Bet you didn't know they had this in the 50's:

[Kingofalldems]

Link to tweet

[msongs]

1. yes we had no link to tweet then. better world in that regard. nt

[PoindexterOglethorpe]

2. Well, it's not as though it was common.

I'm pretty sure that was a prototype that was only demonstrated a few times and never put into production.

[radical noodle]

3. There's an article & video

that shows how it actually worked. I was born in the 40s and never saw one.

http://www.oldcarsweekly.com/car-of-the-week/car-of-the-week-self-parking-1953-packard-cavalier

[Binkie The Clown]

4. I want one! Yes, seriously. n/t

[FakeNoose]

5. He's joking right?

That wheel is not for parking, and it's not an antique jack either.
The 5th wheel was your spare for whenever you got a flat. (It used to happen frequently too.)

Before radials were invented, you could put a spare tine into any of 4 positions on the car.
There was no left or right side, so it could go anywhere. It was the radial tires that made this obsolete.

On the other hand, radial tires combined with front wheel drive have made driving FAR SAFER now than in the 1950's.
I don't miss these at all.

Just sayin'

[WinkyDink]

6. Yeah, no.

[elleng]

7. Don't recall seeing it,

but was just a kid!

[lastlib]

8. "Two hundred eighty five baby-coach wheels we stole. The odd wheel...

...was because old Weird Harold had a Continental."



(from the album "Wonderfulness&quot

[Iggo]

9. "Unfortunately, the auto-makers were not interested."

"The current owner of the prototype says it still works today."