Florida Police Seeking Driver of Drawbridge-Jumping Hyundai Santa Fe
The SUV smashed through a crossing arm and took flight.
Thousands of miles from Santa Fe, New Mexico, the driver of a Hyundai Santa Fe has attempted to mimic Santa's sleigh. The SUV crashed through traffic-control arms as a drawbridge in Daytona, Florida, was raising and jumped the gap to the other side. All jokes aside, the wayward Hyundai's flight was caught on security cameras, and Daytona police are seeking the driver, according to the local news station,WESH 2.
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So far, it isn't clear whether the airborne crossing was intentional or not. Nor is it clear if the driver fits the infamous "Florida man" template. In the video provided above, you can see the Santa Fe driving at what appears to be a fairly tame speed as it hits the lowered traffic arm—you know, the sort of arms at railroad crossings and parking garages. It then seems to slow somewhat but continues onward, its windshield smashed and some damage visible to its hood, before hitting the slowly raising bridge deck and hopping to the other side.
Our guess is that the driver didn't realize what they were doing, if only because they don't seem to respond at all before hitting the barrier. But, who knows, maybe they had somewhere to be—stat. Either way, the older Santa Fe appears to handle the admittedly small jump well, landing straight and true, and continuing on safely.
Could the jump have been cooler? You bet. Had the Hyundai been any later to the drawbridge, the slope of the raising bridge deck would have been steeper, and the distance to the opposite side greater—offering up some trueDukes of Hazzardvibes. Granted, the jump also could have been much, much more dangerous and had far graver consequences. We're just glad it appears the driver is okay, even if they're probably getting visited by the police, who are eager to find out how and why this occurred, soon.
But really, all this reminds us of is one of Hyundai's 1995 TV ads for the Accent subcompact sedan, which featured the relatively short NBA star Tyrone "Muggsy" Bogues dunking over taller players and the little Hyundai jumping a bridge. And we welcome any opportunity to rehash this gem of Korean-market advertising:
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A lifelong car enthusiast, I stumbled into this line of work essentially by accident after discovering a job posting for an intern position at Car and Driver while at college. My start may have been a compelling alternative to working in a University of Michigan dining hall, but a decade and a half later, here I am reviewing cars; judging our Car, Truck, and Performance Vehicle of the Year contests; and shaping MotorTrend’s daily coverage of the automotive industry.
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