Highway 50 crash totals sedan

A car bound for an auto-parts salvage yard was wrecked Tuesday afternoon when it was rear-ended as it was being towed to Pick-N-Pull.

The sedan was being pulled by a tow truck that also was carrying a pickup. The three-car combination was eastbound on Highway 50 East at 1:15 p.m. when the collision occurred.

The Emerald Bay Towing Co. truck was struck while slowing to make a right-hand turn off Highway 50 into Pick-N-Pull.

The Ford Aerostar van, which struck the sedan, was driven by a 27-year-old Carson City woman who was cited for following too closely, said Nevada Highway Patrol Trooper Mark Zacha.

The accident, which occurred in front of the business' driveway at 7777 Highway 50 East, did not tie up traffic and no injuries were reported.

Pick-N-Pull buyer Norma Bartoli said, "I was going to buy it. But it just became a zero-dollar car."

Wade McKinley, of Pick-N-Pull, said nothing was special about the run-of-the-mill Mazda GLC.

The car had been taken from an impound lot in Lake Tahoe and was headed for the parts lot -- just one of about 40 autos that find a home there each week.

Now, the car will head to an impound lot in Carson City until all claims from the accident are settled.

"Then it may come back," McKinley said.

Bartoli said she had no way of knowing what she may have paid for the car.

"I have absolutely no idea what condition it was in before it got here," she said. "I can't even begin to estimate."

The auto was struck from the rear and rolled on its side as the tow-truck driver made the turn into the driveway.

Autos in the yard are sold as parts -- "bring your own tools pull your own parts," Bartoli said.