Update on Andrew Nelson and the 1959 Volvo Crash - Dissecting the Car and the Engine
As some of you know, Andrew Nelson suffered a crash during the 2023 edition of Sick Week Presented by Gear Vendors Overdrive. The 1959 Volvo, sporting an Chevrolet Trailblazer Vortec 4200 inline 6-cylinder engine with a single turbocharger, was running in the Street Freak class.
A recently completed build, the Volvo was part of a two-car team, as Andrew was joined by his son Calvin in his 1981 Ford Fairmont.
Following a 10.00 at 133 mph run at Orlando “Sick” World Dragway on the opening day, Andrew improved to a 9.29 at 146 mph on day two at Bradenton Motorsports Park. His average was now 9.65, moving Andrew into the top five in the class.
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Day three brought the Nelsons to South Georgia Motorsports Park, and on Andrew’s best pass of the week, a 9.12 at 149 mph, is when things went horribly wrong.
As the car was nearing the finish line, an engine failure occurred, and likely fluid got under the rear tires and caused a crash and fire where the car went over the wall. Although Andrew suffered some injuries in the crash, the good news is he is now out of the hospital, and at home recovering.
Calvin has put together two videos, reviewing Sick Week to the point of the crash, the crash itself, reviewing the damage and dissection of the car and the engine to figure out what went wrong.
Written by Derek Putnam. Photos courtesy of Sick The Magazine and 1320 Video.