AdultsDynFirOverview

                            The All New Chevrolet Impala

The legend from the past returns! But, it brings with it very serious physical health problems that are silently
and painlessly inflicted in all drivers. Shoulder-neck-lower back operations, chronic physical pain, bent and
twisted arthritic fingers, and much more.

If you drive the Impala then you will be able to connect to some or all of these serious health problems.

Have you, your spouse or friend experienced a aching/painful shoulder, lower-middle-upper back pain, lumpiness in your back
between the shoulder blades, aching neck, tingling/numbness in their fingers, bent and twisted-sore fingers, fingers that make
a popping sound, tennis elbow, carpal tunnel, had a back operation on L-4, L-5, neck operation for a compressed disk, started
having headaches, trouble sleeping, chest pain, shooting pains in the arms and legs, painful hips? We all know someone like
this, and it is happening more frequently. I'm 62 and have experienced all of the above except for the neck operation. All of
these physical health problems developed after I retired, as it did with many of my friends who are also retired.

Why did I see my retired friends develop these problems? Why did I see our fingers become bent and twisted and arthritic
within a matter of months? Why were my friends developing such chronic physical pain during their "golden years."

My search for answers led me on an ambitious dedicated 5 year search for answers which resulted in the exposure of deadly
dynamic mechanical forces which silently and painlessly inflict their damage to our skeletal system and soft tissues of our
body. The realization that the skeletal system has a Material Creep Force Tolerance Threshold and the mechanical dynamic
forces deliver damaging mini-traumas and shock loading to the skeletal and soft tissue has been confirmed in the study.
Further, each mini-trauma results in damage which accumulates. These damaging forces are also experienced by children
with video gaming.

What is the cause of all this? What is the common denominator shared by all?   The world-wide automotive industry has
created a monster in their quest to provide a steering system that is responsive to slight steering corrections, reduced steering
movement, seats off perpendicular to gravity, thick steering wheels which can only be grasped by the finger tips and the palm of
the hand, high effort forces required to turn the stiff steering wheel that requires the body to abruptly throw the weight of the
upper torso into the steering effort sending shock loads to the fulcrum points. Fulcrum points being the hips and the L-4 and
L-5 of the back. The steering effort exceeds the human physical functional capability to turn the steering wheel without
damage to the body. The best example of the silent crippling damage to a driver is my own personal experience with physical
health problems that oddly developed during driving the Impala. The Impala steering system requires a strong force to
overcome its resistance to turning. That excessive force requirement results in mini-traumas, shock loading damage to our
skeletal and soft tissue damage.

Ask any driver of an Impala, Trail Blazer, Jimmy, Astro Van, Silverado, Grand Am, Cavalier, Sunbird, Grand Prix, Saturn, Ford
500, Corvette, Toyota, Nissan, Chrysler 300, Charger, Pacifica, Durango, Yukon, and many other high effort steering system
vehicles in the world-wide automotive industry.

The automotive industry doesn't realize that they created the escalation of medical costs in our country. The dynamic forces
cause inflammation throughout the body, chronic pain, ruptured disks, and necessitate many serious medical operations
leaving some people with limited physical functional limitations. The developing countries will experience the same with their
high effort steering system vehicles. The automotive industry has created their disadvantage of $ 1,500 for their medical
coverage for their employee's that drive their vehicles and become injured, requiring operations, therapy, and permanent
disability.

After I started driving my 2000 Chevrolet
Impala, I began developing finger joint twisting, tennis elbow,
painful shoulder, neck, back, carpal tunnel symptoms,
tingling-numbness in my fingers, headaches, and more. Being
retired I couldn't figure out why this was happening to my body.

Shortly after purchasing a Nintendo 64 for my grandson, his fingers started to become bent
and twisted. He developed weakness in his hands, and inability to handle small objects.

An investigation was conducted on other adults that drove a Chevrolet Impala. Other drivers were experiencing the same
symptoms to different degrees based upon their driving time. Frame size became a factor in viewing the deformities.
Deformities showed up faster in smaller frames vs. larger frames. All people experienced finger deformities, and the same
physical health issues as I had.

I noticed the one finger, low effort steering systems started to be replaced with the stiffer, tighter, higher effort steering systems
in 1986. The problem with the steering is the initial high effort required to turn the steering wheel. Next time you drive your
vehicle, notice the initial resistance to turning that is built into the system. This resistance results in the dynamic force that
shock loads the skeletal and soft tissues of our body. This small mini-trauma is responsible for the chronic pain, carpal
tunnel, and shoulder operations. This mini-trauma is repeated every time the steering wheel is moved...even 1/4 of an inch
adjustment results in a mini-trauma.

Many police departments are using the stiff steering Impala. Every person who drives this vehicle will receive permanent
skeletal injury such as bending and twisting of their fingers. Whether small or large framed, the injuries occur. The
deformities and physical health problems and chronic pain will occur and appear quicker in smaller framed people. My study
has shown this to be true.

Sadly, in my research of Impala drivers, the smaller framed lady police officers who serve road patrol do obviously develop
chronic back and shoulder pain. Study has also shown that because of the outward bending of the thumb away from the hand,
holding a service revolver becomes difficult due to loss of thumb use as well as a reduced gripping strength.

Somewhere an agency approves and maintains a list of vehicles for police duty. Police agencies can only purchase from this
approved vehicles list. In March of 2005, the Arkansas State Police needed replacement vehicles. They ordered 100 new
Impala's for their road patrol. Being the officers are dictated what they have to drive.....I rightfully see many potential cases for
workmen's compensation claims.

During my meeting with GM Engineer's in December of 2002, I made them aware of the serious negative health
consequences of drivers turning the high effort steering Impala, and the need for immediate corrective actions by lowering the
steering effort. They failed to take corrective actions.

We have a very serious problem which will develop into a world-wide crisis. Something so seemingly small and innocent as
the effort generated by the body to turn a steering wheel is going to result in such a monstrous epitaph to human kind.

Are we smart enough to recognize a new "the world isn't flat" warning again, or do we wait for the day when history identifies the
inability to perform physical processes?

Bill Carrell experienced the following health problems as a result
of driving his new 1994 Pontiac Bonneville. After purchasing the
1994 Bonneville he drove to Vermont from Florida. He developed
a painful left shoulder and when he arrived he held his left arm in
a sling because he was unable to move it. He sought immediate
medical attention. He was prescribed strong pain medication.
He and his wife Jane cancelled their trip to Michigan to return to
Florida for medical treatment of his painful shoulder.
The pain medication resulted in internal bleeding in his stomach.
He collapsed from the loss of blood. The loss of blood prompted
the need for a valve replacement in his heart. He developed
chronic pain throughout his body. It wasn't until after he died that I made the discovery of the dynamic forces relative to high
effort steering. I drove his 1994 Pontiac and within 20 minutes my left arm became painful. This vehicle should never have
been produced with a high effort steering system like this. (The automotive industry failed to consider the human physical
limitations and the mechanical process of the human body delivering the forces required to overcome the steering wheel
resistance to turning.)

Adults compare their children's fingers to their adult deformed fingers.   High effort steering started to appear in vehicles in
1986, and about that time the children's popularity of video games started to skyrocket. Adults and children's finger deformities
started appearing at the same time in history. If an adult examined his child's fingers, they would compare them to theirs, and
not realize that they both had developed finger deformities. Last year I visited a famous children's hospital. The children's hand
specialist said he would have to examine 250 children's fingers, select the mean and that would represent the benchmark for
straightness of children's fingers. A good view of straight fingers is shortly after children are born...before they start playing with
toys or heavy objects.

NOTE: The mechanical process of delivering the necessary forces to overcome the steering resistance to turning, entails the
body abruptly jerking the weight of the upper torso onto both hip joints and utilizing the L-4, and L-5 to pivot the weight/force.
With every change of angle involved in force delivery, some force is lost. Any loss of force must be replaced during delivery, and
the force replacement process results in additional shock loading and stress to the skeletal and soft tissues, expediting
accumulative damage.

The book "Our Silent Epidemic" and this website were created because the automotive, video, computer, and coloring
industries have failed to respond to our discoveries. Our children's deformities continue to get worse (physical hand
functional limitations) as they age, and adults are experiencing more unnecessary medical operations and chronic physical
health.

The information in this website is from our 5+ year study of children's deformed fingers from video gaming and adult health
problems from driving high effort steering systems. It is intended to provide enough information so you can recognize the
children and adult deformities and file complaints with the agencies listed to encourage an investigation and take corrective
actions with the manufacturers.

If you have experienced these health problems contact your physician or refer them to the information on this site. According
to GM the steering on the Impala cannot be reduced. However, maybe your vehicle will allow an adjustment to a lower
non-damaging steering effort.

If you cannot obtain corrective action from your manufacturer then please contact the National Highway Traffic Safety
Administration (NHTSA) in Washington, D.C.

National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, Washington, DC 20590   Toll free 1-888-327-4236

Governors in every state have been contacted about the children's finger deformities and "high effort steering" vehicles. Many
Political leaders are also aware. Therefore, feel free to contact your Senator or Congressman about these issues. You can
look their contact information at the website:
http://www.firstgov.gov/Agencies/Federal/Legislative.shtml, Click on either the Senator or Representative block

Suggested additional reading: Crippling Damage from the High Effort Steering Chevrolet - Impala