Rumble seat.
RUMBLE SEAT!
In response to a post on someone's LJ this morning, the topic of the obsolete rumble seat in old cars came up and I posted the above photo. A rumble seat, as you can see, took the place of the trunk and was incorporated into some early model two-seaters to provide additional seating by opening the seat. The feature did not survive the 1930s, I believe. As a kid in the 1940s I remember seeing them in the neighborhood. I thought they were fun. I even sat in a rumble seat once or twice, but not for a ride.
Once cars got higher speeds, it would have been very uncomfortable to ride there. They were the devil to get in and out of too. You had to climb up over part of the body of the car, very awkward for many. Often a "step" was provided over the protruding wheel covers, as well as handle-grips, to facilitate access and egress. I suppose that once inside, you could feel like an appendage to the vehicle as you rumbled along the highway in this open trunk and hoped it didn't rain.
In response to a post on someone's LJ this morning, the topic of the obsolete rumble seat in old cars came up and I posted the above photo. A rumble seat, as you can see, took the place of the trunk and was incorporated into some early model two-seaters to provide additional seating by opening the seat. The feature did not survive the 1930s, I believe. As a kid in the 1940s I remember seeing them in the neighborhood. I thought they were fun. I even sat in a rumble seat once or twice, but not for a ride.
Once cars got higher speeds, it would have been very uncomfortable to ride there. They were the devil to get in and out of too. You had to climb up over part of the body of the car, very awkward for many. Often a "step" was provided over the protruding wheel covers, as well as handle-grips, to facilitate access and egress. I suppose that once inside, you could feel like an appendage to the vehicle as you rumbled along the highway in this open trunk and hoped it didn't rain.