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                         Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: MONDAY, March 1, 1993                   TAG: 9303010209
SECTION: EDITORIAL                    PAGE: A-6   EDITION: METRO 
SOURCE: 
DATELINE:                                 LENGTH: Short

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NBC CHEATED ON THE TEST

THIS IS ABOUT General Motors' suit on NBC's test of their vehicles. The test was improperly done. An experiment must have a control element, and NBC's did not. Their use of ignitors deleted the control. They used something other than what was given to them to ignite the fuel leaking out. In essence, they cheated.

The trucks may be faulty, but sparks would not be present in every single wreck. I estimate that it would take a crash at 40 miles per hour or more to create enough sparks. Most of the time, the two vehicles will have slowed to less than that before impact. JOSEPH R. HYLTON SALEM

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