Built-in jacks like the Smiths "Jackall" system were a thing on mid-to-high-end cars from the '30s. I've been unable to identify any other systems. Does anyone have more information? I got to wondering after my wife sent me a c.1930 short film about a lateral-parking system. I'd seen it before, and I'm sure many on here have too. It's the one which uses a rear-mounted spare to lift the rear end of the car and shift it laterally. It seems to have been a compulsion among inventors for a time. A frustration to me as an architect is the amount of area manœuvring a car takes. I actually did manage to get built a domestic garage with pallets on rails, which allowed a car to be moved laterally. It worked surprisingly well. Another way to do that would be a built-in jacking system with small powered wheels at the ends of the jacks. I have little doubt that it'd probably be asking for trouble. Still ...
The Jalopy Journal
