A lot of what we take for granted in the modern automobile has come along only after a great deal of trial and error - and, perhaps, neglect. Take, for instance, the humble headrest. While a headrest design was patented in 1923, the National Highway Transportation Association only passed a law that all passenger cars should have headrests in 1969 - after hundreds of thousands of spine injuries as the result of whiplash. The safety belt was first put to use in horse-drawn carriages in the 1850s, but wouldn't be standard-issue in cars until the early 1960s. Sadly, many of the most basic innovations that are part of every automobile interior today came about this way. Grim, but true. These are the most dangerous car interiors - and a few that were unique for ushering in safety before it was fashionable.
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