right? The trunk might have popped open and an endless stream of talentless rappers might have escaped.
Proof that even Mother Earth thought the Superbowl halftime show was awful.
When is the new body style of the 1/2 ton pickups coming out, 2026 model year, Fall of 2025?
The Great American Buick belongs to the road. Almost.
Per many municipalities, wonder which CENTURY that water main dates to.
From what I understand, the guy that actually installed that line, retired to the Riviera!