BusTalk

[Mr. Linsky]

The new Lincoln ads claim that their cars can virtually park themselves!

I don't exactly know what they mean by that, and unless I see one actually do it, I'm hard pressed to believe it!

However, I have found a couple of photos of a car that really does at least help itself to easy parking in tight spots;

Pictured is a 1951 Cadillac out of one of Southern California's many customizing houses with a 'fifth wheel'.

The wheel, complete with full size tire and proper hub cap, has been placed between the rear end and the fuel tank and, in some way, is lowered and raised much like airplane landing gear.

My questions are; is the turning of the tire powered independently by an electric motor or is it driven off the rear end some how?

There's also another consideration; it would occur to me that anyone sitting on a side of the rear seat might cause the car to tip making the 'parking wheel' useless.

Obviously, the method never caught on but it certainly is an interesting concept.

Photo credits within frames.

Mr. Linsky - Green Bus Lines, Inc., Jamaica, NY

[Hart Bus]

I think it would have also been fantastic if they could have put another or "sixth" tire in the front so that you'd slide right into the spot and therefore, not have to learn parallel parking for road tests

[ripta42]