That’s Cooked: Oscar Mayer Wienermobile Crash Shuts Down Highway

I always jump on the opportunity to cover an Oscar Mayer Wienermobile story. After all, it’s the kind of vehicle that brings a smile to people’s faces regardless of their age and background, though today’s Wienernews isn’t particularly upbeat. According to USA Today, the smaller, Mini-based version of the wheeled wiener shut down a section of the northbound I-294 near Chicago after rolling over and blocking the right lane Monday morning.

Illinois State Police reports that the Oscar Mayer machine was traveling northbound on the toll road when it struck a Hyundai. It’s unclear if the unidentified Hyundai was traveling in front of it or to its side. Either way, the Hotdogger (the official title for the Wienermobile operator) hit the Hyundai, lost control of the vehicle, and “proceeded to overcorrect.” That’s when things went sideways—literally—and the wiener rolled over.

Perhaps most surprisingly for such a specialty vehicle, no injuries were reported. Listen, I have never been involved in a rollover crash, and I hope I never am, but I can imagine that enduring a rollover crash in a 23-foot-long hot dog has got to be pretty wild. As it turns out, the Wienermobile is somehow reasonably safe.

If it looks oddly small on the back of a flatbed, that’s because this Wienermobile is more of a cocktail weenie compared to the traditional RV-sized one you might have seen around.

The Chicago Sun Times reports that the local authorities and emergency crews quickly arrived on the scene and rendered support to the Hotdogger. Nothing was said of the Hyundai driver—because if you’re involved in a crash with the Oscar Mayer Wienermobile, you should know you won’t get any airtime. Either way, I hope they’re okay.

This isn’t the first time the rolling hot dog sculpture gets involved in a wreck. The Wienermobile crashed in Pennsylvania about nine years ago, and despite not rolling over that time, the vehicle showed considerably more damage. The overall design of the Wienermobile has drastically changed over the last decade, so perhaps it’s also made it safer.

I’m just glad everyone is okay, and I hope America’s sweetheart continues to do what Oscar Mayer intends for it to do: “Spread the joy and love of meat.”